Aga Khan University Hosts Second Landmark Event with Higher Education Commission

Following the resounding success of its inaugural event in 2021, the Higher Education Commission’s (HEC) Quality Assurance Agency in collaboration with the Aga Khan University’s Network of Quality, Teaching and Learning, organized a pivotal three-day workshop aimed at improving the quality of higher education in Pakistan.

Mr Nasir Shah, Director General, Quality Assurance Agency, HEC, and other distinguished leaders, scholars, and stakeholders from a variety of public and private universities in Sindh and Balochistan met at Aga Khan University’s campus in Karachi from May 6 to 8, 2024. They engaged in substantive discussions and deliberations aimed at enhancing educational standards in Pakistan’s higher education system. Dr Sulaiman Shahabuddin, AKU President, Professor Tashmin Khamis, Vice Provost, Quality, Teaching and Learning and Mr Faisal Notta, Director Quality Enhancement Cell also spoke about the importance of rebuilding educational structures to better equip students for their success.

President AKU Dr Sulaiman Shahabuddin congratulated them on the crucial work that they were doing to advance quality enhancement, which is one of the most important issues in higher education today. When talking about this, he commented on how important quality was to AKU: “Our founder and Chancellor, His Highness the Aga Khan, has always placed the utmost stress on quality. And I’m proud to say that we’ve achieved numerous quality benchmarks, on both the hospital and academic side including two UNESCO-supported Zairi awards for our teaching and research”.

The three-day consultative workshop on Pakistan Standards and Guidelines (PSG-2023) with Directors of Quality Enhancements aims to promote a culture of quality at an institutional and programme levels, as well as share best practices and impact through case studies such as the Aga Khan University, which has shown continuous improvement of programmes. Professor Tashmin Khamis emphasized the importance of establishing Teaching and Learning Support Units at universities to support faculty development and provide a strong student learning experience.

“I commend Network of Quality, Teaching and Learning’s (QTL_net) steadfast dedication to quality assurance,” said Mr Nasir Shah. “The Higher Education Commission (HEC) and QTL_net have a long-standing relationship and we see the impact of the work our close ally has undertaken to uphold and continuously improve the academic excellence of AKU. For this reason, we trust AKU as a provider of quality education for the youth of Pakistan.”

As Pakistan strives for educational excellence, Aga Khan University and the Higher Education Commission remain committed to supporting educators and institutions in their efforts to provide high-quality learning experiences to students, as well as in their collective pursuit of academic distinction and scholarly excellence.