A blueprint for hiring innovative educators

“The foundation of every state is the education of its youth, and that foundation starts with recruiting the best teachers.” – Diogenes

Pakistan’s higher education landscape is in dire need of reforms. One important area is the process of hiring university teachers, which is done by universities according to the rules set by Pakistan’s Higher Education Commission (HEC). When recruiting, most universities apply only the minimum standards, hindering academic excellence.

There are several reasons why this approach to hiring is flawed. First, too much focus is placed on the number of research papers published, rather than their quality. Second, good teaching, which is vital for higher education, is not given enough value. Experience is measured by an educator’s length of tenure rather than the quality and effectiveness of their teaching. Third, the heavy reliance on subjective interviews in hiring makes the process less fair and transparent. Favouritism and political influence continue to play a significant role.

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Importantly, the current requirements do not take into account significant contributions, such as community involvement, partnerships with industry and interdisciplinary research, that address national and global problems. We know these aspects are crucial for creating a well-rounded academic environment that encourages innovation and has a real-world impact.

The rigid criteria in use miss very talented people, who may not fit the usual academic standards but have valuable experience and fresh ideas. Good universities around the world benefit from academic staff with a variety of backgrounds and experiences, who bring creativity and new ways of thinking to research and teaching.

Three years ago at Government College University (GCU), Lahore, we decided to adopt a more robust and comprehensive set of recruitment rules. The result was GCU Recruitment Policy 2021, a much-improved guideline for recruiting quality university teachers, compared with the hiring practices based on just the HEC’s minimum standards.

The policy was created after extensive deliberations by a team of experts who graduated from top universities around the world, including the University of Oxford, the National University of Singapore and the University of Essex. It is a rubric-based evaluation system that assesses candidates not solely on their research publications but also on their external research funding, awards, international travel grants, research supervision, conferences and seminars organised, editorial services to journals and community services.

Key elements of Recruitment Policy 2021 include:

1. Holistic evaluation: We assess candidates on academic qualifications as well as their contributions to the academic community, looking at their conference organisation and participation, editorial contributions to journals and institutional development activities.

2. International and national expert review: By also involving foreign experts in the evaluation process, we ensure that candidates meet global standards, providing a robust and impartial assessment. In getting written assessments from global subject experts, we reduced reliance on local subject experts, which is particularly important in the top-tier professorship positions.

3. Emphasis on leadership in research: We value candidates’ roles as editors or referees for HEC-recognised journals for a culture of research and scholarly contributions.

4. Enhanced professional development: We reward faculty’s involvement in additional roles such as course designing and student advisement to promote continuous professional growth.

5. Reduced reliance on interviews: We redefined the marks distribution to reduce reliance on interviews while prioritising the rubric-based, multifaceted evaluation approach. Previously, interviews carried a weight of 30 per cent of total marks; in the new policy, they count for only 10 per cent.

The Recruitment Policy 2021 has already had an impact on GCU’s academic quality, showing good early results. Previously, the university relied heavily on visiting faculty, often with only 18 years of compulsory and higher education, to meet workload demands. By shifting away from this reliance and following a more rigorous method of recruitment, the quality of teaching has shown signs of improvement, particularly in self-supporting and evening programmes.

Recruiting well-qualified and rigorously evaluated candidates has started to infuse the university with fresh ideas and extensive experience. These stringent recruitment criteria have attracted top-tier candidates, bringing innovative teaching methods and valuable experience. By aligning with international best practices, GCU is poised to elevate its standards in teaching and research and continue its drive towards greater academic excellence.

The transformative Recruitment Policy 2021 at GCU not only revamped hiring practices but also introduced comprehensive training for new faculty. The newly established Directorate of Academics launched the Advanced Teaching and Learning Programme 2023 specifically for assistant and associate professors. These initiatives aim to equip our faculty with advanced pedagogical skills, ensuring that they are well prepared to enhance academic excellence at GCU.

By demonstrating a commitment to higher academic standards with the help of rigorous recruitment, training and evaluation, we’re leading the way for other institutions to adopt similar practices, ultimately improving the academic landscape of Pakistan.

Asghar Zaidi is an associate professorial fellow at the Oxford Institute of Population Ageing at the University of Oxford.

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