Calls Grow to Increase Medical College Seats in Pakistan

PAKISTAN: The Association of Private Medical and Dental Institutions of Pakistan (Sindh Chapter) President and Ibn-e-Sina University Chancellor, Prof. Dr. Syed Razi Muhammad, has urged Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to address the challenges faced by Pakistani medical students studying abroad, particularly in Kyrgyzstan.

In a letter to the Prime Minister, Prof. Razi Muhammad highlighted the difficulties encountered by a large number of Pakistani students who travel overseas to pursue MBBS and BDS degrees. He expressed concern over recent reports of Pakistani students being harassed and mistreated in Kyrgyzstan, stating, “The nation recently saw its youths being beaten and harassed in Kyrgyzstan for no fault of theirs.”

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Substandard Education and Financial Burden

Prof. Razi Muhammad emphasized that many of the foreign institutions where Pakistani students study offer substandard education, which falls below the standards of medical and dental colleges in Pakistan. He further noted that this situation not only subjects students to hardships and aggressive attitudes from local students but also drains Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves, costing the country billions of dollars.

The Ibn-e-Sina University chancellor proposed a solution to address this issue by increasing the number of seats in Pakistani medical and dental colleges. He suggested that many private medical colleges could admit 150 students each year in their MBBS program, up from the current 100 seats. Similarly, he proposed increasing the number of seats in private dental colleges from 50 to 75 for their BDS programs.

“If this was done through an executive order, it could create only in private dental colleges 900 seats. This would mean that 3,600 students could be brought back immediately to various classes of BDS and thereafter 900 students could be kept in Pakistan every year,” the letter stated.

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Potential Impact

According to Prof. Razi Muhammad’s calculations, implementing these measures could create an additional 3,250 seats per year in private medical colleges and 900 seats per year in private dental colleges. This would enable the immediate return of approximately 20,000 Pakistani students currently studying abroad and prevent around 5,000 students from seeking education in unrecognized foreign institutions annually, thereby saving billions of dollars in foreign exchange.

“Such a step could create only in private medical colleges 3,250 seats per year and this would mean that 16,250 students could be brought back immediately to various classes of MBBS and thereafter 3,250 students could be kept in Pakistan every year,” the letter read.

The proposal by Prof. Razi Muhammad aims to address the challenges faced by Pakistani students studying medicine and dentistry abroad, while also promoting quality education within the country and reducing the financial burden on families and the nation’s foreign exchange reserves.