TDS Desk:

Applications for admission to Class XI at the higher secondary level for the upcoming academic year may begin on 15 September.

The admission process is expected to be completed by 10 November, with classes scheduled to begin on 12 November.

As in previous years, students will be admitted based on their SSC and equivalent examination results, with no admission test.

Applications will be submitted online through a centralised system, and admissions will be conducted based on merit and students’ order of preference.

Professor Syed Akhtaruzzaman, chairman of the Dhaka Education Board, told that according to the draft schedule, applications are scheduled to open on 15 September.

The schedule will be sent to the Ministry of Education tomorrow, Thursday. If approved, the admission process will begin accordingly.

The results of this year’s SSC and equivalent examinations were published on 10 August. A total of 18,29,485 students took the SSC and equivalent examinations under 11 education boards this year. Of them, 11,38,877 students passed. Nearly 7,00,000 students failed. As a result, more than half of the available seats are expected to remain vacant this year.

There are around 2.5 million seats available for Class 11 admission at colleges and madrasas across the country. Last year, 58.7 per cent of the total seats were filled, leaving 41.3 per cent vacant. This year’s pass rate has fallen further, meaning an even larger number of seats are likely to remain vacant.

Despite the large number of vacant seats, many students who earned GPA-5 may still be unable to secure admission to their preferred institutions, as comparatively better institutions have fewer seats. More than 116,000 students earned GPA-5 across the 11 education boards this year. Of them, 106,009 students received GPA-5 under the nine general education boards.

Around 1.36 million Class 11 seats to remain vacant

For the past several years, students have been admitted to Class 11 based on their SSC and equivalent examination results. Under the system, students seeking admission must apply online, listing a minimum of five and a maximum of 10 colleges or equivalent educational institutions in order of preference after paying the prescribed fee.

Students are then nominated for admission to an institution based on their results, quota status where applicable, and order of preference.

This system is used for admissions to colleges and madrasas only. Admissions to institutions under the Technical Education Board are conducted through a separate process. Apart from a few institutions, including Dhaka’s Notre Dame College, almost all colleges and madrasas in the country use this system for Class 11 admissions.

The Dhaka Education Board conducts the centralised online admission process with technical assistance from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET).