Universities

University

A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...

 in Bangladesh

Bangladesh

Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...

represent about 75 academic bodies out of a total of about 105 institutions represent the conventional higher education institution (HEI) in Bangladesh

Bangladesh

Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...

. Segmented by management and financial structure, these include 34 public universities, 56 private universities, 2 international universities, 31 specialized collages, and 2 special universities. There are specialized universities in both categories offering courses principally in technological studies, medical studies, business studies and Islamic studies. There are two private universities dedicated solely to female students. The number of universities is growing mostly in and around the capital city of Dhaka

Dhaka

Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...

.

There are about 1500 colleges organized under the umbrella of National University

Bangladesh National University

Bangladesh National University is a parent university of Bangladesh which was primarily established to affiliate all the universities and colleges. It is situated in Gazipur, on the outskirts of Dhaka.-Organization:...

 - one of the largest in the world. The Open University

Bangladesh Open University

The Bangladesh Open University or BOU is a national university with its headquarters in Board Bazar, Gazipur District, Dhaka Division. The university was established on October 21, 1992 when the Parliament of Bangladesh passed and gazetted the Bangladesh Open University Act, 1992.As the only...

 offers distance learning courses. There also is a parallel religious high-ed education system.

University Grants Commission

University Grants Commission (Bangladesh)

The University Grants Commission of Bangladesh was established on 16 December 1972. It was created according to the Presidential Order of the Government of People's Republic of Bangladesh.-Purpose:...

 of Bangladesh (UGC) serves as the regulatory body of all the public (government funded) and private universities of Bangladesh. The Private University Act of 1992 paved the way for vigorous sprouting of private universities. 80% of its universities are in their infancy. The country has severed shortage in higher education capacity. The country is yet to have any research and education network (REN) or digital library

Digital library

A digital library is a library in which collections are stored in digital formats and accessible by computers. The digital content may be stored locally, or accessed remotely via computer networks...

 consortium (DLC).

Public University

Bangladesh has 34 public universities instructing the bulk of higher studies students, especially from disadvantaged classes. These universities that are funded by the Government and managed as self-governed government institutions. Public universities in Bangladesh are highly subsidized, and apart from Dhaka University are principally residential.

Criticism and controversy

There has been much criticism and controversial issues around public universities in Bangladesh. Public universities had become places of political unrest, agitation, battle-field and repression. 12 of the public universities were reported to employ a total of 1,994 unauthorized faculty and staff, resulting an annual overspend of 159,467,000.00 Bangladeshi taka

Bangladeshi taka

The Taka is the currency of Bangladesh. Bangladesh Bank, the central bank of the country controls the issuance of the currency except one taka and two taka notes, which are the responsibility of Ministry of Finance of the government of Bangladesh...

 borne by the government. All were warned by the UGC, but apparently failed to respond to the warning. Student unrest has resulted in session jams and delays in holding examinations. During the presidency of Hossain Mohammad Ershad

Hossain Mohammad Ershad

Lieutenant General Hussain Muhammad Ershad is a Bangladeshi politician who was President of Bangladesh from 1983 to 1990. Previously, he was Chief of Staff of the Bangladesh Army and then Chief Martial Law Administrator in 1982....

 (1982-90) seven to eight years were being required to complete four years courses.

Private Universities

Private universities in Bangladesh came into being after institution of the Private University Act of 1992. As of 2008, over 55 of them have come into being. These universities are mostly affiliated with universities abroad and follow an open credit system.

Criticism and controversy

There has been much controversy around the private universities, and their practices. 11 universities went operational without a UGC approval which was made a necessity under the Private University Act (1992) in Bangladesh. 27 private universities in Bangladesh were found running without a Vice-Chancellor. 10 universities were issued a deadline of one year from the UGC to improve qualities. Eight universities the UGC of Bangladesh recommended for shutting down due to poor quality of academic standards. Some were served with show-cause notice by judicial authorities asking why it would not be closed down. Some of these universities introduced new academic courses without UGC approval along with a number of other private universities. Some others were found to deliver instructions in unauthorized courses and have illegal campuses.

Other universities and specialized colleges

• Bangladesh Open University
  Bangladesh Open University
  The Bangladesh Open University or BOU is a national university with its headquarters in Board Bazar, Gazipur District, Dhaka Division. The university was established on October 21, 1992 when the Parliament of Bangladesh passed and gazetted the Bangladesh Open University Act, 1992.As the only...
  
  
• Bangladesh National University
  Bangladesh National University
  Bangladesh National University is a parent university of Bangladesh which was primarily established to affiliate all the universities and colleges. It is situated in Gazipur, on the outskirts of Dhaka.-Organization:...