Madrassa to (Job) Market in Pakistan: Amendment or Acknowledgement?

Abstract

Pakistani madrassas as educational institutions have come into the limelight after 9/11. They are highly criticized for their fundamentalist ideology and inability to prepare students for the current job market in Pakistan. It is commonly argued that because these madrassas have not seen much improvement in their curricula, there is a huge disconnection between their education and the current job market in Pakistan. Thus, madrassa graduates in today’s world face immense difficulty to fit into the “mainstream” society to acquire higher education or well-paid jobs, except in the religious sector. This research explores the underlying causes of the difficulties madrassa graduates face in the job market from the perspectives of the madrassas as the active agents of change so that the roots of the problem can be addressed. Many madrassas have added the subjects from the dunyawi education in their curriculum in order to meet the needs of contemporary society and claim to prepare their students for the current job market. However, they also agree that madrassa graduates face numerous difficulties to get well-paid jobs outside of the madrassa sector. These madrassas argue that while the problems with madrassa curricula exist, it is not the major reason behind the failure of madrassa graduates to secure a job in the current job market. Rather many structural problems such as high rate of unemployment, corruption, and negative perceptions of society about madrassas and madrassa graduates limit the madrassa graduates from the current job market in Pakistan. The research argues that madrassas at this moment need acceptance in the society and the job market rather than amendments.