The Higher Education Commission has officially published the results of the National Skills Competency Test 2026, the country’s most comprehensive assessment of IT talent at the university level, conducted on April 4 and 5, 2026. The computer-based test assessed over 33,000 students enrolled in the seventh and eighth semesters of computing programmes across 165 centres in 112 cities, establishing a national benchmark for where Pakistan’s IT graduates stand against modern industry standards at a time when the government is targeting one million AI-trained professionals over the next three years.
On the subject-wise proficiency breakdown, students performed strongest in Web Development Basics with a 54.1 percent pass rate, followed by Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning at 50.8 percent and Software Engineering at 50.1 percent. The weakest results appeared in foundational computing disciplines, with Operating Systems recording only a 33.8 percent pass rate, Computer Networks and Cloud Computing at 39.6 percent, and Data Structures and Algorithms at 40.2 percent. The pattern reveals a skills gap that runs directly counter to Pakistan’s digital economy ambitions: students are more comfortable with applied development tools than with the core theoretical foundations that underpin robust software engineering, network architecture, and systems programming.
In the university rankings, the Institute of Business Administration topped the table with an average score of 70.76 across 17 students, followed by Lahore University of Management Sciences with 68.20 across 5 students and Habib University with 65.29 across 58 students. Pakistan Institute of Engineering and Applied Sciences came fourth at 64.29, the National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences ranked fifth with 62.69 across a large cohort of 579 students, and the National University of Sciences and Technology placed sixth at 62.23. Information Technology University of the Punjab ranked seventh at 60.88, followed by Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute at 59.33, NED University of Engineering and Technology at 59.21 across 429 students, and Namal University rounding out the top ten at 58.67 across 42 students.
At the individual level, Zain-ul-Abden from the University of Sindh in Jamshoro achieved the highest nationwide score of 97, a remarkable result from a student at a public-sector provincial university rather than one of the elite private institutions. Four students from the Virtual University of Pakistan appeared in the top ten individual rankings, at positions two, four, five, and ten, with scores of 96, 96, 96, and 91 respectively, reflecting the quality of learning outcomes achievable through distance education for motivated students regardless of physical location. Inamullah from the University of Swat and Zulfaqar Ali from the University of Malakand also appeared in the top ten with scores of 96, further demonstrating that high IT competence is being developed across a geographically diverse range of institutions. The NSCT results are publicly available on HEC’s official website and are intended to help universities identify their academic shortcomings and align curricula more closely with industry requirements as Pakistan works to build the digital talent base its growing technology export sector demands.
Follow the SPIN IDG WhatsApp Channel for updates across the Smart Pakistan Insights Network covering all of Pakistan’s technology ecosystem.
