High fee at ICT public colleges compel students to move to provincial public colleges.

ISLAMABAD -- High tuition fee of Associate Diploma Program (ADP) and BS programs at Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) public sector colleges in comparison to the provincial institutions is the main cause of departure of students from Islamabad to provinces leaving very few admissions at ICT colleges.

According to official sources, students at ICT colleges are charged a fee around Rs. 25000 in the first semester while around Rs. 15,000 in the subsequent semesters.

Comparatively the fee structure of public colleges ranges from Rs.5000 to Rs.10000 per semester at provinces which is much lower than the ICT colleges.

Many students who aspire to take admission in the ADP or BS programs prefer to go to the colleges situated in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Nazir Ahmed lecturer at Islamabad Model Postgraduate College H-8 college said, 'Higher fees mean that study in Islamabad is limited to those students that can afford to pay for ADP/BS programs.

It also increases the risk of students dropping out of ICT Colleges.

Unfortunately the criteria to educate students is based on wealth rather than talent. These colleges should focus on nurturing the best brains even if they can't afford to pay high fees.

"High fees seem to have compelled the student to migrate from Islamabad to Rawalpindi resulting in low enrollment and dropouts from ICT institutions", he said.

Kamran, a BS student of Asghar Mall College Rawalpindi said, I am residing at G-9 sector in Islamabad. My parent could not afford my studies at...