Six Pakistan higher education institutions were ranked among the world's top 800 universities by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS).

The six Pakistani institutions that qualified for the QS World University Rankings 2015-2016 are listed below as per their ranking order:

• National University of Sciences And Technology (NUST) Islamabad: 501-550
• Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU), Islamabad : 651-700
• Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), Lahore: 701+
• University of Engineering and Technology (UET),Lahore: 701+
• University of Karachi (KU): 701+
• University of Lahore: 701+

NUST also ranked in the category of 'Engineering and Technology' category at 340.

QS World University Rankings, a British ranking agency, is an annual league table of the top 800 universities in the world. The rankings are widely referenced by prospective and current students in Pakistan, as well as university professionals and governments around the world.

The QS rankings take into account six key ranking criteria which are academic reputation, employer reputation, student to faculty ratio, citations per faculty, international faculty ratio and international students.

Trans-national education (TNE) is a growing market in Pakistan and recent data shows evidence of over 40 such programs running successfully in affiliation with UK universities at undergraduate and graduate level, according to the  British Council. Overall, the UK takes about 65 per cent of the TNE market in Pakistan, at a clear majority.

The top 10 universities in the world as per the QS rankings are the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard University, Cambridge University, Stanford University, California Institute of Technology, University of Oxford, University College London, Imperial College, ETH Zurich and the University of Chicago.

British Council Pakistan strives to support universities, institutions and education decision makers in their advancement and partnership development strategies to consequently strengthen collaboration within local universities and UK institutions.

For details on partnership development, contact the SIEM Pakistan team for customised consultancy services.