The Habib Liberal Core

Habib University takes a broad and detailed approach to education. Our students develop extensive expertise in their chosen disciplines whilst getting appropriate interdisciplinary exposure, allowing them to take a multi-faceted approach to the tasks at hand.

Through the Habib Core Curriculum we ensure that all of our students, regardless of major, study a fixed series of 11 interdisciplinary courses spread out over four years. The Habib Core, and ALL courses taught at the university are based on seven “Forms of Thought.

Habib University’s Forms of Thought are the philosophical backbone upon which all our learning is centered. Similar to educational philosophies of leading academic institutions, these principles of knowledge creation and absorption have been adapted and re-amalgamated to fit the local context of South Asia.

Habib University’s Core Curriculum draws inspiration from esteemed institutions in the world such as Stanford University, Harvard University, and Harvey Mudd College to name a few. All courses taught have boundless academic breadth and depth, and are locally contextualized to provide students with a shared foundation for understanding not only the historical and conceptual underpinnings of the modern world but also Pakistan’s place in the modern world.

Knowledge of the expanse and richness of history and literature, of the wonder of scientific and mathematical inquiry and of the ever-evolving nature of the world hones an individual into a versatile, conscientious and articulate being. Through the liberal core, students will encounter the pre-modern inheritance of modern humanity – the religious and philosophical systems as well as the roots of humanities’ traditions both of the East and of the West. They will engage with concepts of modern civilizations, harness the skills of deductive reasoning and develop an appreciation for fields and disciplines in the natural and social sciences.

The Habib Core casts a wide net across the humanities, arts, natural and social sciences in order to give every student the opportunity to broaden their toolkit for the critical appraisal of the world in which they live, as well as the knowledge and sensibility required to generate concepts to tackle new realities.

HU and the World

Common Cores at
Leading Institutions
Habib University’s
Forms of Thought
  1. Aesthetic and Interpretive Understanding
  2. Culture and Belief
  3. Empirical and Mathematical Reasoning
  4. Engaging Diversity
  5. Ethical Reasoning
  6. Formal Reasoning
  7. Scientific Method and Analysis
  1. Historical and Social Thought
  2. Philosophical Thought
  3. Formal Reasoning
  4. Language and Expression
  5. Creative Practice
  6. Quantitative Reasoning
  7. Natural Scientiﬁc Method & Analysis