Doctoral programme: HEC holds send-off ceremony for 73 scholars

Visually-impaired student among those heading to Germany

ISLAMABAD: The Higher Education Commission (HEC) on Wednesday organised a send-off ceremony for 73 scholars including a visually-impaired student ahead of their proceeding to Germany for doctoral studies.

Interviews of the scholars were held under the Overseas Scholarship Scheme Phase-II and Aghaze Haqooqe Balochistan Project in May. Of the 73 candidates, 13 have been recommended for MS-cum-PhD, while the rest have been selected for PhD studies. The scholarship holders also included visually-impaired student Imran Qaisar, who thanked the HEC and the governments of Germany for his selection.

German Ambassador Ina Lepel, HEC Chairman Dr Mukhtar Ahmed and Section Head of German Academic Exchange Service, DAAD,Dr Barth Manzoori and other were also present.

Lepel congratulated students and said Pakistan’s national poet, Allama Muhammad Iqbal, also studied in Germany and the students proceeding to Germany were lucky to follow in his footsteps. She said that as many as 300 Pakistani scholars have already completed their studies in German universities.

The ambassador said academic and social life in Germany will provide the students a great opportunity to learn and have new exposures. She urged the students to make friends, enjoy life and learn in Germany.

Ahmed said that the HEC has penned agreements with several foreign countries for collaboration. He said that HEC has so far provided 9,800 foreign scholarships to the students. He said that the HEC ensures merit in selection of students and 58 per cent students were from small towns and remote areas.

Currently, the number of faculty members serving in Pakistani universities is 40,000; of them only 10,000 are PhDs, the HEC chairman said.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 19^th, 2015.