AFTER completing my bachelors from the Sindh University in 2006, I got enrolled in a masters programme in Banking and Finance at the University of East in 2008. The said university in Hyderabad was recognised by the Higher Education Commission (HEC) at the time of admission. However, its licence was suspended in 2010 when I was halfway through the programme. Since the day I have graduated in 2011, I have been trying to get my degree and transcript attested by the HEC, but in vain.

I have approached the HEC office in Karachi a number of times only to be directed to the HEC office in Islamabad, which advises me to approach through the online portal, which, in turn, does not have the name of the university. Documents sent by postal mail are sent back unattested.

On its part, the university administration provides little help in this regard, telling the graduates since 2010 that the case is “still pending and the licence will be restored soon”. Considering the age brackets of the students and maturity levels, it was clear that they would continue the studies, and they did. The university did not close operations, and the HEC did not ask it to shut down either.

The HEC, being the competent authority in the matter, should be considerate. It needs to give due weight to the plight of the students who had enrolled prior to the suspension of the university’s licence. As such, their degrees should be attested. The cancellation of the university licence was not their fault, after all.

Surprisingly, a few of my batch-mates have already gotten their degrees attested by the HEC. I don’t know how, but I know for sure that they have. The remaining students are suffering for God knows whose fault. The HEC should attest our degrees and save us from further trouble.

Sultan Ahmed
Karachi

Published in Dawn, September 28th, 2021