Investment in higher education in the country continues to reap dividends as according to QS World Universities Rankings 2012, five Pakistani universities have won a place in the list of top 300 universities in Asia.
Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) UK is the world’s most renowned and prestigious ranking agency.
National University of Science and Technology (NUST-108), Karachi University, AKU, Lahore University of Management Sciences and Lahore University are now in top 300 Asian universities.
It speaks volumes of the hard work put in by the management and faculty of these universities and consistent support of the Higher Education Commission (HEC).
The HEC is focusing on development of critical technologies, including biotechnology and genetics, immunology, robotics and automation, nanotechnologies, superconductivity, computer vision, photo-optics and lasers and nuclear fusion for energy etc, which is important for the strategic growth of Pakistan.
Pakistani universities have produced more PhDs in the last nine years (3,280) – since the establishment of HEC – than in the earlier 55 years of its existence. Research output has grown eight-folds since 2002 (from 815 in 2002 to 6,200 in 2011), which is a remarkable achievement by any world standard. Nearly 5,000 scholars from Pakistan have been facilitated to present their research work in leading conferences of the world. Researchers from Pakistan have established academic linkages with their counterparts in every leading university of the world, including the US, UK, China, Germany, France, Australia and Korea, etc.
Pakistani scientists, engineers and technologists are the country’s single biggest strategic asset. Until five years ago, these were concentrated in a few strategic organisations; however, the revolution in higher education brought about by HEC has ensured that every engineering and science and technology university has started to blossom into a centre of research and innovation.
The HEC has integrated Pakistan and broken the elitist myth of availability of talent only in big cities by providing scholarships to talented student belonging to the middle class and poor segments of society through a transparent process of merit. DT