Policy Announced for 8th Grade Vocational Scholarships: General and Talentpool Quotas
The Bangladesh Technical Education Board has published the 'JS (Vocational) & JD (Vocational) Scholarship Examination Policy-2025' for 8th grade students, with provisions for general and talent-based quotas.
Recently, the policy was approved through a gazette notification signed by Additional Secretary Sajjad Hossain of the Technical and Madrasah Education Division under the Ministry of Education. The letter was sent to the Bangladesh Technical Education Board on Monday (September 10).
According to the policy, up to 40 percent of 8th grade students from affiliated institutions can participate in the JS (Vocational) and JD (Vocational) scholarship exam, selected based on continuous and cumulative assessment results.
The exam will cover five subjects: Bangla, English, Mathematics, General Science, and Bangladesh & World Introduction (for JS) or Quran Majid (for JD), plus Vocational Engineering-3. Each subject is worth 100 marks, totaling 500, and will last three hours.
The policy categorizes scholarships into talent and general types. At least one student per upazila will receive a scholarship, with 50 percent reserved for boys and girls. If no qualified candidates in one category, the quota can be filled by the other.
The exam fee is 400 taka for the board and 200 taka for the center, collected online by the Bangladesh Technical Education Board.
To ensure transparency and smooth conduct, the policy mandates formation of a National Steering Committee, Executive Committee, and District Committee. The National Steering Committee will be chaired by the Minister/Adviser for Education, with the Additional Secretary (Technical) as member-secretary.
Exams will be held at district headquarters, with detailed roles for center secretaries, hall superintendents, and invigilators. Question papers will be sent online, admit cards issued digitally, and the entire process conducted electronically.
The directive to the Board's Chairman's office instructs all technical education institutions to prepare for the scholarship exam per the policy.
