In addition to multiple choice questions (MCQs), students appearing for Dhaka University (DU) entrance exams will also have to sit for written tests from 2020.
The decision-making body of the DU Syndicate, with its Vice-Chancellor Prof Akhtaruzzaman in the chair, took the decision on Thursday night.
The syndicate has decided to execute the system with the next entry test which is usually held between October and November of every year.
Islamic History and Cultural Department Associate Prof Mohammad Humayan Kabir, a member of the syndicate, confirmed the matter.
“The DU Syndicate has reached a decision to admit fresh students from next year administering both MCQs and written tests, instead of only MCQs,” he added.
“However, the Syndicate is yet to finalize how many marks will be distributed for MCQs and written tests respectively,” Humayun added.
“The academic council and general admission committee of the university will finalize the marks distribution in the first week of next month [April],” said the syndicate member.
Responding to a query, he said the syndicate has proposed to retain 60% marks for the MCQ section and 40% for the written test, of the total 120 marks.
Till now, a student undergoing admission had to go through an assessment of a total of 200 marks. Of these, 120 marks were distributed for 100 MCQs while the remaining 80 marks were for achieved Grade Point Average (GPA) in higher secondary certificate (HSC) and secondary school certificate (SSC) examinations.
Kuwait Maitree Hall provost relieved of academic duties
In other news, the provost of Kuwait Maitree Hall, who was removed from the post over allegations of irregularities during the March 11 Dhaka University Central Students' Union (Ducsu) election, was also temporarily relieved of academic duties.
The authorities also formed a five member probe body for further investigation into the incident, assigning Supernumerary Professor, Khondoker Bazlul Hoque, as chief.
Confirming the matter, another syndicate member wishing to be unnamed, told reporters that the former provost of the hall, Prof Shabnam Jahan, was temporarily relieved of her academic duties, as she was found to be involved in irregularities during the March 11 Ducsu polls of the hall.
Voting at Kuwait Maitree hall was suspended around 9:30am on March 11 after a stash of stamped ballots in favour of the Bangladesh Chhatra League panel was found.
Shabnam was later replaced by Prof Mahbuba Nasrin of the Disaster Management and Vulnerability Studies Department.