HEC bars 44 universities from new computing admissions

ISLAMABAD: The Higher Education Commission has stopped 44 universities and degree-awarding institutions from enrolling new students in Computer Science and related programmes after their performance in a national competency assessment fell short.

The move was based on the National Skills Competency Test 2026, a countrywide evaluation of Computer Science students conducted to measure the standard of computing education and the job readiness of graduates. The HEC has also published the names of the institutions affected by the restriction, which include both public and private sector entities.

Four Karachi-based institutions are among those barred from taking fresh admissions in computing disciplines. They are Benazir Bhutto Shaheed University Lyari, Iman Institute of Management and Sciences, Ilmaa University, and Millennium Institute of Technology and Entrepreneurship.

Several institutions from interior Sindh have also been included in the list. These are Begum Nusrat Bhutto Women University, University of Larkano, Sindh Agriculture University, and Shaheed Benazir Bhutto University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Sakrand.