ON June 12, I appeared in a screening test at the Federal Urdu University of Arts, Science and Technology (FUUAST) in Karachi for the post of lecturer in English; a post for which I had applied in 2017. As the test had been delayed by four years, candidates like me had lost hopes and had even forgotten that they had paid Rs2,000 as the application fee. The delay was quite incomprehensible and unjust.

Besides, the test was more focussed on British History than English as it comprised many questions about British rulers of the past, their achievements, conspiracies, dates of their tenures and other major events of British history. Hardly 10 per cent weightage was given to the relevant subjects, such as English Literature, Linguistics and General / Remedial English. Further, around 30 out of 100 questions were purely about General Knowledge with special emphasis on certain topics.

In contrast, the test conducted for the same post of English lecturer at the college level by the Sindh Public Service Commission (SPSC) was ideal, as it gave 30pc weightage each to English Literature, Linguistics and General English, followed by 10pc to General Knowledge. Generally, screening tests for the slots of English lecturer at the university level are based almost entirely on the related subjects or with a balanced mix of some other related subjects, but this was not the case at FUUAST.

The authorities concerned should look into the matter. Heavy fee for job application, long delay in conducting the test, and irrelevant questions are some of the factors that need a serious review and remedy.

Jay Dev

Cadet College Petaro

Jamshoro

Published in Dawn, June 29th, 2021