The Higher Education Commission (HEC) has released its Annual ORIC Self-Assessment Evaluation Report for FY2024-25, placing only seven universities in the highest performance category among 95 institutions evaluated across Pakistan. The report assessed the performance of Offices of Research, Innovation and Commercialization (ORICs) and divided universities into four categories: W, X, Y, and underperforming.

The report assessed the performance of Offices of Research, Innovation and Commercialization (ORICs) and divided universities into four categories: W, X, Y, and underperforming.

According to the HEC, seven universities secured the top “W” category after obtaining scores of 80 or above. These institutions include Air University, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), NED University of Engineering and Technology, Sukkur Institute of Business Administration, The University of Lahore, University of Agriculture Faisalabad and Ziauddin University.

A total of 38 universities were ranked in the “X” category, including Aga Khan University, Dow University of Health Sciences, Iqra University, Quaid-i-Azam University, Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), Mehran University of Engineering and Technology, Bahria University, COMSATS University Islamabad, Institute of Business Management and Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology.

The HEC placed 43 universities in the “Y” category, including University of Karachi, University of the Punjab, Sindh Madressatul Islam University, Jinnah University for Women, Lahore College for Women University, Islamia College University, Abdul Wali Khan University and University of Peshawar.

Seven universities were declared underperforming in the report, including Bacha Khan University, Greenwich University, Karakoram International University, Shah Abdul Latif University, Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Women University, Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Medical University and University of Swat.

According to the report, 17 universities improved their rankings compared to the previous year, while four institutions moved down in category rankings.

The HEC also reported a sharp increase in research activity during FY2024-25, with universities submitting 9,987 research proposals compared to 2,237 proposals in the previous fiscal year. However, the approval rate dropped to around 12.5 percent due to increased competition and limited funding availability.

The report further stated that only 68.42 percent of universities currently have full-time ORIC heads, although more than 85 percent institutions have full-time research managers and innovation and commercialization managers. HEC noted that the absence of permanent ORIC leadership in several universities was affecting institutional research planning and performance.

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