New admission system for varsities on cards

The government has decided, in principle, to introduce a single admission test for some public universities in the next academic session with a view to reducing admission hassles for the students.
Under the new system called 'cluster system', universities will be brought under various clusters and a single admission test will be arranged for each cluster of universities. For example, science and technology universities will be brought one cluster and agriculture universities under another cluster. Currently, all the universities arrange separate admission tests.
Initially, this system would be introduced for agriculture universities, science and technology universities and newly established general universities.
However, some reputed universities, including Dhaka, Rajshahi, Jahangirnagar and Comilla universities and Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet), will not switch to the new system.
A committee has been formed with Prof Muhammad Zafar Iqbal of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology as its head to finalise details of the cluster system.
The decision to introduce the new system came at a meeting of the vice chancellors (VC) of public universities yesterday, with Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid in the chair.
"We want to ease the admission process and reduce hassles, thereby saving time of the students," said Nahid.
Although many universities want to be a part of the cluster system, it is not possible to involve all of them right now, he added.
"We don't want to impose anything. You [vice chancellors] all sit together and decide how the system can be introduced properly," he said.
Many universities have already introduced online admission system, the minister said and urged all the university heads to expedite the admission process online.
At the meeting, many vice chancellors preferred using online admission system rather than cluster system.
Dhaka University VC Prof AAMS Arefin Siddique said they have discussed the issue in the meetings of the universities academic councils and admission committees and that most of the teachers do not want to introduce the new system.
University Grants Commission Chairman Prof Nazrul Islam and Education Secretary Syed Ataur Rahman and high officials of the education ministry were also present at the meeting.