Uniform Admission Tests: UGC chair slams public universities opposing the move

University Grants Commission (UGC) Chairman Prof Kazi Shahidullah yesterday criticised the authorities of public universities that are not interested in holding uniform admission test to enroll students.

“Expectations of the whole nation cannot remain unfulfilled due to the indecision of some universities regarding holding uniform admission tests,” Shahidullah said at a meeting with vice chancellors of engineering and technological universities on uniform admission test.

“We should be alert that ego of some does not affect others,” he told the meeting held at UGC office in the capital.

He said the universities that will not hold uniform admission tests will face strong criticism, as uniform tests will ease sufferings of students and their guardians.

On January 23, UGC said uniform admission tests will be held from 2020-2021 academic year. The decision came from a meeting between vice chancellors and UGC, the statutory apex body for higher education, at the latter’s office.

Students from humanities, business studies, and science groups would be eligible to take the admission tests, which will be held based on HSC syllabus.

Last year, seven public agricultural universities introduced the uniform admission test, known as “the cluster system”. The other 38 public universities held separate entry tests.

Besides the agricultural universities, medical colleges currently have a uniform entrance test.

UGC officials said several universities including Dhaka University and Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology are showing no interest to hold uniform admission test.

Every year, admission seekers face a huge amount of pressure when they prepare for separate tests for separate universities.

Candidates have to buy admission forms from different universities and spend a lot of time and money for travel and accommodation. They travel, often with parents or guardians, across the country and sometimes have to check in to hotels to take part in admission tests.

Kazi Shahidullah at yesterday’s meeting pointed out that if the universities start holding uniform tests, it would improve image of teachers.

“The image of teachers will be improved if the vice chancellor and teachers of universities come forward to introduce uniform admission test and stop evening courses at universities,” he said.  

The decision of uniform admission test comes after President Abdul Hamid, also chancellor of all public universities, on several occasions asked public universities to hold admission tests centrally to reduce hassles of admission seekers and their guardians.

The UGC too wanted to introduce the uniform admission test. To ease admission seekers’ hassles, the education ministry in 2010 decided to introduce uniform admission test, dubbed “cluster system”. But it did not happen due to opposition from several major universities.