'Education Expo' brings 60 universities under one roof in Karachi

Scholarships emerged as a key consideration for students exploring higher education options as Education Expo 2026 brought together 60 local and international universities in Karachi on Thursday.

The expo, organised by The City School, drew a large number of high school students from various local schools seeking information about admission to local and international universities. It allowed students to interact directly with university representatives and learn about programmes and career pathways.

Speaking with The Express Tribune, Head of Counselling, Alumni and Placement at The City School, Rabiya Sohail noted that the event featured leading Pakistani universities as well as institutions from the UK, Canada, Malaysia and Turkey.

The local institutions represented included Institute of Business Administration, Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture, Lahore University of Management Sciences, as well as institutions offering accountancy and other programmes. “The response to the expo has been positive, with both students and university representatives showing strong interest,” she said.

Rabiya stated that scholarships were a key factor in determining where students ultimately chose to study. “If students get good scholarships, they will go anywhere,” she said.

“Pakistan is a very big market. South Asia is generally a big market,” Rabiya said, adding that international universities were also keen to attract Pakistani students. “We have one of the biggest youth populations, and they all want to go to universities. We have to give them those opportunities.”

She added that Pakistani students continued to show strong interest in studying in English-speaking countries, although destinations such as Germany, China, Malaysia and Turkey were also now attracting students.

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Also speaking with The Express Tribune, Canadian Higher Education Advisor Helen Khan said that the number one thing that Pakistani students looked for while making higher education choices was scholarships. She further underscored that students from Pakistan also targeted securing permanent residency after their graduation.

“The thing that they want to know about is available scholarships and what kind of outcome do they get when they graduate? Are they going to be able to get a job? And not only when they graduate, but can they get a job while they are abroad, and can they work while they study?" she said.

When asked if students were giving more preference to programmes like AI, machine learning and cybersecurity, Helen stated that Pakistani students showed great interest in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) courses, as a “general computing science degree might not get you the job that you might want in the future”.

Asked whether universities were adapting artificial intelligence (AI) in their programmes, Rabiya also noted that many international universities were incorporating AI into their courses and offering programmes such as data analytics.

Manager of International Recruitment at the University of Lethbridge, Taseera Lwanga, stated that preparing the students for study abroad was very important and that it came down to the schools, further noting that while some schools in Pakistan were “really good”, others had a bit of catching up to do.

“Generally, for us, students from Pakistan are good students and their success rate is high. Those who end up coming abroad, they do really well and are high performers,” Lwanga remarked.

He further noted that universities in Canada, Australia and the UK were “very expensive”, adding that Pakistani students therefore tend to inevitably inquire about available scholarships. “Higher education abroad is an expensive venture, which is why we offer some partial merit scholarships. Students can, however, work while they study, and that is an incentive,” he added.

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The impact of AI on the “jobs of the future” and future career pathways has been of considerable interest in both Pakistan and at the global level.

Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan (ICAP) Outreach and Communication Deputy manager Saad Aalam Angaria noted that there were fears among prospective CA students that AI was going to take over their jobs in the future. “This is not true. On the contrary, AI is going to assist chartered accountants and bring more efficiency. The role of the human in decision-making on financial matters can never be replaced by AI,” he said.

He further explained how ICAP had incorporated AI and data analytics as an integrated module in the final level of its programme. “It will be a chartered accountant who is going to determine what expert assistance is required and whether AI has responded to the required prompt. The role of AI in the field of accounting and finance will only be that of a facilitator,” he stated.

Students from The City School, who were interested in pursuing medicine, also said that AI represented a threat because of advances in robotics and biotechnology that could “replace humans” and perform surgeries in the near future.

The expo also featured a panel discussion titled "Building Global Citizens: Inclusivity and Access" on the state of the education system in Pakistan, the challenges faced by schools and teachers in “building global citizens” and how learning outcomes could be improved in the classroom through the use of modern technology.

The panel speakers included Zindagi Trust and Durbeen Head of Communications Tooba Saleem, Aga Khan University Faculty of Arts and Sciences Dean Dr Kulsoom Ghias, Humanex CEO Hassan Tariq, and City School Operations Assistant Director Rehana Afzal.