The 14th Education Expo 2024 organised by Jang Group is all set to welcome students from around Pakistan, starting its inaugural journey from the largest metropolitan city of Pakistan, Karachi today, June 08, 2024. The Expo will continue its journey to other big cities of Lahore, Multan, Islamabad and Peshawar, providing one of the biggest education platforms for professional guidance, educational pursuit, networking and career advancement.
The Expo didn’t disappoint its consistently eager students even during the COVID-19, when it was held successfully virtually for four years. This time of the year, when most of the educational institutions are closed for summer vacations, Jang Education Expo is held for students to continue benefit from this occasion and plan their educational journey ahead with the right guidance and career counselling.
“The participating universities in the Virtual Education Expo attracted between 60,000 and 75,000 visitors (views) on its website and the educational counsellors engaged with the students and provided them with the crucial advice for their future,” says Sarmad Ali, Managing Director Marketing, Jang Group.
Talking about the national funding on education, Sarmad Ali says, “I have remained an ardent supporter of increasing funding for education. Unfortunately, Pakistan’s public expenditure on education as percentage to GDP was estimated at 1.7 percentage in the fiscal year 2022-23 against 1.4 percent for the last fiscal year 2021-2022, which is the lowest in the region. Though Pakistan’s educational needs demand more funding, but we have insisted on at least making it in conformity to UNESCO”s Education 2030 Framework for Action which proposes two benchmarks as ‘crucial reference points’: allocate at least 4% to 6% of GDP to education, and/or allocate at least 15% to 20% of public expenditure to education,” opines Ali.
“In order to ensure quality of education and research activities at higher education level, we need good public expenditure on education in all disciplines. Support services such as counseling, career guidance, and extracurricular activities help in students’ wellbeing and positively impact the overall student experience and support system and also help retain talented faculty and researchers in our institutes,” he maintains.
Ali suggests strict monitoring system to see that the funding is used in the best possible way and only those institutes get further funding which show better performance.
Pinning hope on the coming Education expo and how it will help students in their career advancement, Ali says, “Jang Education Expo is the premier event of Pakistan which has continuously been held for the past seventeen years, not even stopping during COVID-19 when it was held online. From the onset this expo helps students to explore a wide array of information about different fields of study, universities, and vocational training programs. Besides, it serves as a good networking platform for the students with professionals and employers, leading to internships, job opportunities, or mentorship,” he says.
Through its seminars, workshops, and panel discussions, students get an insight into industry trends, job market demands, and necessary skills needed for career advancements. Career counseling services by top consultants of the market, scholarship information, and other guidance help students to explore the opportunities of further studies or better jobs here or abroad.
“Jang Education Expo serves as a great platform to empower students to showcase their projects, connect with industry professionals, acquire valuable insights, access resources leading to their career advancement,” says Ali.
This time around a large number of universities is participating in the expo that will be held in six cities of Pakistan including Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, Multan, Faisalabad and Peshawar. With the first Expo in Karachi on June 08-09, the next expos will be held on June 13 in Islamabad, on June 29 in Faisalabad, on 3rd of July in Multan, on July 06-07 in Lahore and in Peshawar it will culminate on July 26.
Since last year Education Expo is held physically. “We are expecting 50-60 universities from Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad. In Faisalabad, Multan and Peshawar the Expo will attract around 25 universities,” says Ali.
The most recent UNESCO data (2021) counts 71,865 Pakistani students abroad in higher education. More recent statistics published by government sources in various receiving countries show that the outbound student mobility from Pakistan was over 103,190 in 2022.
“During 2022-2023, there were 10,164 Pakistani students, compared to 8,772 in the previous year, indicating an impressive 16% increase,” according to IIE Open Doors Report for 2022-23.
More than 8 million Pakistanis had left abroad during the outgoing year 2023, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) said in its annual immigration report. According to the report, FIA Immigration successfully processed 19.5 million passengers at international arrival and departure counters.
Most of these students visit the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia (their top choice), and European nations like Germany and Sweden, in addition to more recent locations like Turkey, China, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates, and the Baltic States.
The promotion of education in an informal setting is greatly helped by educational expos. Students can use it as a platform to explore a variety of academic and career options and choose the path that’s perfect for them. The News Education Expo 2024 aims to give students and universities a forum for information sharing. Moreover, these expos attract industry professionals to connect with the kind of human resource they desire for their sector.
The exhibiting categories in the Education Expo span nearly all of the faculties accessible for students to maximise their exposure. Around 100-120 local and international universities, colleges, schools and consultants participate in the Education Expo with an expected footfall of 5000-10,000 and a core catchment of more people.
The Expo 2024 will receive the same print, TV, radio, digital, and social media advertising as in the past. A market of around 8 million readers can be reached through The News and Jang alone, and they will be informed both before and after the exhibition.
Save the dates, and on the designated days in the month of June and July 2024, visit exhibition halls in your cities to discover more about the career choices available there. It’s your career, after all, and you decide how it will turn out.
