Colleges struggle for students as demand surges at top 10 - Prothom Alo English

Many colleges and madrasas across Bangladesh are struggling to attract students for Class XI admission in the 2026–27 academic year. Eleven colleges received no applications at all, while 416 colleges received applications but were not allocated even a single student.

In addition, around 800 colleges and madrasas received only one to 10 students each, creating a shortage of students at many institutions.

However, several well-known colleges saw strong demand, with applicants outnumbering available seats several times over.

Mymensingh’s Ananda Mohan College received the highest number of applications. A total of 32,678 students applied for 981 Class XI seats. Of them, 981 students were selected for admission, in line with the number of available seats.

Adamjee Cantonment College in Dhaka ranked second in terms of applications, receiving 32,640 applications for 2,379 seats. Dhaka City College ranked third, with 31,951 applications for 4,280 seats.

The other colleges in the top 10 by number of applications are Government Bangla College, BAF Shaheen College Dhaka, Rajshahi Government City College, Rajuk Uttara Model College, Government City College Chattogram, Birshreshtha Noor Mohammad Public College and Government Tolaram College, Narayanganj.

2,205 students with GPA-5 applied but didn't get a collegeThere are around 2.5 million seats available for Class XI admission at colleges and madrasas across the country this year. Meanwhile, the SSC pass rate this year was the lowest in 19 years. There had already been concerns that a large number of seats would remain vacant. The first phase of Class XI admission has now revealed that scenario.

A total of 8,180 educational institutions are eligible to enrol students in Class XI this year.

The SSC and equivalent examination results were published on 10 August. A total of 1,829,485 students took the examinations under 11 education boards. More than 1.14 million students passed. Of them, more than 175,000 did not apply for Class XI admission.

A total of 995,230 students applied for Class XI admission this year. Of them, 980,815 were selected for admission. This means 14,415 applicants were not allocated seats at any educational institution. Among them were 2,205 students who had obtained GPA-5.

What will happen to colleges that received no students?Of the 11 colleges that received no applications for admission this year, nine are under the Barishal Education Board. When contacted, Kadbhanu Memorial Secondary Girls School and College and Kathalia Secondary Girls School and College said they had already applied to discontinue higher secondary education at their institutions.

Shamima Nasrin, head teacher of Kadbhanu Memorial Secondary Girls School and College, told Prothom Alo by phone, “It is a school and college. The college section was discontinued about two years ago.”

Meanwhile, 416 educational institutions received applications but were not allocated any students. For example, Titas Model College in Brahmanbaria district, under the Cumilla Education Board, has 450 seats in Class XI, but not a single student was allocated a seat there.

Around 800 colleges and madrasas received only a very small number of students compared with their available seats. For example, Tiakhali College in Amtali, Barguna, under the Barishal Education Board, has 300 Class XI seats but only four students were selected for admission.

Asked about these colleges, Professor Syed Akhtaruzzaman, chairman of the inter-education board coordination committee and chairman of the Dhaka Education Board, told Prothom Alo that information about colleges and madrasas that received no students or only a negligible number would be presented to the minister and secretary for their views on what should be done. Further steps would then be taken accordingly.

How admission works and when classes beginClass XI admission is again being conducted this year based on SSC and equivalent examination results. No admission tests were held. Applications were submitted online through a centralised system. Institutions were allocated to students based on their results, order of preference and, where applicable, quotas.

For several years, Class XI admission has been based on SSC and equivalent examination results. After paying the prescribed fee, applicants must select a minimum of five and a maximum of 10 colleges or equivalent educational institutions in order of preference when applying online.

With technical assistance from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), the Dhaka Education Board centrally operates the online Class XI admission process. The system is used for admissions to colleges and madrasas across the country. Institutions under the Technical Education Board follow a separate admission process. Apart from a few institutions, including Notre Dame College in Dhaka, almost all colleges and madrasas in the country use this system for Class XI admissions.

After confirmation and migration of students selected in the first phase, the admission process will take place over three days from 20 to 22 September. Classes for Class XI will begin on 24 September after the admission process is completed.

Professor Syed Akhtaruzzaman, chairman of the Dhaka Education Board, said students who applied but were not allocated a college, as well as those who could not apply, would get another opportunity. A further round of applications will be opened after the first-phase admission process is completed and classes begin.