According to HEC, Pakistan Studies is not compulsory for undergraduate degrees.
Pakistan’s Higher Education Commission (HEC) has announced a major overhaul of its undergraduate curriculum, dropping compulsory Pakistan Studies.
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According to reports, the new undergraduate policy, which will be implemented in 2023 under the new Scheme of Studies, no longer includes Pakistan Studies as a required subject in BA, BSc, and all Honors degree programmes.
Various intellectual communities have reacted to this decision. Punjab University Academic Staff Association General Secretary Dr. Amjad Magsi and representatives of Federation of All Pakistan Academic Staff Association have expressed concern.
He emphasized that the subject has been taught at the graduate level for many years and that switching to any other subject would raise sensitive concerns about sentiments for the country. He requested the HEC to reconsider its decision and reinstate Pakistan Studies as a required course for undergraduates.
In contrast, a spokesperson for the Higher Education Commission clarified that universities are not required to follow the guideline, which means that individual universities still decide whether to include or remove Pakistan Studies from their curriculum.
