State of higher education

It is disheartening to note that only one Pakistani university has managed to secure a position among the top 500 universities in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings. But while even Quaid-e-Azam University was barely able to crack the top 500 - ranking in the 400-500 band - the top 2,000 universities include 47 based in Pakistan, which is a relatively respectable figure. Pakistan is placed 14th on the list of countries with universities on the Times rankings. Still, 14th seems a lot less impressive when we consider that Pakistan is the world's fifth-most populous country, and still only managed to tie with Taiwan, which has less than one-tenth of Pakistan's population.

This, in turn, raises serious concerns about the state of higher education in Pakistan and the factors contributing to this underperformance. It is also worth noting that several Pakistani universities have also slid in the rankings. Only seven moved up, while 10 saw their rankings decline. These intertwined issues require urgent attention as they raise questions about the quality of education, research output, infrastructure and overall academic standards in the country. The lack of diversity and innovation in academic programmes and research initiatives could be contributing to this dismal performance on the global stage.

It is also worth noting that of the 266 universities recognised by the HEC, only 94 participated in the rankings. While the 47 unranked universities can take solace in the fact that they might only have been excluded due to submission of incomplete data, it is worth asking why 172 recognised universities are happily collecting fees while shying from any scrutiny - the rankings are based entirely on self-reported, unaudited data, meaning that they are quite literally a comparison, rather than a critique. If the HEC is serious about improving education, the most cost-effective thing it could do is to check the quality of these stragglers and require higher standards for recognition.