Islamabad authorities have announced that beginning in the Fall 2026 session, admissions to all MS, MPhil and PhD programmes at public and private higher education institutions in Pakistan will be determined solely by scores from GRE and HAT tests administered through the Higher Education Commission’s Education Testing Council.
HEC Chairman Niaz Ahmad Akhtar said the decision, shared on social media, is intended to strengthen quality assurance, transparency and standardization while ensuring merit-based postgraduate admissions nationwide. The move seeks to establish a uniform and credible national-level assessment framework for graduate entry.
Under the new policy, admissions will only be processed on the basis of test results conducted under the HEC’s Education Testing Council system, including both the GRE General and relevant subject HAT examinations. The requirement applies to both public and private universities across Pakistan.
Education experts welcomed the potential for a unified admission standard through the GRE HAT requirement, saying it could reduce variability in selection criteria between institutions. At the same time some stakeholders have expressed concerns about implementation challenges, added testing pressure on students and the financial burden associated with a centralized examination system.
With the Fall 2026 timeline set, universities, applicants and testing bodies will need to prepare for the transition to the HEC-run GRE HAT assessment framework.
