As many as 195 Liberal Arts and Social Sciences graduates from Foundation University were awarded degrees on Thursday. The 2011 convocation for the Foundation University’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences was held at the university’s main auditorium.
The Foundation University Islamabad (FUI) President and Fauji Foundation Managing Director Lieutenant General (r) Hamid Rab Nawaz, was the chief guest of the ceremony. FUI Rector Professor Dr Belal A Khan, was also present on the occasion. The chief guest also awarded 13 gold medals, 12 silver medals and 32 merit certificates. The award for best graduating student was given to Aneesa Khalid. In his welcome address, the College Principal Professor Dr Muhammad Maqsud Alam Bukhari, presented the university report, highlighted the progress and academic excellence it has achieved in the past years.
FUI President, in his address, said that Pakistan needed to produce business leaders, entrepreneurs, economists and social scientists who would become the cause of change in their nation’s fate. He emphasised the importance of the government’s spending on education, especially higher education. In this regard, he quoted the examples of countries like South Korea and Malaysia. “For a developing country like Pakistan, the importance of converting knowledge into practice and injecting knowledge based input into the system for economic and social growth cannot be over emphasised,” he said. He also stressed the need for a research-based approach to learning in both the students and faculty, saying the creativity and research output of the students and faculty determined the academic stature of any university. In the end, Khan presented a shield to the FUI President.
