KARACHI:
The associate degree program in Sindh has been running for three years, but because of the instructors’ carelessness, the first group of students in this relatively new program has not yet graduated.
The associate degree program’s answer sheets have not been returned to the University of Karachi after dozens of government college lecturers failed to mark them.
As a result, the first cohort of the associate degree program, which took the yearly exams in September 2023 with the intention of graduating and transferring to a four-year program, is currently in an undefined state.
Furthermore, because the results were concealed, up to 1,000 students are now compelled to complete their studies in the same areas.
Naveed, a student at a government college in Karachi’s District Korangi, is one such student. “After receiving my associate degree results, I sought to transfer to a four-year school in economics. Unfortunately, the deadline for admittance has past because the results of the second year of the degree have been delayed for several months, Naveed lamented.
“It is unfortunate that I have spent so much of my valuable time. I now have to submit an application for admission in November,” he said.
It is important to note that after completing an associate degree, students like Naveed must apply for a four-year program because the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan (HEC) has outlawed the two-year graduation of B.Com, B.A., and B.Sc. nationwide. This means that students must now complete two additional years of university study in order to graduate.
However, the Express Tribune has learned from sources close to the development that the teachers of English, Urdu, Islamic Studies, Pakistan Studies, Social Work, Economics, Business Communication, Business and Industrial Law, Banking and Finance, Insurance Principles, Advanced Accounting, Management Principles, Marketing Principles, and Economic Development of Pakistan are largely to blame for the results’ delay.
Numerous sources from the University of Karachi’s Examinations Department corroborated the delays and noted that the English, Urdu, and Islamic Studies faculty had caused the worst delays in the grading process.
A source revealed, requesting to remain anonymous, “For example, the concerned English teacher was given 12,000 exam copies to grade and 2,000 exam copies are still pending.”
The Express Tribune met with Dr. Shahid Zaidi, the acting director of examinations at the University of Karachi, in light of these disclosures. Dr. Zaidi said, “We have sent notices to teachers who took the exam copies and are not releasing the results, on the Vice Chancellor’s direction. The teachers have now started to send in the results.”
In response to a question about whether this would become commonplace and undermine the associate degree program, Dr. Zaidi stated, “The teachers who did not meet the standards should not be given exam copies for evaluation in the future.”
