Caps and gowns: 1,963 graduates step out of NED university

The 23rd convocation of the country's premier engineering institution takes place

KARACHI: As many as 1,963 students were awarded degrees at the 23rd convocation of the NED University of Engineering and Technology, held on Wednesday.

The graduation ceremony of the university, which has been producing engineering graduates for the past nine decades, was presided over by Sindh education minister Nisar Ahmed Khuhro. Higher Education Commission chairperson Dr Mukhtar Ahmed was the chief guest.

Around 1,537 students were awarded Bachelor's degrees in 20 disciplines of engineering and technology, while 424 more earned Master's degrees from 19 postgraduate programmes. Two doctorate degrees were also conferred at the convocation, one each on Hasina Khatoon in computer engineering and Hashim Raza Khan in electronic engineering.

The university also awarded gold medals to the students who bagged the overall first position in their relevant field of engineering and technology, while those who stood second and third were presented with merit certificates.

With the university being only seven years away from its centennial celebrations, vice-chancellor Prof Dr Muhammad Afzal Haque found it pertinent to share its history with the students, their parents and other guests. "The institution was founded in 1922 when the British administration was in need of civil engineers for the construction of the Sukkur Barrage," he explained. "Ever since then, graduates from the university have contributed their energies in the most vital exercises of nation-building — from the design and construction of roads and highways to the expansion of port and harbour works."

What began as a modest college offering undergraduate civil engineering courses at its inception, added Dr Haque, has now transformed into an eminent university offering 27 undergraduate as well as 42 postgraduate and doctoral programmes.

A tough job market?

While a large number of the graduating students were already employed by a myriad of government, private and multinational organisations, those who still awaited employment opportunities appeared confident about their skills. However, some of them lamented the downtrend in job market catering to their relevant fields of expertise.

"We are skilled and capable of serving our country but there are few public and private investments in the field of metallurgy," said Muhammad Tariq, who graduated with third position in metallurgical engineering.

In many disciplines, believed Tariq, the country's premier engineering institution has been producing professionals who are actually surplus to the industry's requirements due to the poor economic policies and rationing of resources by successive governments.

"The country's steel production, for instance, has witnessed a massive decline in the past decade and there seem to be no substantial expansion plans in the public sector," he added. "Perhaps it is for this reason that no more than eight out of the 55 graduates in my batch have secured jobs."

The situation for other disciplines such as textile, electronic and telecommunication engineering was diametrically opposed to the position of metallurgical and material engineering graduates. Muhammad Zain Raza and Danyal Rashid Khan, textile engineering graduates employed by leading textile firms, told The Express Tribune that almost all 45 of their batchmates were happily employed even before they graduated.

"I believe our department was an exception in this context, however," added Raza. "Despite the fact that Pakistan's textile industry has been losing its competitiveness to other countries, it still has better prospects for young graduates."

Published in The Express Tribune, March 26^th, 2015.