Quality Assurance Agency (QAA), a division working under Higher Education Commission (HEC) visited LUMS on January 25, 2019 for an external programme review of MS, MPhil and PhD programmes offered at the University. HEC regularly reviews the graduate programmes to promote and enhance quality of the degrees offered at the institution. The purpose of this visit was to ensure that LUMS is offering all the graduate degrees in compliance with the HEC minimal criteria.
Quality Enhancement Cell (QEC) at LUMS worked effectively with all academic and administrative departments for over 6-8 months and gathered the data required by the HEC for this purpose. The updated data sheets including the information regarding enrolled students, graduated students and faculty were shared with the HEC prior to the visit.
The one-day external review visit of HEC was centered around the programme review data that was collected and shared by QEC. The Dean and Director of Institute of Business Administration (IBA), Karachi, Dr. Farrukh Iqbal, headed the activity, while the other panel members included the following educationists:
1. Dr. S. M. Usman Ali, NED University of Engineering and Technology, Karachi
2. Dr. Jamil Ahmad, The Balochistan University of Information Technology, Engineering, and Management Sciences, Quetta
3. Mr. Muhammad Ali Baig, HEC QAA
QEC successfully executed the entire process. Manager QEC presented the introductory presentation along with the summary of the data to the panel. Later, the panel settled in the boardroom with all necessary arrangements where they comprehensively went through the programme review sheets and checked all the evidences. QAA representatives met the deans, administrative head of departments, faculty members and graduate/postgradute students representing each degree programme to assess the quality of academic and administrative processes at LUMS. The panel then met the Vice Chancellor, Dr. Arshad Ahmad, along with the Dean QEC, for a discussion regarding the programmes and their observations.
At the end of the visit, the panel appreciated the efforts of the team and advised all stakeholders to continue strengthening their efforts to maintain and enhance the quality culture at LUMS. An official report shall be received soon from HEC regarding the review activity.
