HEC Releases ORIC Rankings for 95 Universities – Only 7 in Top Tier

The Higher Education Commission (HEC) has officially released its Annual ORIC Self-Assessment Evaluation Report for FY2024-25 , placing only seven universities in the highest performance category. This comprehensive assessment evaluated 95 institutions across Pakistan, shedding light on the state of research, innovation, and commercialization infrastructure within the country’s higher education sector.

The report, which focuses on the performance of Offices of Research, Innovation and Commercialization (ORICs), categorizes universities into four distinct groups: W, X, Y, and underperforming. According to the HEC ORIC Rankings 2025 , the top “W” category was reserved for institutions scoring 80 or above, a threshold that only seven universities managed to cross.

Top Tier: The ‘W’ Category Universities

In the latest HEC University Rankings 2025 for research performance, the seven universities that secured the elite “W” category are:

These institutions have demonstrated exceptional capabilities in research management, industry-academia linkages, and successful commercialization of intellectual property.

Breakdown of ‘X’, ‘Y’, and Underperforming Categories

Following the top tier, a total of 38 universities were ranked in the “X” category. This list includes prominent names such as Aga Khan University , Dow University of Health Sciences , Quaid-i-Azam University , LUMS , COMSATS University Islamabad , and Bahria University . These institutions represent strong research ecosystems but fell short of the top-tier benchmarks.

The Pakistan University ORIC Rankings further placed 43 universities in the “Y” category. Among these are the University of Karachi, University of the Punjab, Sindh Madressatul Islam University, Lahore College for Women University, and University of Peshawar. These universities have basic ORIC structures in place but require significant improvements in performance metrics.

Unfortunately, seven universities were declared underperforming in the report. These include 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. Being placed in this category highlights critical deficiencies in research output, innovation management, or administrative leadership.

Shifts in Rankings: Progress and Decline

The HEC report noted a dynamic shift in institutional performance compared to the previous year. Encouragingly, 17 universities improved their rankings, moving up at least one category. This upward trend reflects growing institutional commitment to strengthening research cultures. However, four institutions moved down in category rankings, signaling a need for immediate corrective measures in their ORIC operations.

Surge in Research Proposals Amidst Funding Crunch

Beyond the categorization, the HEC ORIC Ranking Report FY2024-25 highlighted a remarkable increase in research activity. Universities collectively submitted 9,987 research proposals during the fiscal year. This represents a sharp increase from 2,237 proposals submitted in the previous fiscal year—a nearly four-fold rise.

However, the approval rate dropped to approximately 12.5 percent. HEC officials attributed this decline to increased competition and limited funding availability. As more universities actively pursue research grants, the quality threshold has risen, making it harder for all proposals to secure approval.

Leadership Gaps Affecting Performance

The report also identified administrative challenges as a key factor influencing outcomes. While more than 85 percent of institutions now have full-time research managers and innovation and commercialization managers, only 68.42 percent of universities currently have full-time ORIC heads. HEC noted that the absence of permanent ORIC leadership in several universities is directly affecting institutional research planning and overall performance.

Without stable, qualified leadership, many ORICs struggle to align their strategies with HEC’s national research priorities, leading to fragmented efforts and missed opportunities for commercialization.

As HEC Releases ORIC Rankings for 95 Universities , the findings serve as both a benchmark and a call to action. While the surge in research proposals is a positive indicator of growing research culture, the low approval rate and leadership vacancies highlight systemic bottlenecks. For Pakistan to enhance its global standing in innovation, universities must invest in permanent ORIC leadership and focus on the quality rather than just the quantity of research submissions.

For students, faculty, and policymakers, the Best Universities for Research in Pakistan list is now clearly defined by HEC’s 2025 evaluation, with the ‘W’ category institutions leading the way in transforming academic ideas into tangible societal and economic impact.