Secondary admission: Process likely to begin Nov 16

The online application process for admissions to all government and non-government secondary schools for the coming academic session are likely to begin on November 16-17.

The Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education (DSHE) sent proposals -- to start the process, along with suggested dates for the lottery -- to the education ministry for approval, DSHE Director (Secondary) Mohammad Belal Hossain told The Daily Star.

DSHE proposed December 10 as the date for the lottery for admissions to government schools, and December 13 for non-government schools, according to officials.

"We hope we will get the approval for the proposed admission test guideline soon," the DSHE director said this morning.

If approved, the online application process will end on December 6, officials said.

This year's applications for government and non-government schools will be conducted on the same website, with two windows -- one for public schools, and another for their non-government counterparts. Students will be able to select five schools against one form. The price of a form will be set at Tk 110.

Details about this year's process, including the lottery system, will be disclosed soon through notification.

For the past decade, admission to class-1 has taken place through lottery all over the country. Last year, the government introduced the lottery system for all classes of secondary schools as well.

In 2020, all school admissions were conducted through lotteries, due to Covid-19.

The admission process at government primary schools is completely different. The schools enrol all students who apply and no admission test is required.

Each year, millions of students and their guardians across the nation wait for the admission day. Majority of students are enrolled in class-1, at the beginning of students' academic life, and in class-6, after completion of primary education.

According to the Directorate of Primary Education, 3,250,251 students were enrolled in class-1 across the country in 2021. The same year, 21,09,353 students were enrolled in class 6, according to the Bangladesh Bureau of Educational Information and Statistics.

The DSHE's objective in introducing the lottery system was to lessen the hassle of students and guardians alike, who previously had to travel from one school to another for admissions.

Another objective was to mitigate the "allegations of irregularities and corruption," regarding the admissions process at non-government schools, top officials of the directorate told The Daily Star.

Before the lottery system, all schools used to take students only based on vacancy.