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Science and researchPublic university, chartered by Federal (Act of the National Assembly, 1967)

Quaid-i-Azam University(QAU)

A federal public university in Islamabad, established in 1967 as the University of Islamabad. Computing is taught at the Department of Computer Sciences (BS, MPhil, MS, PhD) and the Institute of Information Technology (BS IT, BS Software Engineering, MS, PhD).

PublicHEC recognisedBachelors, Masters, PhDFounded 1967
Where to apply
Admissions pageApply onlineWebsiteLinkedIn

Add to the Quaid-i-Azam University page

This page is only as good as what students who have been through it are willing to share. Universities publish the rules, but not how the test felt, where merit closed or how long the wait for a list was. One account from someone who applied is worth more than anything I can find online.

What are you adding?

This decides how the claim is labelled on the page. Only someone representing the university can produce an “official” label, and I check that separately.

Year and month.

Comma separated topics, not the questions themselves.

Dates, the test format, where merit closed and how long each step took are the parts nobody else publishes.

Credit

Anonymous is the default. If you keep it anonymous, nothing identifying you reaches the page: it is published as a student account and your name stays with me. Never send test papers, leaked questions or anyone else’s personal details.

Campus cities

Islamabad

Degree levels

Bachelors, Masters, PhD

Computing programmes

8

Entry tests

HEC USAT (waived for Fall 2026), QAU departmental subject test (MPhil/MS)

When admissions open

IntakeApplicationsTestClassesSource
Fall, bachelorsread from Fall 2026AugustNot publishedNot publishedOfficial · QAU admission notice, BS/LLB/Pharm-D morning programme, Fall 2026 +1
Fall, mastersread from Fall 2026AugustAugustNot publishedOfficial · QAU admission notice, MPhil/MS programme, Fall 2026
  • Fall bachelors: BS morning programme (regular and self-finance) closed on 10 Aug 2026. The self-support BS/LLB deadline was extended to 30 Aug 2026, and BS Software Engineering (self-support) closes on 29 Sep 2026. The opening date was not readable.
  • Fall masters: MPhil/MS deadline 21 Aug 2026; admission tests rescheduled from 26 Aug to 31 Aug 2026.

These are the months each cycle has usually run, read from the cycle named beside them. Exact dates are announced by the university every year, so check the admissions page before you plan around them.

How admission works

  1. 1

    Register and apply online

    Official · QAU undergraduate admissions portal, Fall 2026
    Online applicationBachelors (BS)

    Create a profile on the QAU online admissions portal and fill in the form.

  2. 2

    Upload documents

    Official · QAU undergraduate admissions portal, Fall 2026
    Document verificationBachelors (BS)

    Upload scans of transcripts, certificates, CNIC or B-Form and a passport-size photograph.

  3. 3

    Pay the processing fee

    Official · QAU undergraduate admissions portal, Fall 2026
    Fee and confirmationBachelors (BS)

    Generate the Rs. 2,860 challan and pay through 1-Bill, Kuickpay or designated bank branches.

  4. 4

    Check the merit lists

    Official · QAU undergraduate admissions portal, Fall 2026
    Merit listBachelors (BS)

    Merit lists are published separately for the regular (morning), self-support and lateral entry tracks on the QAU merit portal. Applicants not placed in any morning list could submit an option form for remaining seats (Fall 2026 deadline 10 Sep 2026).

  5. 5

    Written subject test and interview

    Official · QAU admission notice, MPhil/MS programme, Fall 2026 +1
    Entry testMasters (MS or MPhil)

    MPhil/MS admission is decided on previous academic record, a written subject test and an interview set by the department.

Entry tests they consider

How merit is worked out

Bachelors (BS)

Who can apply

QAU runs three BS tracks: regular (normal fee, provincial and regional quota), self-finance (limited seats, open merit, no university scholarships or hostel) and self-support (a separate notice and deadline). For Fall 2026 no entry test counted for BS: merit was 30% Matric plus 70% FSc.

Computing programmes and course outlines

Bachelors (BS)

BS Computer ScienceOfficial · BS (Computer Science) Scheme of Study (Revised), effective 2021 +2
4 years130 credit hoursIslamabadNCEAC accredited20 core courses listed

Credit hours are the sum of the eight semesters in the scheme of study effective from 2021 (for the eighth BSCS batch onward); check with the department whether a newer scheme applies. Offered by the Department of Computer Sciences. NCEAC lists accredited batches up to Fall 2022, with a limit of two sections of 50 students a year.

Core courses

  • Introduction to Computing
  • Problem Solving and Programming
  • Object Oriented Programming
  • Discrete Mathematics
  • Introduction to Computer Organization
  • Data Structures
  • Human Computer Interaction
  • Analysis & Design for Software Systems
  • Database System
  • Computer Organization & Assembly Language
  • Operating Systems
  • Analysis & Design of Algorithms
  • Software Construction
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Theory of Automata
  • Computer Communications & Networks
  • Computer Graphics
  • Net Centric Programming
  • Compiler Construction
  • Introduction to Information Security

Electives

Web Application DevelopmentMobile Application DevelopmentIntroduction to Machine LearningIntroduction to Data MiningIntroduction to Natural Language ProcessingIntroduction to Cyber SecuritySoftware EngineeringSoftware Quality AssuranceWeb EngineeringIntroduction to Game Development
Full scheme of studies
BS Information TechnologyOfficial · QAU Institute of Information Technology website +1
4 yearsIslamabadNCEAC accredited

Offered by the Institute of Information Technology. NCEAC lists accredited batches up to Fall 2023, with one section of 50 students a year. Scheme of studies not read: the IIT programme pages were behind a browser check.

BS Software EngineeringOfficial · QAU Institute of Information Technology website +2
4 yearsIslamabad

New programme at the Institute of Information Technology, advertised on the self-support basis for Fall 2026 (deadline 29 Sep 2026). NCEAC approved it after a zero visit in August 2026 for one section of 50 students a year; no batch is accredited yet.

Masters (MS or MPhil)

MPhil Computer ScienceOfficial · QAU Department of Computer Sciences, MPhil in Computer Science page
2 years50 credit hoursIslamabad

24 credit hours of coursework and 26 of research, per the department page.

MS Information Science and TechnologyOfficial · MS Program in Information Science & Technology brochure
30 credit hoursIslamabad

Brochure read is for the Spring 2018 intake: part time, evening classes, 30 credit hours with a thesis or all-coursework option, finished in 2.5 to 4 years. Confirm it is still offered before applying.

Full scheme of studies
MS Information TechnologyOfficial · QAU Institute of Information Technology website
Islamabad

Institute of Information Technology. A provisional list of selected candidates for Fall 2026 was published on 31 Aug 2026.

PhD

PhD Computer ScienceOfficial · QAU Department of Computer Sciences, PhD in Computer Science page
Islamabad
PhD Information TechnologyOfficial · QAU Institute of Information Technology website
Islamabad

Launched by the Institute of Information Technology.

Campuses

  • Main campus, Islamabad

    Main campus

    Islamabad

    Single campus. The Department of Computer Sciences and the Institute of Information Technology both teach here.

    Official · QAU About Us +2

What it costs

No fee structure is on file. Fees change every year, and a guessed figure is worse than none when a family is planning around it.

Add to the Quaid-i-Azam University page

This page is only as good as what students who have been through it are willing to share. Universities publish the rules, but not how the test felt, where merit closed or how long the wait for a list was. One account from someone who applied is worth more than anything I can find online.

What are you adding?

This decides how the claim is labelled on the page. Only someone representing the university can produce an “official” label, and I check that separately.

Year and month.

Comma separated topics, not the questions themselves.

Dates, the test format, where merit closed and how long each step took are the parts nobody else publishes.

Credit

Anonymous is the default. If you keep it anonymous, nothing identifying you reaches the page: it is published as a student account and your name stays with me. Never send test papers, leaked questions or anyone else’s personal details.

Companies that recruit from here

Industry partner· Has a formal tie with the university: a lab, an MoU, an advisory board seat.

Each link says how the company is tied to the university and where that is published. It is not a claim that the company hires only from here, or that a degree from here guarantees an interview.

Add to the Quaid-i-Azam University page

This page is only as good as what students who have been through it are willing to share. Universities publish the rules, but not how the test felt, where merit closed or how long the wait for a list was. One account from someone who applied is worth more than anything I can find online.

What are you adding?

This decides how the claim is labelled on the page. Only someone representing the university can produce an “official” label, and I check that separately.

Year and month.

Comma separated topics, not the questions themselves.

Dates, the test format, where merit closed and how long each step took are the parts nobody else publishes.

Credit

Anonymous is the default. If you keep it anonymous, nothing identifying you reaches the page: it is published as a student account and your name stays with me. Never send test papers, leaked questions or anyone else’s personal details.

Rankings

How to actually get in

  • For Fall 2026, BS merit was 30% Matric + 70% FSc, so your board marks decide admission. Use the aggregate calculator on the admissions portal to see where you stand.
  • Watch the track you apply on: regular, self-finance and self-support seats have different deadlines and merit lists. Self-finance students are not eligible for university scholarships or hostel places.
  • BS Software Engineering at the Institute of Information Technology was offered on the self-support basis only in Fall 2026, with a later deadline (29 Sep 2026) than other BS programmes.
  • If your name is not on any morning merit list, look for the option form for remaining seats on the portal.
  • For MPhil/MS, expect a departmental written test (90 to 120 minutes) and an interview; test dates can move, as they did in Fall 2026.

About Quaid-i-Azam University

Quaid-i-Azam University was established as the University of Islamabad under an Act of the National Assembly passed on 13 July 1967, and was renamed Quaid-i-Azam University in 1976. It began with MPhil and PhD teaching and research, and now has four faculties plus several teaching and research institutes on one campus in Islamabad. The university reports a rank of 381 in the QS World University Rankings 2027.

Computing sits in two units. The Department of Computer Sciences runs a four-year BS in Computer Science that started in 2013, an MPhil in Computer Science, an MS in Information Science and Technology, and a PhD in Computer Science. The Institute of Information Technology (IIT) started with a first batch of masters students in 2003 and now offers BS Information Technology, a newer BS Software Engineering, MS programmes in IT and cyber security, and a PhD in IT.

BS admissions are merit based on school marks rather than an entry test: for Fall 2026 the university waived the HEC USAT requirement it had first announced. Seats are offered on a regular basis (with provincial quota), on self-finance, and on self-support, each with its own deadline and merit list.

Sources

Whole profile last checked 2026-09-17.

Every claim here is labelled

Admission dates, tests, merit formulas and fees change every cycle, and not all of it is published in one place. Every claim here is labelled with its source and how well established it is. Treat the university's own admissions page as the last word, and tell me when something is out of date.

Nobody pays to be listed here, and nothing on this page is sponsored. Universities cannot buy a higher position or have a profile removed on request, though I will correct anything that is wrong.

Applied to or studied at Quaid-i-Azam University? Help the next student.

Dates move, tests change and fee structures are rewritten every year. If what you went through is different from this page, or something is missing, tell me and I will check it and update the page.

Add to the Quaid-i-Azam University page

This page is only as good as what students who have been through it are willing to share. Universities publish the rules, but not how the test felt, where merit closed or how long the wait for a list was. One account from someone who applied is worth more than anything I can find online.

What are you adding?

This decides how the claim is labelled on the page. Only someone representing the university can produce an “official” label, and I check that separately.

Year and month.

Comma separated topics, not the questions themselves.

Dates, the test format, where merit closed and how long each step took are the parts nobody else publishes.

Credit

Anonymous is the default. If you keep it anonymous, nothing identifying you reaches the page: it is published as a student account and your name stays with me. Never send test papers, leaked questions or anyone else’s personal details.

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