Top varsity rankings still awaited

LAHORE:

The Punjab government has yet to release a ranking of the province's top 10 universities under a performance-based evaluation announced last year.

The initiative was designed to assess more than 60 universities across Punjab and identify the 10 highest performing ones.

According to Punjab Higher Education Commission (PHEC) sources, the project was estimated to cost Rs50 million and the plan was to update the rankings annually with results affecting future funding allocations and policy decisions.

A professor said the provincial government appeared hesitant to issue the rankings along with scores, assessment criteria and the names of the top 10 institutions.

The initiative is separate from the PHEC's efforts to introduce measurable performance indicators for vice chancellors. The commission had approved key performance indicators (KPIs) for heads of public sector universities last year, taking into account differences in institutional age and scale.

The framework is intended to assess university leadership through measurable academic and administrative outcomes. Relevant areas include research output, teaching standards, faculty development, student performance, financial management, governance and progress against development plans.

The Rawalpindi Women University VC had last week led a session with academic and administrative heads on the KPIs and rankings.

According to sources, the government had also planned to take action against VCs over poor performance.