AIT delegation in Pakistan
An AIT delegation comprising Prof. A.T.M. Nurul Amin, Prof. Kazi Ahmed, Dr. Naveed Anwar, and Dr. Pritam K. Shrestha, Head, External Relations and Communications Office, visited Pakistan during 2-9 April 2007. In Islamabad, the delegation interviewed more than 100 applicants - who were applicants for the master's leading to doctoral degree program to be sponsored by the Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan. The team short-listed 52 candidates for enrollment into various fields at AIT.
The delegation also met with senior officials at HEC, and discussed the ongoing and future collaboration between HEC and AIT including the proposed AIT Center in Pakistan. The delegates also visited COMSATS Institute of Information Technology (CIIT) and met with senior CIIT officials. The discussions in CIIT centered on the proposed AIT Center in Pakistan. In Islamabad, the delegation met with senior AIT alumni including Dr. S. M. Qureshi and Mr. Mohammad Saeed Khan Malik, who served on the AIT Board of Trustees, and Mr. Shaukat Khan (AITAA Pakistan Chapter President), and Mr. Abdur Rahman. They expressed their willingness to help and to be involved in AIT activities in Pakistan.
The delegates also visited University of Balochistan (UoB), Quetta. UoB, supported by HEC, which is also requesting AIT to help in their capacity building. This request is in the form of megaproject involving not only the upgrading of faculty and staff through degree and short-term programs at AIT, but also in terms of curriculum development and academic facility development at the university.
Dr. Pritam also visited the University of Engineering and Technology (UET), Lahore and the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad (UAF). There is expression of interest on the part of UET to pursue dual doctoral programs between UET, Lahore and AIT (especially in the civil engineering fields in SET), as well as for short-term faculty secondment to AIT. UAF are keen on student/faculty exchange and short-term faculty secondment to AIT, especially in the field of agricultural engineering and technology.