IT is no secret that the cost of medical education in Pakistan has been increasing rapidly. Yet, little has been done to control it, particularly during the pandemic when people can hardly make ends meet.
My child has been enrolled in the MBBS programme at the Army Medical College, Rawalpindi, under the National University of Medical Sciences (foreign residents category).
At the time of admission for the 2017-2018 session, the tuition fee in the prospectus was stated to be $10,000 per annum that was to be paid in US dollars.
However, just after one year, the fee was suddenly increased by 20 per cent to $12,000 per annum. Along with other parents, I approached the NUMS authorities through emails and sent applications, but did not receive any response.
In addition, various applications to the then Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC), Higher Education Commission (HEC) and complaints on the Citizen Portal also remained unanswered.
We were informally informed that the fee hike was due to inflation and an increase in expenses, and was with the approval of the NUMS board of governors.
Moreover, it was also stated that the Supreme Court had set an upper limit of $18,000 and the fee being charged was still below that ceiling.
As if the previous increase was not enough,the university hasfurther increased the annual tuition fee to $13,200 per year for the 2020-21 session that has to be paid immediately.
As per PMDC/PMC policy guidelines and directives, private universities cannot hike tuition fee during the course from what was mentioned in the prospectus and admission documents. Over and above the fee, students are charged a substantial amount quarterly for various services, subscriptions and administrative facilities, like the examination fee etc.
The Covid-19 pandemic has severely impacted everyone`s livelihood, including white-collar workers like me living in the Middle East, due to job redundancies, pay cuts, and collapsing businesses. While my monthly salary has been slashed by 50 per cent from April 2020, many people havelost theirjobs altogether and have returned to Pakistan. Therefore, it has become extremely difficult to finance the education of our children due to such repeated escalations.
I urge all the relevant offices and authorities to take notice of the exorbitant increase in the annual tuition fee charged from NUMS students under the foreign residents category.They shouldintervene and revert the fee hike being charged from expatriate students by NUMS, and to reimburse the amount so far charged in violation of stated policies. This will greatly help our children to fulfil their cherished dreams to continue their studies in their home country.
