Empty Universities, empty future.
Khurram Shahzad
According to the Economic Survey of Pakistan 2024-25, the total number of students enrolled in 269 universities in Pakistan was 1.94 million, which is a 13% decrease compared to the previous year. The largest decline was seen in South Punjab, where the rate fell by 29%. However, in 2025, the situation has worsened even further. Many universities are struggling to meet their targets despite advertising admissions multiple times. This raises questions about the current education system and signals a looming educational crisis.
One of the reasons cited by students for these challenges is the perceived substandard teaching methods, which result in them receiving a degree or a piece of paper but lacking practical knowledge. Students believe that the syllabus is outdated and mismatched with modern requirements. Even today, rote learning without research is prevalent, to the extent that if someone dares to answer a question with references from various journals, they are deemed incorrect and told to write what is in the textbooks.
The biggest reason for the backwardness and deterioration of Pakistan's education system is that children here are being taught in a language that is not their own, which has an alphabet that does not match any local language. As soon as a child enters school, they are subjected to rote learning of 'Baba Black Sheep' and 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star,' which the child does not understand, nor are the words and phrases familiar to them. The rote learning that starts from nursery continues all the way to universities; this is why the theses from Pakistani universities rank among the top in plagiarism and imitation.
The decline in admissions is also due to the flaws in educational examinations, which are based solely on memory and not on intelligence. The situation has now deteriorated to the point where, in addition to copying, personal relationships are also exploited. It is often heard that girls need to maintain special relationships with their teachers to obtain good grades.
The Higher Education Commission's (HEC) self-reliance policy has pushed public universities under the pressure of self-sufficiency, although the primary goal of these institutions was to provide affordable and quality education. Since 2018, there has been no significant increase in public funding for universities, which has caused several institutions to face severe financial crises. The severity of the financial crisis has led many institutions to struggle with paying teachers' salaries and obtaining funds for purchasing research materials and chemicals in laboratories. Lack of investment in the research sector could have serious repercussions on the national economy and policy-making. If we neglect our laboratories and research infrastructure, the effects will reverberate across every sector of the economy.
Due to low funding, the educational standards of public universities are declining, and universities have had to continuously increase fees to boost their revenue, which has directly burdened students and their families. This growing financial pressure has not only affected enrollment rates but has also made higher education a distant dream for intelligent but economically weaker students. Students are beginning to prefer short-term courses and skill acquisition. In response to the shocking rise in fees, it is argued that these fees are much lower compared to those in foreign countries. However, when asked what the per capita income in those foreign countries is and how it compares to Pakistan, there is only a profound and grave silence.
The decline in admissions is also due to the increasing incidents of harassment, especially on social media, where state control is almost negligible. There has been an alarming increase in cases of sexual harassment against female students in universities and social media stories causing a wave of concern among respectable families.
In the Pakistani job market, current degrees hold no significance. The government is continuously eliminating jobs. The private sector is expected to self-regulate and is not willing to keep even one extra employee. The fundamental demand in the private sector is that one must be capable of performing tasks; since many do not possess such skills and only have information, while demands are very high, the unemployment rate is continuously rising. Salaries in the private sector are embarrassingly low. Many with M.Phil and Ph.D. degrees are forced to work for a few thousand, while even a vendor or a rickshaw driver can earn more than them daily.
Information technology and artificial intelligence have reduced the need for manpower; where four people were required before, one person is now enough, resulting in a decreased demand for workers in the market. Moreover, there is absolutely no requirement for any degree in this field. There is also no effective check on the positive and negative use of information technology. Young people have joined the race to make money by promoting pointless and immoral content, which is ongoing as a cold war against research, knowledge, ethics, social traditions, family systems, and collective thinking. The unnecessary use of social media is also a significant reason for distancing from education and teachers.
Now the time demands that we seriously reassess our educational system, otherwise these empty classrooms are a sign of an empty future tomorrow. For this, a curriculum is needed from nursery to graduation. A commission should be formed consisting of representatives from all universities, boards, industry, and religious sectors, which, keeping in mind the local issues and resources of Pakistan, establishes a comprehensive education system that assists people in their practical lives so that after receiving education, they can become skilled and proficient to contribute to their own and Pakistan's economic development.
The writer is an Herbal Physician. He can be reached at: [email protected]. |