Debating the Eurocentricity of Pakistani Higher Education

Abstract

This article examines the transformation of higher education in Pakistan within the broader context of colonial legacies and neoliberal globalization. It argues that the establishment of the Higher Education Commission (HEC), inspired by World Bank and UNESCO prescriptions, marked a decisive shift towards corporatization and market-oriented reforms. Initiatives such as the Tenure Track System, standardized curricula, quality assurance mechanisms, and the prioritization of global rankings have reinforced dependence on Western epistemologies, often at the expense of addressing local contexts and needs. The pursuit of “excellence” has come to mean validation from Western institutions, further entrenching the coloniality of knowledge. Drawing on scholarship from postcolonial and critical education studies, the article highlights how Pakistani universities have been restructured as service providers in the global knowledge economy. Ultimately, it contends that the HEC’s reforms, far from fostering intellectual autonomy, have deepened academic dependency and limited the transformative potential of higher education.