UNB, Dhaka :
Abdur Rahman, who started studying for a degree in a department of the social sciences faculty in October 1999, took seven years to complete his three-year Honours degree followed by a one-year Masters course.
In contrast, Mohammad Taslim, who got himself admitted in the Public Administration department of Dhaka University for a four-year Honours course in February 2010, completed his degree in 2014.
Although Abdur Rahman’s story may sound more familiar, Taslim is the beneficiary of arguably the most welcome change to have arrived at the country’s premier institute of higher education in recent years.
The scourge of ‘session jam’, once considered synonymous with DU, has been more-or-less eliminated from students’ lives.
Earlier it took three to four additional years to complete a three-year Honours and one-year Masters degree. But now a student can complete a four-year Honours degree and one- year Masters degree in by-and-large the stipulated time.
Political violence, programmes called by teachers’ associations and confrontational student politics led to unscheduled closures for indefinite periods repeatedly in the three decades till 2008.
Md Shoib Ali, who completed a 4-year BBA and 1-year MBA in 5 years from the Management department recently told UNB: “It is good news for us that there is no more session jam in the university as in the past. Now we will get enough time to prepare for the competitive examinations for suitable jobs.”
Introduction of semester system, regular classes and examinations, cordiality of the administration and students and absence of confrontational student’ politics are thought to have paved the way for ridding DU of the curse of session jams.
The students said now they are getting much more time to prepare for various jobs in the competitive market, which was not possible in the past for session-jam. In some cases they are even getting jobs at an earlier stage than the seniors of their respective departments.
Talking to UNB, Arts faculty dean Prof Dr M Akhtaruzzaman said “I completed my three-year Honours and one-year Masters in seven years. But now there is no session jam. Students too are eager to enter the work-life earlier.”
Registrar of the university, Syed Rezaur Rahman, said earlier the university was closed several times for indefinite periods due to longstanding feuds among the different student organizations getting out of control, even culminating in bloodshed.
Abdur Rahman, who started studying for a degree in a department of the social sciences faculty in October 1999, took seven years to complete his three-year Honours degree followed by a one-year Masters course.
In contrast, Mohammad Taslim, who got himself admitted in the Public Administration department of Dhaka University for a four-year Honours course in February 2010, completed his degree in 2014.
Although Abdur Rahman’s story may sound more familiar, Taslim is the beneficiary of arguably the most welcome change to have arrived at the country’s premier institute of higher education in recent years.
The scourge of ‘session jam’, once considered synonymous with DU, has been more-or-less eliminated from students’ lives.
Earlier it took three to four additional years to complete a three-year Honours and one-year Masters degree. But now a student can complete a four-year Honours degree and one- year Masters degree in by-and-large the stipulated time.
Political violence, programmes called by teachers’ associations and confrontational student politics led to unscheduled closures for indefinite periods repeatedly in the three decades till 2008.
Md Shoib Ali, who completed a 4-year BBA and 1-year MBA in 5 years from the Management department recently told UNB: “It is good news for us that there is no more session jam in the university as in the past. Now we will get enough time to prepare for the competitive examinations for suitable jobs.”
Introduction of semester system, regular classes and examinations, cordiality of the administration and students and absence of confrontational student’ politics are thought to have paved the way for ridding DU of the curse of session jams.
The students said now they are getting much more time to prepare for various jobs in the competitive market, which was not possible in the past for session-jam. In some cases they are even getting jobs at an earlier stage than the seniors of their respective departments.
Talking to UNB, Arts faculty dean Prof Dr M Akhtaruzzaman said “I completed my three-year Honours and one-year Masters in seven years. But now there is no session jam. Students too are eager to enter the work-life earlier.”
Registrar of the university, Syed Rezaur Rahman, said earlier the university was closed several times for indefinite periods due to longstanding feuds among the different student organizations getting out of control, even culminating in bloodshed.
