The Higher Education Commission (HEC) has opened applications for Batch 60 of its International Research Support Initiative Program (IRSIP), which sends Pakistani PhD students abroad for a six-month funded research placement at a foreign university. The program is open to full-time PhD students enrolled at HEC-recognised universities in Pakistan who have completed at least 18 credit hours of coursework and are between 18 months and 3.5 years into their doctoral studies. For this batch, eligible students are those who enrolled in their PhD between Spring 2023 and Spring 2025. Applicants must also have passed the GAT Subject Test or their university's own admission test, and must already have an approved research topic and synopsis. Beyond academic eligibility, candidates need a formal acceptance letter from a host institution in a developed country, where the supervising faculty member holds a position of Assistant Professor or above. HEC covers an economy-class return airfare of up to $1,300, along with a monthly living allowance that varies by destination -- up to $1,500 a month for scholars heading to the United States, or up to £750 a month in the United Kingdom. Students can apply through the HEC scholarship portal, submitting their host institution's acceptance letter, their foreign supervisor's HEC-format CV, their approved research synopsis, and a recommendation letter from their local supervisor. HEC has specifically cautioned applicants to ensure their submission shows as "Submitted" rather than "Saved" on the portal, since applications left in draft form will not be considered. The application window for IRSIP Batch 60 runs through October 30, 2026.