PMDC holds 2nd meeting to standardize fee structure private medical institutions

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) is working to establish a standardized tuition fee structure for private medical and dental colleges.

To regulate the fee structure and address public concerns over rising medical education costs in Pakistan, PMDC held its second subcommittee meeting yesterday.

In response to growing concerns from students, parents, and the public regarding the rising cost of medical education, the PMDC convened its second subcommittee meeting to analyse fee justifications, asses the feasibility of rationalizing the fee structure and to develop a structured and equitable fee policy to prevent excessive tuition hikes while maintaining the highest academic standards in medical and dental colleges.

The meeting was attended by key stakeholders, including representatives from private medical and dental colleges, education experts, law experts, and chartered accountants.

This standardization effort is a crucial step toward eliminating arbitrary fee increases and ensuring transparency across private institutions. Therefore, the discussion focused on striking a balance between affordability for students and financial sustainability for institutions.

During the meeting, various proposals were presented and reviewed critically. However, initial recommendations from private institutions did not align with public expectations. After extensive deliberations, the PMDC and stakeholders reached a consensus on revising tuition fees to ensure they remain within reasonable limits while allowing institutions to maintain high-quality education.

In the meeting, several key points were discussed, including auditing the operating costs of medical colleges, such as faculty salaries, infrastructure maintenance, lab expenses, and administrative costs and strategies for achieving a reasonable profit margin to ensure sustainability while preventing overcharging were also explored.

In the meeting, PMDC emphasized the importance of setting a maximum tuition fee limit that private institutions cannot exceed. PMDC also instructed private medical and dental colleges to display their fees on their websites and admission brochures.

The committee also discussed the establishment of an oversight committee once the fee structure is standardized to ensure that colleges adhere to uniform fees. moreover, the committee will implement penalties and sanctions against institutions that overcharge students.

Furthermore, the committee also proposed that colleges must introduce scholarships and installment-based payment plans in the future to support students from low-income backgrounds.

President PMDC Prof Dr Rizwan Taj in the statement said that the outcome of this initiative will establish a maximum tuition fee cap for private institutions, providing financial relief to students and parents while upholding academic excellence.

All the final proposals of the subcommittee will be presented to the Medical Education Committee, chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister of Pakistan, Mohammad Ishaq Dar.