Quality of private universities in Pakistan: An analysis of higher education commission rankings 2012

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide an analysis of the development of education in private sector universities in Pakistan as compared to public universities. Additionally, the purpose is to understand the quality of education in private universities in light of the 2012 higher education commission (HEC), Pakistan ranking data. Design/methodology/approach: The paper utilizes the data shared by HEC at its web site (http://hec.gov.pk) and compares the total scores and the scores for research of private universities in the top ten ranking within the given categories. This comparison is used to evaluate issues related to access and quality of private higher education in Pakistan. Findings: The private higher education sector is agile and more responsive to market demands. Furthermore, it has allowed the "youth bulge" of Pakistan access to higher education. However, with few exceptions the quality of private higher education is inadequate. Originality/value: The need for Pakistan to reform its education to counter the grave twin dangers of religious extremism and militancy has been well recognized. High-quality education at all levels is seen as one of the ways to create a more liberal society. This paper is among the first to evaluate private higher education in Pakistan in light of the most recent HEC rankings published in 2012.