Just days remaining to reopening of public universities after a long winter holidays, the lower house of the parliament decided to suspend the previously announced result of Kankour of 1391 on account of mounting complains from students who failed to find way to higher education institutions. The higher Education Minister was summoned to parliament, and after along exhaustive, sweat-causing talks, they agreed that a joint commission consisting of MPs and Higher Education authorities should recheck the entire Kankour results.

This however looks nice as reflecting that MPs are caring about the future of tens of thousands of students who claimed to have worked hard but failed to score enough to follow their higher education, but there are several issues which help us to have a clear picture of what ultimately made to take such decision. Do they really worry about the future of failed students or something else caused them to do so? First of all, this brief information is not needless to be provided.

Unlike many other countries, public schools and other education institutions are highly popular. In these institutions students get education for free and even receive somehow required school materials also for free. In spite of different rulers and regimes with huge differences to one another, yet all, to some extent, have tried to allocate enough budgets in order to maintain schools, institutions and universities run. Due to widespread poverty, private education centers and schools did not have much to boom.

And even the current educational system was new and used to spark sensitivity. Elders can easily recall that their fathers or they themselves bribed police and government employees to dismiss their sons from the school. The only well-accepted and popular education system was the traditional teachings in Mosque by religious scholars which is still highly popular in the rural areas around the country, but increasingly losing its former status. This change is so visible that everybody can detect at first glance.

 Travelling around the country, now scholars have given up standing against the spread of schools where students, unlike Madressahs and Mosques where traditional religious books are taught, study school subjects. They are trying to adapt to the new system. Along with religious books, some of them now teach school subjects too. Therefore, the outdated traditional system which people find no more interesting, and widespread poverty which dampens the chances of private educational institutions have made the public schools highly popular. No doubt, during past ten years, the private universities have tremendously boomed and presently there are 70 private universities, almost double of public ones, but still public universities have high applicants.

As mentioned one of the key factors behind is widespread poverty. Presently millions in schools and annually more than hundred thousand graduate and have to compete with one another for finding way to public universities merely because they cannot afford to study in private ones. Those who succeed in exam can follow their education for free. Moreover, those who study in universities or institutions located other than their own provinces receive a small monthly stipend. These meager advantages motivate thousands to study harder and win the competition which due to low capacity of Ministry of Higher Education gets tougher and tougher.

 Secondly, public universities and schools still are highly popular. There are people who can afford to continue their education in private schools and universities but still they madly want to try their chance in public ones. It means the private centers still have a long way to build trust and attract students. Indeed, students generally consider private universities as second option. Many students who fail in Kankour exams reluctantly take admission in private centers. This portion of private education students make up the second largest applicants. Most of applicants are indeed those who have part time or full time job and cannot participate in class during day time.

Private universities have mostly afternoon shift which start so late and give students who work find the chance to attend classes with no problem. Attending the classes of private universities, it can be observed that how the classes are empty during daytime and rush in evening shifts. It shows that students still prefer public universities though they lack the quality education provided by newly established private competitors. Perhaps, due to competition among private ones for attracting more and more students, by the course of time, the balance may start to tilt toward private education. Because corruption and complicated administrative procedure rarely allows young and motivate professionals to join public universities and replace the old professors who limp to adapt to new changes or improve their academic professionalism.

 But for now, public universities are leading and with no-match rival in the sphere of primary and secondary education.  As said, the competition is also getting tougher and tougher. Last year around 195 thousand students registered to participate in annual Kankour exam across the country. And 175 thousand took part in exam held in different time periods. And from 175 thousand, only 44 thousand of them found way to higher education, and it was said that around 30% would be accepted by institutions which come under observation of education ministry, not higher education, where students study for two years and receive a diploma which are not equivalent to degree. Yet they can study two more years in private universities and get their degree.