HEC Makes GRE, HAT Mandatory for MS and MPhil Admissions

The Higher Education Commission has introduced a new admissions policy making GRE and HAT General and Subject tests mandatory for students seeking admission to MS and MPhil programmes across Pakistan. The decision marks a major shift in postgraduate admissions and will directly affect universities, applicants and academic departments preparing for upcoming intake cycles.

According to an official notification cited in the report, applicants for Level 7 and Level 8 degree programmes will now be required to pass either GRE or HAT examinations. Universities will no longer be allowed to conduct their own separate entry tests for admissions to these programmes, bringing admission screening under a more centralised testing framework.

The HEC said the new policy has been introduced to ensure standardisation, transparency, quality, uniformity and merit in higher education admissions nationwide. The move is expected to reduce differences in testing standards between universities and create a common academic benchmark for postgraduate applicants.

Education officials say the decision will require universities to revise their admission schedules, prospectuses and internal evaluation procedures. Departments offering MS and MPhil programmes will now have to align their admission criteria with HEC-recognised testing requirements instead of relying on institution-specific entrance examinations.

The policy is significant for students because it changes how they prepare for postgraduate admissions. Instead of applying for multiple university-specific tests, candidates will now need to focus on GRE or HAT requirements, subject relevance and minimum qualifying scores as defined by HEC and participating institutions.

The development comes as the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council has also issued revised guidelines for students applying to medical institutions. Under the updated criteria, students must secure at least 50 percent marks in MDCAT or pass an equivalent foreign examination to become eligible for admission.

The PMDC also stated that applicants must have completed FSc Pre-Medical or an equivalent qualification with at least 60 percent marks. Students seeking admission to foreign medical institutions have been directed to follow prescribed criteria and complete online registration for provisional registration and the National Registration Examination.

For Pakistan’s higher education sector, the HEC policy could strengthen comparability and fairness if implemented consistently. However, universities and students may need a transition period to adjust to the new framework, especially in disciplines where internal tests were previously designed around specialised departmental needs.

The next phase will depend on how quickly HEC clarifies implementation timelines, test schedules, equivalence rules and university compliance mechanisms. Students are expected to monitor official HEC announcements closely before applying for MS and MPhil admissions under the revised policy.