ISLAMABAD, Sept 3: The Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, will provide all possible help to the Higher Education Commission (HEC) in setting up a world class university in Pakistan.

The commission is yet to decide whether the university should be built in Sialkot or Faisalabad as both the cities have industrial and commercial potential, says a press release.

A 10-member delegation from the Swedish institute visiting Pakistan these days held meetings with HEC chairman and executive director on Friday and finalized the basic features of the project.

The Royal Institute has been imparting technological education in Sweden since 1827. The objective of the project is to bridge the gap between the existing setup in Pakistan and the internationally accredited standards of engineering universities.

The establishment of the top-level international university will help produce quality graduates to carry out research and development activities to modernize the industry. The university will particularly focus on strengthening university-industry linkages.

Initially, a bachelor-level programme will be started with enrolment of 50 students on merit basis in each discipline annually. Master and PhD-level programmes will be launched in a phased manner subject to availability of requisite provisions and facilities. In the long-term, the university is envisaged to have the capacity to enrol 5,000 student with about 200 PhD-level faculty members.

The university will have the disciplines of Electrical Engineering, Industrial Engineering & Management, Bio-Medical Engineering, Chemical Engineering and Bio-Technology, Information Technology, Computer Sciences and Basic and Social Sciences.

The curricula to be taught will be finalized after consultation between the HEC and the Swedish institute. The examination system will be governed in collaboration with the institute keeping in view the international standard.

During discussions between the HEC and the Royal Institute, it was decided that a highly qualified faculty would be developed and employed at the university. It has been decided that expertise and services of Pakistani students already studying in Sweden and Scandinavian countries will be utilized. People will be sent to Sweden for higher studies and training so that they can come back and join faculty of the university.

An eight-member steering committee, consisting four members from Pakistan and Sweden, will be formed during the current month to execute the project.