The 10^th Convocation of the University of Education (UoE) Lahore conferred degrees upon more than 8000 students here on Wednesday. The convocation ceremony was presided over by Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Talat Naseer Pasha, while the Chairperson of Punjab Higher Education Commission (PHEC) Prof Dr Shahid Munir was the chief guest.

Vice-Chancellors of various universities and important personalities from academic and social circles also presented on the occasion. In the convocation, 8087 students including 15 PhD, 287 MPhil/MS and 7785 undergraduate and graduates awarded degrees. On this occasion, 48 graduating students were also be given medals for outstanding positions. The special feature of the 10th convocation of UoE is that this time all the proceedings of the ceremony have been conducted in the national language (Urdu).

During his presidential address at the convocation, Vice-Chancellor Dr Talat Naseer Pasha congratulated all the students, their parents and teachers who received degrees and medals. He said that of course Convocation is a historic and emotional occasion for students, parents and teachers.

The Vice-Chancellor said that more than 29,000 students in the University of Education are currently being provided excellent education by around 500 qualified teachers, more than 60% of whom are PhD. In UoE, the mega project has been completed in terms of education, training and construction, we have constructed new educational blocks at Township, Jauharabad and DG Khan Campus, central library, new auditorium, 39 science and computer labs, botanical gardens etc. University has recently formally launched its 5^th Division, the Division of Islamic and Oriental Learning. The Vice-Chancellor further said that the University of Education, Lahore has achieved prominent positions in various national and international rankings in terms of quality. UoE also distributed scholarships worth Rs. 150 million to its needy and intelligent students last year, he added.

While congratulating the students, the chief guest Chairperson PHEC Prof Dr Shahid Munir said that the development of any country and nation depends on its young generation, whose best education and training is our unanimous social responsibility. And I am proud to say that the University of Education, Lahore has fulfilled its responsibility well, the university is providing the best opportunities to the new generation in terms of education and training.

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The University of Health Sciences (UHS) Lahore will now issue the schedule of admissions to nursing colleges.  No public or private sector nursing college in Punjab will be able to conduct B.Sc Nursing admissions before the notification of the schedule by the university. Violating college will be fined Rs one million.  Moreover, biometric attendance has also been made mandatory for B.Sc nursing students.

In addition, UHS will take legal action against institutions offering part-time nursing programmes and police FIRs will be registered against such institutions.

These decisions were taken in the 31st meeting of the UHS Board of Studies Nursing, on Wednesday, which was presided over by Vice-Chancellor Prof. Ahsan Waheed Rathore.  The heads of 47 affiliated nursing colleges from across Punjab participated in the meeting.

On this occasion, UHS VC said that some private nursing colleges were admitting children without the permission and affiliation of the university, which was a complete violation of the law.  He said that the university had decided to adopt a strict policy in this regard.  In the meeting, a committee was formed under the chairmanship of DG Nursing Punjab to recommend a schedule and eligibility criteria for BSc nursing admissions.  The committee will submit the admission schedule and eligibility criteria within ten days which will be notified after the approval of the Punjab government.

It was agreed in the meeting that after the notification of the admission schedule, any increase in the number of seats in nursing colleges would not be acceptable for the current year.  In such a case, the decision of the Pakistan Nursing Council to increase the seats of the colleges would be applicable from the next academic session.

Professor Ahsan Waheed Rathore further said that the university was also bringing reforms in the syllabus and examination system of BSc Nursing.  He said that in exams, everything would no longer be left to the discretion of the examiner.  “Like MBBS, nursing will also have a structured viva and clinical exam”, he declared.

In the meeting, a committee consisting of senior professors was constituted to update the curriculum of B.Sc Nursing two-year and four-year programmes as per international standards.  In this regard, Professor Ahsan Waheed Rathore directed that the curriculum and training should be revised in such a way that varsity nursing graduates could easily clear any international exams.

Related: UHS revises MBBS examination system

Higher Education Commission (HEC) Pakistan, in collaboration with Pakistan High Commission in Colombo, held a three-day Higher Education Expo at Exhibition & Convention Centre (SLECC) in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Thirteen Pakistani public sector universities took part in the Expo and outreached students from Sri Lankan colleges and universities as well as parents. HEC officials, led by Project Director HEC Mr. Jehanzeb Khan, arranged two exclusive seminars to create awareness about higher education opportunities for Sri Lankan students in Pakistan, especially the Allama Iqbal Scholarships for Sri Lankan Students under the Pakistan-Sri Lanka Higher Education Cooperation Programme. Students and faculty raised different queries about the scholarship program, the educational system of Pakistan, and the facilities available for international students.

High Commissioner of Pakistan in Sri Lanka Major General (R) Umar Farooq Burki graced the event with his presence and appreciated the arrangements made by HEC at the Expo venue.

The Pakistan-Sri Lanka Higher Education Cooperation Programme offers scholarships to Sri Lankan students, student and faculty exchange opportunities, and professional training for Sri Lankan Government officials, in addition to efforts for enhanced collaboration through higher education expos and establishment of a Centre of Asian Civilisation in Sri Lanka. Under the Allama Iqbal Scholarships for Sri Lankan Students (BS/MS/PhD), HEC provides the Sri Lankan students an opportunity to study at the best Pakistan universities. Under the programme, 800 fully-funded and 200 partially-funded scholarships will be offered to Sri Lankan students from undergraduate to doctoral levels. So far, 330 fully-funded scholarships have been awarded; out of them, 11 scholarship recipients have completed their terminal degrees and are now serving in Sri Lanka.

The Pakistani universities which took part in the expo included DOW University of Health Sciences, Karachi, NED University of Engineering & Technology, Karachi, Liaquat University of Medical & Health Sciences, Jamshoro, Sindh, Iqra University, Karachi, University of the Punjab, Lahore, University of Engineering & Technology (UET), Lahore, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (UVAS), Lahore, University of Agriculture (UAF), Faisalabad, Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), Lahore, University of Lahore, Lahore, Institute of Management Sciences (IMSciences), Peshawar, National University of Science and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, and Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad.

Sri Lankan high officials, including Prof. Gunapala Nanayakkara, Advisor to Minister of Education, Prof. Nanayakkara, Chairman EDEX, R. M. M. Rathnayake, Principal, Royal College Colombo, and other dignitaries from various departments of Sri Lankan bureaucracy visited the Pakistan Pavilion at the SLECC. They appreciated the initiatives of the scholarship programme and efforts of HEC and Pakistan Government for enhancing the educational capacity of Sri Lankan youth.

Related: HEC launches 3rd Cohort for Newly Inducted Faculty Members

A delegation comprising members of the California State Assembly visited Government College University (GCU) Lahore on Wednesday where they met with students and heads of universities in Punjab.

Led by California Legislative Assembly Appropriations Committee Head Chris R Holden, the delegation addressed a session on educational collaborations between universities in Punjab and California.

During the session, GCU Lahore Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Asghar Zaidi proposed the establishment of an American Studies Center at GCU Lahore for effective coordination with Californian universities and the initiation of Joint Undergraduate Degree Programs. The Undergraduate programs would involve completing the first two years of education at universities in Punjab, followed by travel and studies at universities in California.

Prof Zaidi identified areas of mutual interest for collaboration and stressed the importance of initiating student exchange and faculty training programs. He explained that mutually beneficial educational exchanges would lead to a lasting and productive partnership between universities.

The VC informed the US delegation that Punjab has 51 public and 33 private universities with 500,000 students, and more than one million students are studying in 810 government and 1832 private colleges in the province.

During the session, California Legislative Assembly member Eloise Gomez Reyes appreciated the idea of joint degree programs and collaboration in oriental languages teaching for US students. She shared that the girl who has been running her office for the last six years is from Pakistan, and she is now her district director and often tries to teach her words in Urdu.

Dr Asif Mahmood, a renowned pulmonologist and doctor of internal medicine of Pakistani origin residing in California, expressed happiness at the declaration of Punjab and California as “sister states,” saying that they would strengthen this Punjab-California collaboration in every possible field. He also shared that it was his dream to study at GCU Lahore, which unfortunately couldn’t be materialized.

The Californian delegation included Melanie Caldwell Holden, Wendy Carrillo, Anna Goddard, Willie Armstrong, Alice Gomez Reyes, Christopher Reyes, Michael Max, Mike A Jepsen, Adriel Yang, and others who were accorded a warm welcome by students upon their arrival at GCU.

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The Department of Product and Industrial Design at the University of Engineering and Technology (UET) holds Alumni Guest Lecture on REPRO Design – TETRA PAK.

The PID dept invited Ali Maqsood to share his expertise on the subject of REPRO Packaging Design. Ali graduated from the department of product & industrial design and paved his path into the industry with extreme accountability. He is serving TETRA PAK for more than eight years. In his current position, as Senior Design Studio Executive, he felt the responsibility to serve his department by sharing his industrial knowledge on the techniques of the packaging process.

Ali delivered positive student-teacher engagement by answering the questions to the students of session 2020 who have participated in an INTERNATIONAL PACKAGING COMPETITION STAR PACK 2023.

The speaker ended his lecture with thanks to the chairman PID Dr Atif Bilal Aslam, Dr Salman Asghar Assistant Professor and the Lecture Organizer, Ms Aiman Amjad for inviting him to the department and encouraging such initiatives of industrial collaborations taken by product and industrial design department, UET, LHR.

While speaking on occasion, Ms Aiman Amjad said that such lectures are beneficial for students as they are able to get experience from people working in the industry. She added that apart from curriculum-based training, such programs provide industry exposure to the students.

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The 6th meeting of the Senate of Sindh Madressatul Islam University (SMIU) was held at SMIU’s Senate Hall on Tuesday chaired by Provincial Minister for Universities and Boards Muhammad Ismail Rahoo.

Vice-Chancellor SMIU Dr Mujeeb Sahrai and other members of the Senate including Dr A.Q. Mughal, Mr Shahzad Mahmood, Dr Jamshed Adil Halepota, Prof Dr Muhammad Malook Rind, Mr Asif Hussain Samo, Ms Quratulain Nazeer Ahmed, Mr Muhammad Naeem Ahmed, Mr Mushtaq Muhammad Gopang, Register Mr Ghulam Mustafa Shaikh, deans, chairpersons, heads of various sections and faculty members of SMIU attended the meeting.

The minutes and actions taken on the decisions of 5th Senate meeting were confirmed. A resolution was passed on the Annual Budget Estimated for the fiscal year of 2022-23 and the revised budget of the fiscal year of 2021-22.

The Vice-Chancellor Dr. Mujeeb Sahrai informed the Senate that government of Sindh has allocated Rs.292 million as a Grant-in-aid for the fiscal year of 2022-23. In this regard, the vice chancellor lauded the role of Chief Minister Sindh Syed Murad Ali Shah, Minster for Universities and Boards Mohammad Ismail Rahoo, Secretary Universities and Boards Muhammad Mureed Rahimoon and other officials of Sindh Government for their support. Adding to it, he said SMIU is needed more funds as it is an expanding university, which had planned to launch different development projects.

He also informed the Senate that SMIU is bearing expenditure of about 90 million rupees of SMIU’s Model School annually. Hence, to get separate budget for the SMIU Model School, the matter is with the provincial department of education and literacy. The vice chancellor hoped that the SMIU will be given separate budget for its School in the next fiscal year of 2023-24.

Rahoo said that he shall take efforts to get the matter resolved, because he conserved an important part of SMIU. The report of construction of two buildings i.e. I.T. Tower and SMIU Model Schools’ building in the city campus was presented and it was said that these buildings were constructed from SMIU’s own reserved funds. Similarly, the Senate was informed about the construction work of the Malir Campus and said that now its work has been spedized as compared to the years of Covid-19.

The Senate was informed that since the last two years, SMIU has progressed a lot in the field of research. Seven research journals are being published and out of them two have received Y- category from the HEC Pakistan. Thus, it was decided that financial assistance for research work will be sought from national and international organizations.

Dr. Mujeeb Sahrai informed the Senate that SMIU is going to organise a mega research event titled 1st Global Research Congress on 8th and 9th March 2023, that will boost the research culture in the country.

In the Senate it was decided that study visits for students within the country and abroad will be started at amid to give them exposure of the world. Some members raised questions on the leadership program initiated by the former management of the university, and in their response it was decided that a committee will be formed to look into the matter.

The Senate members lauded role of Vice Chancellor Dr. Mujeeb Sahrai playing for progress and development of SMIU.

Minister Mohammad Ismail Rahoo also gave his observations in the meeting and appreciated the services of Dr. Mujeeb Sahrai. He said SMIU being a historic educational institution is on the priority of the Government of Sindh, and he personally takes keen interest in its development. In the Senate meeting Fatiha was performed for victims of earthquake in Türkiye and Syria.

Meanwhile Rahoo attended oath taking ceremony organised by Directorate of Students Affairs for newly elected office bearers of SMIU’s nine students’ societies at the Sir Shahnawaz Bhutto Auditorium of the varsity. The Minister along with Vice Chancellor Dr. Mujeeb Sahrai and Senate Member Mr. A.Q. Mughal administered the oath. He also distributed certificates among the former office bearers of the Students’ Societies and their patrons.

Thereafter, in his address Mr. Muhammad Ismail Rahoo said students’ societies are essential for students’ growth as leader. Also, they provide various opportunities to their fellow students to exhibit their creative talent. But they shouldn’t compromise on their basic aim of acquiring education at the university.

Dr. Mujeeb Sahrai, Vice Chancellor SMIU congratulated the office bearers of the Student Council and said that their all activities should be for development and progress of the university. He praised their role in organising most meaningful events for learning and training of students.

Dr. Asif Ali Wagan, Director Students’ Affairs presented a welcome address and thanked the minister and vice chancellor for their support. Ms. Zonaira Jalali, Manager Students’ Affairs conducted the program. Deans, chairperson, officials and students attended the program.

Related: SMIU holds graduation ceremony of its Cohort

A seven-member delegation of the five leading Russian universities from different parts of Russia visited the University of Karachi (UoK) on Wednesday.

They met the UoK Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr Khalid Mahmood Iraqi at the VC Secretariat and discussed the proposals of initiating cooperation and bilateral programs for the faculty members and the students of both countries.

The visiting delegate comprising of Iana Grigoreva, Head of the International Department, and Irina Karpeeva, Expert of the International Department from Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University, Rustem Chanshev of Kazan Federal University, Aleksandra Shevchenko, Head of the International Department, and Nikita Sirotenko, Expert of Admission Department from Saint Petersburg State University of Industrial Technologies and Design, SPbSUITD, Natalia Kovaleva, Head of Academic Mobility Department, Ural Federal University, and Konstantin Vinogradov, Head of International Projects Department, Russian State Agrarian University – Moscow Timiryazev Agricultural Academy (RSAU – MTAA named after K.A. Timiryazev) briefed the UoK VC Prof Dr Khalid Iraqi, deans of various faculties, and members of the student’s advisory council about the programs and degrees offered in the Russian universities in detail.

Meanwhile, the UoK Students’ Advisor Dr Syed Asim Ali briefed the visiting delegation about the history of the University of Karachi and teaching and research activities conducted on the campus.

The visiting delegation and the UoK administration agreed that by establishing a good working relationship the UoK and Russian varsities could initiate various joint academic programs and would be able to provide facilities to their faculty and students.

They also discussed and agreed to launch faculty and student exchange programs, joint research publications, and co-supervising research work and publications at different departments of the UoK and Russian varsities.

The UoK and the Russian universities believe that multiple joint programs could be launched to facilitate scholars, students, and faculty of both countries. They also discussed plans for online participation in seminars and workshops.

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