Private Universities of Pakistan

"There is a near unanimity among Pakistanis that the nation's public higher education system is a disaster," wrote James Coffman, executive director of the United States Educational Foundation in Pakistan in the journal International Higher Education, Fall 1997.

The same holds true today, four years later.

"Public universities are in slumber," says Hasan Sohaib Murad, rector of the University of Management and Technology in Lahore during a recent interview with YesPakistan.com. The institution falls under the umbrella of the Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM), which is affiliated with Hamdard University, one of Pakistan's best private universities. "Enrolment in public universities is shrinking. People would rather go to private institutions and get something valuable than going to the public sector and getting it (education) free," he adds.

That "something valuable" is a solid education that doesn't just look good on paper, but can ensure a job at graduation time. There are about 2.4 million Pakistanis who are unemployed. The mushrooming of private institutions in Pakistan is reflective of the desire to secure not just enlightenment but employment in the real world as well.

There are about 28 public and private universities and over 100 "affiliated" or "constituent" colleges, technical training institutes, teacher training schools and other specialized institutions. Among the private institutions, some of the best are Hamdard University, Aga Khan University and Lahore University of Management Sciences. These schools have established a reputation for professionalism and quality that most of Pakistan's public universities are lacking.

And what do these private schools have that public universities don't?

Plenty.

For starters, their programs are focused not on theoretical and abstract ideas out of touch with the real world. Private institutions for years have been offering programs in fields that employers are looking for: information technology, marketing, retail management and more. Contrast this with, for instance, the University of Punjab, Pakistan's largest and oldest university. They only established a computer science department at the bachelor's level last year.

And the job success rate for graduates of private universities tends to be higher than that of graduates of public institutions.

"Many of our students were able to get jobs in the US and Canada in Fortune 500 companies," says Murad of his university. He adds that the students did not have to repeat any of their training. They went straight from ILM to companies abroad.

Another advantage in private institutions is that there is better faculty morale, since professors are better paid than in public institutions. In fact, during the 1980s and 1990s, a number of professors in public universities left because they could not survive on the salaries they were receiving.

Private universities also offer more vigorous training to students. Murad explains that at his university, students must spend about 70 hours a week on their work. In contrast, in most public universities, many students simply spend 10 hours before an exam and easily pass courses. "There is no systematic assessment on various kinds of scales," he says.

A lack of professionalism and corruption also pervades public institutions. It is not uncommon to find professors strolling in to class late but leaving early. Nor is it surprising to see universities shut down in the afternoon. Students are not given a course outline at the beginning of the class and libraries are rarely visited by students.

But this problem also plagues a number of private institutions as well. "…Many other private institutions have been opened that have not come under the purview of any official body and that violate basic ethical, if not legal, standards in attracting their paying customers. Indeed, many private institutions are now exhibiting free-wheeling, unregulated, and brazen market tactics, where corruption, smuggling, counterfeiting and trademark infringement are the rule," wrote James Coffman, executive director of the United States Educational Foundation in Pakistan in the journal International Higher Education, Fall 1997.

The success of private universities though comes without any government support financially or otherwise. When it comes to resources, public institutions definitely have the upper hand. About 67 percent of all public university income comes from federal grants. They have more professors with doctorates; vast campuses; lab facilities and many, many more students. Private universities and institutes are much smaller operations with not as many qualified personnel.

One key drawback of any private institution is of course the cost. Most Pakistanis cannot afford the fees for private universities. Although some institutions, like Murad's, do offer financial aid and scholarships, these are not enough to allow the access that all Pakistanis have to the free public universities where merit is the technically the only criteria for admission.

Nonetheless, private universities have made their mark in Pakistan and with more support from the government, can become even more useful for the development of qualified professionals in the country.

"If the government evaluates the private sector and guides tm to the right framework of operation, to accredit them according to performance, I think the private sector can be further useful in Pakistan," notes Murad.

Date/Time Last Modified: 6/17/2002 3:44:53 PM

Readers' Comment

rabia basri: 5/6/2006 10:59:08 PM
I would like to say just after reading this article that if the rectors of these private universities knows that their education is better than why dont they reduce their fees first and 2nd thing that talent lies in yourself if u are talanted u are every where its up to the student.I am a student of mass-communication(m.s.c) of lahore college for women university and i go to lums for workshop their were 24 universities of punjab and we got best speaker so its upto the student how can he utilizes his time and their are so many talanted students who wanted to take admission in lums but they are poor i think before critisizing govt universities they should look in their on collar are they having answer of my question if yes than do tell me???????????????????????

xxxxx: 10/17/2006 9:04:47 AM
about what rabi a basri wrote, i'm against her the main point that she said it was that if you're talented you can go to a nice university and have a bright future but it's not ture, if from the beginning the base the education and the teachers and the visual tools shown to a kid, if they're not good then how can a kid develop interest, it's not only the student's part that plays a major role but also the environment in which he's studying, there are so many students in pakistan who are talented but don't have the money to educate and there is rarely any support from government, i think student's role is 45% and he needs the motivation and the environment to study in.

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