Govt to support youth with schemes on merit

ISLAMABAD:

Students, professionals flocked to the two-day Expo in Islamabad which concluded amid cheers and enthusiasm.

Addressing the closing ceremony of Express Education and Career Expo 2014 on Sunday at Pak-China Friendship Centre, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Pervaiz Rashid said, “We will distribute laptops and other facilities on merit regardless of who chanted the slogan of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf or of Pakistan Muslim League”.



The minister stressed freedom of expression and said that everybody should have the right to ask questions in Pakistan. Financial aid and job placement were the two main concerns of the students that were addressed during the event.

Unlike typical academic events, The Express Education and Career Expo was an entertaining event that the visitors found very informative. The event also offered fun-filled activities for the students and fresh graduates.



The second day was even more entertaining as it saw the Pak-China Friendship Centre’s auditorium jam-packed. It was the fascinating fashion show and a melodious music competition between bands of different educational institutions.

“Oh, I thought it would only be about books and education, but there is so much to enjoy here. You get bored by just visiting the stalls, but it was all fun here,” said Faiza, an MBA student from the International Islamic University.



For participating universities and companies, the event offered a unique opportunity to showcase their attractive products, services and other offers.

“The exhibition was a great opportunity for us to make people aware of our brand and services,” said the University of Lahore’s representative, Adnan Ali, adding, “It was an interesting experience to share information about our institution.”

The Abasyn University Islamabad Campus representative Saad Ifran added that the majority of students were asking about scholarships and financial assistance in the courses offered.



The Quaid-e-Azam University public relations officer commented that some visitors asked him about the varsities’ participation in this event. “They wanted to know how come QAU needed publicity by attending the expo, and I replied that at an event where the Higher Education Commission, the Oxford Univeristy Press, the United States Educational Foundation Pakistan are making a big presence, QAA must also appear,” he remarked.

Earlier, very few people knew of the Centre for Advanced Studies in Engineering (CASE), but through the expo many students got well came to know of its campus in Islamabad. “For us, it was a big chance to introduce our university to engineering students,” said Iqbal Tabassum, an organiser at the CASE stall. He was quite excited over the large turnout.

For some of the youth, such as Jameel Shah, it was a struggling effort to get the required degree. “I am looking for PhD in electrical engineering as my MS is about to be completed but I could not find a single university offering this degree,” Shah complained.



The fashion show was the most crowded event at the expo – just as it was the previous year. Models from nine universities sashayed down the ramp in the main auditorium and received a resounding applause from the audience which included their classmates and university fellows.

Adorned in the traditional and western dresses, students from the Hamdard University, University of Lahore (UoL) Islamabad campus and other educational institutions catwalked amid the whistles, cheers and dazzling lights. UoL’s performance was not only applauded by its own students but of others as well as it was the winner in overall competitions that included singing, photography, painting, innovative business ideas.



Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Pakistan was the runner-up on the last day of expo.

Similarly, the closing ceremony was filled with dazzling performances. It was followed by a solemn award distribution, in which winners and runners-up from different competitions of the two-day event were handed out prizes.

The announcement of names of the university made the winners feel jubilant, and all of the participants of both the universities went on stage and danced in enthusiasm and euphoria, with their trophies.

Famous artist and actor Jamal Shah distributes the certificates among the winners.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 19^th, 2014.

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