Pakistan Tops Erasmus Mundus 5 Years Running: What It Means

Pakistan has won the most Erasmus Mundus scholarships for five straight years. Taleem Wire asks what that really says about Pakistan’s education system.

Pakistan Has Topped Erasmus Mundus for Five Years Running. So Is the System Really Broken?

Here is a puzzle worth sitting with. In late May 2026, it was announced that 98 Pakistani students had won Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters scholarships, more than any other country, for the fifth year in a row. Over the same period, public spending on education in Pakistan stood at just 0.8% of GDP, and university enrolment sat below its 2020-21 level.

How can both be true in one country? And does the first fact mean the second is exaggerated? The honest answer is more interesting than either “the system is fine” or “the system is hopeless.”

The Numbers

Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters scholarships are fully funded by the European Union through Erasmus+, and students study in more than one European country. In 2026, 1,872 scholarships went to students from 135 countries. Pakistan led with 98, followed by Bangladesh with 80, India with 75, the United States with 68, and Italy with 67.

Pakistan has held the top spot every year since 2022.

Look Closer: The Count Is Falling

The rank has held, but the raw numbers tell a more complicated story.

Year	Pakistani awardees	Total scholarships awarded	Pakistan’s share
2023	192	2,835	about 6.8%
2024	189	2,603	about 7.3%
2025	114	2,176	about 5.2%
2026	98	1,872	about 5.2%

Pakistan’s number fell from 189 in 2024 to 114 in 2025, and then to 98 in 2026. The total number of scholarships awarded worldwide also shrank each year, so part of the drop comes from a smaller pool. But Pakistan’s share slipped too, from about 7.3% in 2024 to about 5.2% in 2025 and 2026. The sources reviewed for this piece do not explain the decline, which makes it worth watching rather than ignoring. (The share figures are Taleem Wire’s own calculations from the published totals.)

There was one bright spot in the 2025 cohort: 66 of the 114 Pakistani awardees, about 58%, were women.

Why Pakistan Keeps Winning

Three factors stand out.

Deliberate outreach. The Higher Education Commission has supported Erasmus+ in Pakistan since 2016. Together with the EU Delegation, it runs information sessions for universities, faculty, and students in different cities. HEC credits these sessions for the rise in awardees. By its own figures, the cumulative number of Pakistani beneficiaries reached 848 by 2023, and passed 2,500 by 2025.

A growing preparation ecosystem. Education experts cited by The Nation point to mentorship networks, application guidance, and awareness of European study options as reasons for the results. HEC also notes that alumni mentor new awardees. Applying for a scholarship like this is a skill, and it can be taught and shared.

Scale and appetite. This one is our reading rather than a sourced finding. The top of the table is filled by large countries, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and India, where many ambitious graduates are looking for a fully funded way to study abroad. A ranking by raw count naturally rewards countries with a big pool of applicants.

So Is the System Actually Fine?

No, and the scholarship data does not say that it is.

A selection panel reads one person’s grades, CV, and motivation letter. It does not score the average classroom, the average teacher, or the average school. Ninety-eight winners is a remarkable result, but it is roughly 100 to 200 students a year in a system with close to two million university students (1.96 million in 2024-25, according to the Economic Survey 2025-26). Strong individuals can succeed despite a stretched system, often with extra support from outside it.

But the opposite conclusion is also too harsh. In 2023, the EU delegation said the results showed that Pakistani students are well prepared and that the country’s universities give them the skills to compete globally. A country that keeps beating more than 130 others for one of Europe’s most competitive scholarships clearly has real talent and real pockets of excellence.

Both things are true at once. Talent exists, and the system around it is under strain, with enrolment down from 2.23 million in 2020-21 to 1.96 million and education spending at 0.8% of GDP.

The Real Lesson

The most useful part of this story is the part Pakistan controls. By HEC’s own account, the number of Pakistani awardees grew after information started reaching universities and students directly through workshops in different cities. Nobody changed the education system overnight. Students simply found out the opportunity existed, and learned how to apply.

How many other opportunities, scholarships, admissions pathways, and career options are students still hearing about too late, or not at all? If targeted outreach can lift Pakistan to the top of a global table, the same approach could help many more students find what is already available to them.

This story is part of Taleem Wire’s ongoing coverage of education, education policy, and the people shaping Pakistan’s education sector.

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