Islamabad (LTN NEWS): Professor Ahsan Iqbal, the Federal Minister for Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives, has asked the Higher Education Commission (HEC) to make sure that higher education is in line with modern trends and needs, and that university courses are in line with the job market.
The minister said these things during a meeting at the Ministry with Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed, who had just been named Chairman of the HEC.
A press release from here on Tuesday says that on July 30, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif made Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed the head of the HEC.
While giving him his congratulations, the minister said that Dr. Mukhtar had a lot of experience in the education field, which would show in the policies of HEC.
“Scholarships should be given to the best universities and priority sectors,” the minister said, adding that HEC had been given a lot of money even though the economy was bad.
The minister also said that the academic and performance audit system of universities should be used to set up a competitive process.
He said that candidates should be chosen so that the Pakistan-America Knowledge Corridor Project can be successful.
Professor Iqbal said that steps should be taken so that the Dr. AQ Khan Metallurgy Institute can be built.
Dr. Ahmed is a well-known educationist. From 2014 to 2018, he was the head of the HEC.
From 2013 to 2014, he was the Executive Director of HEC. From 2005 to 2011, he was a Member (Operations and Planning) of HEC.
Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed has a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science from the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, as well as a Master in Business Administration and a Ph.D. from the University of California, Riverside, USA. He has more than 30 years of experience in educational development and management at national and international levels, including teaching, research, administration, policy development, linking educational research to industry/commercialization, and introducing entrepreneurial approaches.
