The Impact of on Coronavirus Higher Education in Pakistan While the whole world is going through unprecedented trying times in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic that has created havoc across the globe, the impact of novel coronavirus outbreak on every branch of social life is being felt across-the-board. Higher Education (HE) has got no exemption at all. Since the outbreak of the virus and subsequent lockdown, all schools, colleges and universities are closed in Pakistan. This is quite tough time for educational institutions as they have to meet their expenses, pay rents, give salaries and bear other necessary expenses. From the area of running new admission campaigns and collecting tuition fees to budgeting for scholarships, the COVID-19 is hugely affecting and creating an interminable impression on colleges and universities across the country. COVID-19 pandemichas forced managements of universities to redefine their identities in the new context and reimagine as to how will they deliver teaching-learning services and engage students in the holistic learning experience. When the government asked universities to transition their programming online, many of them failed to do so. Not to talk of colleges, even renowned brands like the University of Central Punjab, Hajvery University, University of South Asia, Lahore Leads University, Beaconhouse National University and others couldn't succeed in delivering this service. Their claims for providing latest IT infrastructure was exposed in no time. However, three big brands in the business educationi.e. IBA, LUMSand UMT maintained their standards and quality service by speedily and timely shifting their classes, counseling, and official meetings online. Regardless of the reopening of universities, one thingis for sure that the global economy is in recession and it would categorically affect universities and students alike. In Pakistan, tuition fees are the principal source of revenue for the majority of private sector universities and they solely depend on it because the government hardly issues grants to them. But, since m@ny people have lost their jobs and students have applied for waiver in tuition fee and writing off other charges such as clubs, sports and hostel rents, it has become a challenge for universities’ to collect timely fees frdm students, Whatis more, the government has also forced the universities to give relief to students in payments and to opt forhalf payments. It has also instructed to pay salaries to the faculty and staff by managingitheir resoure®s. Likewise, no any employee would be fired from the job as long as there is lockdown imposedinthe cOUntry. Thisis quite difficult for universities to survive without opening their buildings, collecting feeSand havingm@W intakes. On the other hand, the goveffiment's response in terms of support to universities is quite discouraging as it has not taken the stakeholders into confidence by consulting with them. The government has no bail-out package or rescue plan for institutions of higher education. The only work which the government can do and has done is to that of closing the educational institutions and forcing the managements to pay salaries and not to collect dues from the students Similar to other businesses, universities in Pakistan are experiencing huge pressure on their finances due to the outbreak of COVID-19 and the subsequent lockdown. Financial ramifications for universities and the people associated with them such as faculty, staff and students are noticeable. Most of the universities do not have government funding, so they have to go back over their financials to keep essential overheads, opting for severe cost-cutting and saving measures, or even dipping into their already run-down endowment funds. Since the imposition of lockdown, many universities such as LLU, HU, Minhaj, BNU, UCP and UOL have delayed the payment of salaries to their employees and now are working on the downsizing process. News of staff's facing temporary cuts and furloughs at some universities are also circulating in media. In order to meet the expenses, Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), which is one of the country's leadinguniversities has increased its tuition fee by 41pc amid coronavirus outbreak. Prior to this decision, the varsity used to divide its total fee by 20, which led to a lower credit hour rate, but now the policy has been boned up and the total fee is divided by 12 credit hours. Moreover, the per credit hour fee has been increased by 13 per cent due to inflation. Given that on average students opt for 16 credit hours per semester, this adds up toa 41 per cent increase in tuition fee. The previous fee for 20 credit hours was Rs340,200 but after the 41 per cent increase, it would be Rs482,000 for the same. Majority of students have been affected by this policy. Curtailing Scholarship Schemes Scholarship programs also seem to be affected by the coronavirus outbreak as the bulk of universities have not given their opinion on the subject, which gives an insight into their financial problems and available resources. Moreover, universities such as UET and others are engaging their alumni to arrange donations for the current students. In Pakistan, scholarship schemes have remained a domain of commercial companies, but since they themselves are cutting their budgets and reducing the size of their employees, the scholarship program would be hugely affected. Only a few universities are genuinely running these schemes without support from companies. The leading name in this regard is the University of Management and Technology (UMT), which since its inception in 1990 has been supporting the students both on merit and need basis. Apart from the regular scholarship programam, this university has introduced “Qatz-e-Hasna’ scheme, Which is purely based on Islamic principles. As per this scheme, the students complete their favorite degree'programs without paying a single penny to the university against their tuition fee. And. once they graduatea and start doing jobs or doing business, they shall have to pay back in easy installments. The university's president Ibrahim Hasan Murad has announced that its Qarz-e-Hasna program would continue as usual wit out being affected by the coronavirus pandemic. He has also given a blanket approval for the extension and postponement of dues. Other universities should also follow the suit of UMT. 9 — ‘ a Need to determine resources( \ As the financial crises are uninterruptedifimpacting both students and the staff, Pakistani universities will first need to determine if they can pull throligh: ses and sustain as they did during the spring semester. They should review if they are ready fér the summer, If the lockdown is further drawn-out and restrictions on educational institutions ie ictionsyere there for many universities’ running into bankruptcies and that some smaller group Noyenough financials either may need to close permanently or merge into larger groupsdMioreove ae news bfiréducing number of faculty and staff or at least plummeting their pay and other employe} Pec iatll culating on social media. The leadership of universities have to deal with it through pro} ning, Fin competence, and discipline Effects on En ents | Over the longer term, thee nhersey ‘admissions process next year will be more complex, due to online tests, online schooling, and changes to requirements. For fresh intake, students and their parents would demand that entry tests should conducted online and at home, and universities will have to adjust to teaching online. They will also ask the Higher Education Commission (HEC) to do degree attestation process and relevant assessment tests all online. All ofthis will make the admissions process more complex as many of universities even donot have affordable T infrastructure. New admissions are likely to go down as many students and their parents may no longer be in the good financial position to afford huge fees of private universities. This situation will happen because of widespread unemployment, people's being laid off, furloughed, not capable to pay off loans, needing to dip into their savings, etc. Students for whom finances are not a particular concern would be now focusing on getting admitted in leading universities. Schools ike UMT, IBA, LUMS, NUST, COMSATS, NDU, Superior, UOL, LSE and PU will always be just as selective as they were prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Schools that are a few notches below in selectivity such as Minhaj, Hajvery, Leads, ITU and which do not offer virus-protected environment will seea substantialimpact to their enrollment pool. For parents, the health of their children is the top most priority and then comes the best facilities which they consider more important than scholarships. Marketing Strategy The coronavirus pandemic will also affect marketing strategies and marketing campaigns of universities for new intake. Overall, the content of advertisements shall include points such as highlighting the facilities ensured at campuses to prevent the diffusion of fatal viruses and necessary measures taken for that purpose. In Pakistan, if any university has to survive, their managements need to invest hugely in supporting the health and wellbeing of their students. They should enable teachers and other staff to work safely and effectively. Today, it is Covid-19, tomorrow any other type of virus may erupt in our world, so if universities do not take preemptive measures at their campuses, the situation would be a horrifying disastrous one. Let's think for a ‘moment. Would any student get enrolled in a university if cases of coronavirus are reported there? Will they feel safe and sound? Whatif a staff or a faculty member tests positive? Wouldn't there be disruption in ongoing instruction in sudden cases? More importantly, if precautionary measures have not been adopted in classrooms, cafeterias, libraries, on the occasion of conferences and semi ninars, would the government take action against them? y Whatever situation of any kind takes place, one thing is sure, parents would think twice before sending their sons and daughters to such unsafe institutions. This will obviously affect enrollment, Therefore, universities would require to do new groundwork. Healthy and protective environment has to go hand in hand with academic productivity. Moreover, universities need to ensure : safety measures in place — space between studentsin classrooms, libraries and university wide events such astonferencesand seminars. Online Transition , Though the universities in the US, UK, Germahy, France, Canada a Fin other countries have shifted their programs online, their Pakistani counterp: ve yet to decide officially. They are waiting for reopening of their campuses after July 15. While th of universities in the country seem to be willing to integrate some online education into their cours not be possible for them to fully move alll programs online if the government does not allo physically. No doubt the response of many universities to immunize the continuity of lea platforms amid lockdown is condemnable because they at classrooms. instead gh home learning are experiencing an amount of stress, anxiety, and pressure to tal lit questions whether charged for face-to-face courses be equated to that of the distance education Different Scenario ~ The post-COVID-19 scenario also hints at pretty a different picture of universities where we don't see any large gatherings like annual convocations, cultural and sports festivals, study tours, career and book fairs, rush in cafeterias and congested classrooms. Gone are the days when we used to revel in those moments without restrictions, now we must be vigilant for the sake of our as well as other people's health. It is a bitter test for university leaderships and senior executives to think through the challenges of restarting operations of universities intelligently. Moreover, a new strategy is required to redesign the contents of admission campaigns. Of course, Covid-19 would have a huge impact on the content. Prime Minister's Vision The Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan's vision for New Pakistan is without any doubt a good one, but the government single-handedly cannot fulfill the dream of national development until the most important sectorof the country i.e. educational institutions play their required role. Education is the backbone of socio- economic development, advancement in medicine and technology. Educational institutions particularly universities are the places that work out scientific solution of pandemics like Covid-19 through Research and Development (R&D). The government should take heads of all universities, researchers, and educational experts on board in the consultation process so that it is able to fulfill ts agenda and vision for educated and prosperous Pakistan. The Way Forward The epidemic has yet to come up with aftershocks for salaried and low-income people which will result in their inability to pay tuition fees of their children and bear other expenses. The government through Higher Education Commission (HEC) should allocate funds for private sector universities to set up diagnostic laboratories both at public and private higher learning institutions nationwide to speed up the fight against Covid-19 and other possible future threats. Bail-out-packages or rescue funds should also be given to smaller and less-privileged groups of colleges and universities. On the other hand, all schools and universities be duty-bound to give maximum discount in tuition fees and offer scholarships on need-basis. Moreover, coaching and mental health centers are something that the nation needs immediately to be established at every university campus. These centers will treat physical or mental health issues resulting from the extended period of confinement, and in some cases, when the students have lost family members during the pandemic. Administrators at universities should agree to putting simple measures intoypractice in order to prevent the spread of the coronavirus on their campuses. This should include strictly bounding students, teaching and non- teaching staff to comply with appropriate protocols for hand washing, covering sneezes and coughs with their elbows, and self-isolating if they feel they have come into contact with fluor cold-like symptoms. Going forward, as educational institutions gradually re-open, the World Health Organization, UNESCO, UNICEF, World Bank, and the World Food Progfamme have released a Framework for reopening educational institutions, which gives significant importance and full attention to the protection of students’ and working employees’ health, These guidelinesfmust be followed. Together, we can succeed in thesar agaifiét the prevent of transmission of COVID-19 and this only possible when we have strong willpowef todo SOpWelfieed tolensure appropriate health and hygiene standards to wipe off this deadly virus. Shabeer Ahmed writes,@h society, cultife, languages, education, international relations, and politics. He loves to travel around the World toledrn about people, communities, and cultures.