Govt to bring back admission tests for polytechnic institutes from 2025–26

The government will reintroduce admission tests for public polytechnic institutes from the 2025–26 academic session, reversing the GPA-based entry system introduced in 2016.

KM Kabirul Islam, secretary of the Technical and Madrasah Education Division, announced the decision during a views-exchange meeting at the Secretariat today.

"To ensure quality education in polytechnic institutes, we are incorporating admission tests into the new policy," he said, adding that the lack of tests had contributed to student dropouts and falling standards.

Admission tests were previously mandatory for entry into government polytechnics, but the system was scrapped by the then Awami League government in favour of GPA-based admissions.

That policy has now been deemed ineffective, prompting the reversal.