ISLAMABAD: The Higher Education Commission (HEC) would not recognise two-year bachelor degrees, Bachelor of Arts (BA) and Bachelor of Science (BSc), undertaken after the calendar year 2018.

In March 2017 and July 2019, a notification issued by the HEC called upon affiliated universities to immediately discontinue academic curriculums in line with the Commission's decision.

The Commission, however, observed that the aforementioned programmes were still being offered at the institutions, despite the notifications. The HEC has issued a notification to affiliated schools and DAIs (Degree Awarding Institutions) that it would not recognise these programmes.

The Commission officially announced a replacement of Associate Degree (AD) programme in 2019 - a directive issued to immediately phase out the old two-year programmes, which mostly offered nothing but unemployed graduates.

The notification further concluded that students who enrolled before 31st December 2018 in the discontinued programmes are allowed to complete their degrees until December 2020. Students who failed in these exams would be awarded the new Associate Degree upon completion.