Govt, private school admissions in 2027: Guidelines you need to know

Students will be admitted to Class I at government and private secondary schools for the 2027 academic year through a lottery. For Classes II to IX, students will be admitted against vacant seats based on merit rankings in written examinations. To be eligible for admission to Class I, a student must be at least six years old but younger than seven. Students with special needs may receive an age relaxation of up to five years.

The Secondary and Higher Education Division of the Ministry of Education issued separate admission policies on Wednesday (11 November) and Thursday (12 November) for government and private secondary schools for the 2027 academic year. Both policies stipulate admission to Class I through a lottery and admission to subsequent classes through written examinations. They also outline the application process, distribution of marks in admission tests, fees and admission procedures.

For admission to Class I in the 2027 academic year, a student's date of birth must fall between 1 January and 31 December 2020. This means the student must have completed six years of age by 1 January 2027 but must not have turned seven. A certified copy of the online birth registration certificate must be submitted with the application as proof of age. Students with special needs may receive an additional age concession of up to five years.

The academic year at both types of schools will run from 1 January to 31 December. Each section of every class will have 55 students. Students may be admitted to the entry class of the respective school and up to Class IX, subject to seat availability.

For the 2027 academic year, applications, collection of application fees, processing and publication of results for all government secondary schools across the country will be conducted online. For admission to Class I, an applicant may select a maximum of five government schools in order of preference. If an applicant selects both shifts of a double-shift school, they will be counted as two school preferences. Multiple applications to the same school will result in the cancellation of all applications.

The Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education (DSHE) will conduct the Class I lottery centrally. Along with the list of selected students, a waiting list containing the same number of students as the available seats will also be prepared. If a selected student does not complete admission within the stipulated period, students will be admitted sequentially from the waiting list.

For Classes II to IX, written examinations will be held against vacant seats. Students will be selected according to merit rankings based on their examination results. A waiting list containing the same number of students as the vacant seats must also be prepared alongside the list of selected candidates.

The respective educational institutions will conduct admission procedures at private schools. The date and time of admission tests will be determined at meetings of the schools' management committees. To ensure that examinations at different institutions within the same catchment area are not held on the same day, schedules must be set in consultation with the relevant thana or upazila secondary education officer.

Students must be selected for Class I through a lottery. A waiting list containing the same number of students as those selected must also be maintained. For Classes II to IX, students must be admitted according to merit rankings based on written examinations against vacant seats. For admission to Class IX, candidates must be selected from among students who have passed the Class VIII or equivalent examination.

Application forms for written admission tests at private schools may be collected from the school office or, if the school has a website, from there. The dates for distribution and submission of forms must be mentioned in the admission notice.

There are some differences in the distribution of marks for admission tests at government and private schools.

At government schools, the admission test for Classes II to V will carry a total of 50 marks. Of these, 15 will be allocated to Bangla, 15 to English and 20 to mathematics. The examination will last one hour.

For admission to Classes VI to IX, the examination will carry 100 marks, with 30 marks allocated to Bangla, 30 to English and 40 to mathematics. The examination will last two hours.

At private schools, the admission test for Classes II and III will carry a total of 50 marks, with 15 marks allocated to Bangla, 15 to English and 20 to mathematics. The examination will last one hour.

For Classes IV to IX, the examination will carry 100 marks, with 30 marks allocated to Bangla, 30 to English and 40 to mathematics. The examination will last two hours.

At government schools, the online application fee for Class I will be a maximum of Tk 110. For Classes II to IX, the fee will be a maximum of Tk 250. Admission fees, including session charges, must be determined in accordance with the Ministry of Education's instructions.

The private school admission policy also sets the maximum online application form fee at Tk 110 for Class I and Tk 250 for Classes II to IX. However, a subsequent clause in the same policy states that all MPO-listed, partially MPO-listed and non-MPO institutions, including those in Dhaka metropolitan area, may charge a maximum of Tk 200 for admission application forms. As a result, the policy contains two different amounts for application form fees.

At private schools, admission fees, including session charges, have been set according to location. The maximum fees will be Tk 500 in rural areas, Tk 1,000 in upazila municipal areas, Tk 2,000 in district headquarters municipal areas and Tk 3,000 in metropolitan areas other than Dhaka.

Non-government MPO-listed educational institutions in Dhaka metropolitan area may charge a maximum admission fee of Tk 5,000.

At partially MPO-listed institutions, the maximum amount, including monthly tuition fees, session charges and development fees, will be Tk 8,000 for Bangla-medium students and Tk 10,000 for English-version students. No institution will be allowed to collect more than Tk 3,000 under the development fee.

If a student passes the annual examination and moves to the next class at the same institution, a session charge may be collected each year, but no readmission fee may be charged. The policy also provides for fee waivers for poor, meritorious and students with special needs.

Neither of the two policies specifies the dates for the start and end of the admission application process.

For government schools, applications must be submitted through the designated software in accordance with the notice issued by the Dhaka City Admission Committee.

For private schools, the respective institutions will announce the dates for distribution and submission of forms and admission tests through their notices.

As a result, applicants will have to rely on the relevant admission notices for information about application opening and closing dates, examination schedules and publication of results.

See the government secondary school student admission policy 2027 (revised) here.

See the Admission Policy 2027 for private schools and school and colleges (secondary, lower secondary and attached primary levels) here.