This article presents an overview of university rankings in Pakistan. Within Pakistan, the Higher Education Commission (HEC) provides official rankings of higher education institutions (HEIs) nationally, based on a multitude of criteria. There are also various magazines, newspapers and international agencies/standards which provide rankings and analysis.
According to the 2015 HEI rankings released by the HEC, the top six universities in Pakistan are, in descending order: [MUST Mirpur University of Sciences and Technology], University of the Punjab (PU), University of central punjab(UCP), Quaid-i-Azam University, University of Agriculture in Faisalabad (UAF) and Aga Khan University (AKU).
As of 2022, total 6 universities were ranked in top 1000 by QS World University Rankings: NUST (#334), Quaid-i-Azam University (#378), PIEAS (#398), LUMS (#651), University of The Punjab (#701) and UET, Lahore (#801), . In rankings for 2023, the number increased to 7, with the addition of University of Peshawar (#801).
National
Up to date, the HEC has published rankings for the years 2006, 2012, 2013, 2014 and most recently 2015. In addition to the top ten and general rankings, independent rankings are also provided for universities and institutes in the categories of agriculture and veterinary science; arts and design; business; engineering and technology; and medicine. The HEC ranking uses five criteria, all of which have specific weightings and are summed to give an aggregate score out of 100. Institutional rankings are determined based on this aggregate score. Each criterion and its weighting is dependent upon a set of sub-components. The five criteria, along with their weighted score and sub-components are summarised below: Quality assurance (15) – Standard of M.Phil., M.S. and PhD courses; eligibility criteria for faculty member appointments; plagiarism policy compliance; assessment of Quality Enhancement Cells (QECs) for internal quality assurance; international awards/honours attained by students; affiliation of coursework with national accreditation bodies e.g. NAEAC, NBEAC, NCEAC, PEC and PMDC; latest international rankings of the university/institute. Teaching quality (30) – Staff to student ratio; ratio of PhD faculty and full-time faculty; faculty training and recruitment; student enrollment ratio and selectivity; national and international awards/recognition attained by faculty members. Research (41) – Nationally and internationally registered patents, varieties, technologies, breeds and creative work; university industrial linkages through Offices of Research, Innovation and Commercialisation (ORICs); ratio of PhD students and total PhD output per year; amount of external research grants obtained; amount of travel grants obtained by faculties for presentation of papers abroad; number of papers published in ISI Web of Science impact factor journals and HEC-recognised journals; citations per paper; university h-index; number of W and X category journals published; internet bandwidth and HEC Digital Library utilisation; number of national and international conferences/seminars/workshops/symposia organised. Finance and facilities (10) – Ratio of non-salary expenditures in total budget; amount generated through own resources; amount of budget expended on research and libraries; computers available per student and faculty; number of books and resources in libraries; number of external scholarships received by students. Social integration/community development (4) – Community outreach programs and services; international collaborations and student exchange programs; number of international students enrolled and foreign faculty.
Top ten rankings
According to the 2015 HEC rankings, the following comprise the overall top ranking higher education institutions in the country.
Agriculture and veterinary science
Arts and design
Business
According to the 2022 HEC rankings, the following comprise the top ranking business schools in the country.
Computer Sciences (CS), Software Engineering (SE) and Information Technology (IT) Rankings for Computer science and information technology Institutes are updated as of 2022.
Engineering and technology
According to the 2022 HEC rankings, the following comprise the top ranking engineering universities in the country.
Medicine
According to the 2022 HEC rankings, the following comprise the top ranking medical schools in the country.