HEC tells universities to settle appointments through statutory forums

The Higher Education Commission has told universities to place Selection Board proceedings before their Syndicates and other statutory forums for a decision, and to send meeting agendas to members early enough for them to study the items.

The instruction is carried in a letter to vice-chancellors and presidents of universities dated 15 November, reported by UrduPoint. The commission tied compliance to an Institutional Performance Review that its Quality Assurance Agency plans to hold within the next two months.

HEC said appointment decisions should be taken through the prescribed statutory forums "in a manner that upholds merit and institutional integrity." The letter states that significant agenda items must be shared with Syndicate members within the timelines written into each university's statutes, and that members should be given enough time to review the papers and prepare for the meeting.

Any lapse, the commission wrote, "is viewed with serious concern by the Commission."

The letter restates HEC's mandate: to guide institutions in setting minimum standards for good governance and management, to lay down minimum criteria and qualifications for the appointment and promotion of faculty, to review how universities implement those standards, and to evaluate institutional performance.

The commission said universities that follow the advisory will build a reputation for merit and transparency in appointments, and that this ultimately bears on the quality of education.

The Quality Assurance Agency's review will check whether the advisory was followed. The letter did not name any university, cite a particular appointment or set out what action would follow a finding of non-compliance.

Daily Lead Pakistan also carried the advisory, under the headline that HEC had told universities to uphold merit in faculty and administrative appointments.