Online session held as part of the New Student Orientation 2020
As part of the New Student Orientation week 2020, a webinar was conducted on August 15, 2020 to provide the incoming batch of 2024 the opportunity to interact with President Wasif A. Rizvi. The session, which in pre-Covid times was in-person and on campus, is a key component of the week-long orientation allowing students to set aside any doubts that they may have by receiving responses directly from the University President.
Questions ranged from those of a personal nature to finances to future prospects of Habib University students. Answering the questions candidly, the President pointed out that he derived the most satisfaction from seeing the University thriving in a challenging part of the city.
When asked about why Habib University had chosen to follow a Liberal Arts and Sciences model, the President responded that the importance of this model could be gauged by the fact that although there were an extremely limited number of such institutions worldwide their representation in leadership positions was tremendous. He further elaborated, “Liberal arts education primarily addresses two key challenges: it provides an unparalleled intellectual experience and helps to solve leadership crisis by producing great leaders.”
In this regard, the President went on to clarify that the University had invested heavily in ensuring the success of this model, but it, “…depends on students to cultivate and make the most of those opportunities presented during the four years of undergraduate studies. Being a student-centric university, our entire focus is on the success of our students and we strive to ensure that our alumni stay the top choice for employers and get into the most selective graduate schools around the world.”
Responding to a question about Habib University’s impact on higher education, President Rizvi said, “The impact of Habib University is very strong and it aims to solve the intellectual and access challenges in our country, redirect the priorities of philanthropists and change the face of higher education in Pakistan in coming years.”
When inquired about how supportive the University was towards its students, President Rizvi said, “If there is a demonstrable evidence that you are making the most of efforts that you can, the university will definitely support you in every possible way.”
A number of program specific questions were also put forth during the webinar, the clarification to which the President requested the students to get in touch with the relevant Deans.
Perhaps the most interesting question came near the end of the webinar, when a student asked what he would do differently if given the chance, the President said that he would have improved the implementation of procedures and regulations and he would have ensured that the University provided residence to its students. Saying that the latter had affected the diversity of the student body.
The session ended with the President expressing the hope that perhaps in the near future, he would have the opportunity to interact personally with the students.
