IT is unfortunate that doing a PhD from Pakistan is not considered worthwhile and respectable in academia itself. Anyone who has a PhD from a Pakistani university is given secondary importance, if any is given at all.

There is no denying the fact that the standard of our educational institutions is not comparable to that of foreign universities.

But this does not warrant casting a blind eye to someone’s talent and expertise. Some of the institutions go to the extent of not allowing their own faculty members to study for a PhD from a Pakistani university.

If the educational institutions and academicians will themselves remain biased against local PhD programmes, the standard of such programmes will never improve. In fact, there will never be a realistic hope of any progress in this critical regard.

The authorities must own the indigenous PhD programmes and make every possible effort to bring improvement in the standards so that those who cannot go abroad may study here and receive the same respect as do foreign PhDs.

Kamran Akhtar Siddiqui
Sukkur

Published in Dawn, January 20th, 2023