Major Shifts for SSC and HSC Schedules; Unified Admission Test Back in Discussion

Following recent directives from the Ministry of Education, a significant overhaul of the secondary and higher secondary examination calendars is underway. Education Minister Dr. A N M Ehsanul Hoque Milon has indicated that the government aims to conduct the 2027 SSC examinations as early as December 2026 to eliminate session jams and streamline the transition into higher education.

This move has reignited the long-standing debate over a unified admission test for all public universities. Currently, students must navigate multiple clusters and individual university exams, a process that lasts several months and incurs significant financial and physical strain. The Minister hinted that once the HSC schedule is brought forward, the University Grants Commission (UGC) will work with universities to ensure admission tests begin immediately after results are published.

Speaking at the Secretariat following a meeting on teacher transfer policies on Saturday (April 25), the Education Minister stated that the government is determined to rid students of the "curse of session jams." If the plan to hold the SSC exams in December is implemented, the exams will effectively be brought forward by four months compared to the current cycle.

The 2026 SSC examinations began on April 21 and are scheduled to conclude on May 20. The HSC exams are set for July 2 to August 8. Under the new proposal, the 2027 SSC exams would conclude in January, potentially allowing HSC exams to start as early as February or March. Consequently, university admission wars could begin as early as July, saving nearly half a year for millions of students.

At a workshop held at the UGC for "World Intellectual Property Day 2026," Minister Ehsanul Hoque Milon noted that the delay between HSC results and university enrollment results in a collective loss of nearly 40 lakh years of productivity for the 20 lakh students participating. He urged the UGC to finalize a timeline where universities hold entrance exams in a more synchronized manner.

While the GST (General, Science, and Technology) cluster system was initiated to reduce student suffering, it has faced challenges. In the 2025–26 academic year, 20 universities participated in the cluster, while five major institutions—Jagannath University, HSTU, SUST, Comilla University, and Khulna University—opted to conduct independent exams. Top-tier institutions like Dhaka University, BUET, and Jahangirnagar University also continue to maintain separate admission processes.

Professor A N M Mofakharul Islam, Chairman of the Rajshahi Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board, told The Daily Campus that while bringing the SSC exams to December is possible, it would increase the administrative pressure regarding form fill-ups and test examinations. He noted that if the government finalizes the decision, the boards are prepared to work toward a February timeline for HSC exams.

When approached for comment regarding the unified admission test, UGC Chairman Professor Dr. Mamun Ahmed and the Commission Secretary declined to provide immediate details, noting that formal decisions would require further deliberation with university leadership. As the government pushes for a centralized system, the focus remains on whether top-tier universities and engineering clusters like BUET will eventually join a singular national testing framework.