No extension to age limit for private teacher recruitment

The private MPO institutions have called for the age limit to be raised to 37

While the government has recently increased the age limit for public service jobs to 32, the Ministry of Education has confirmed that the age limit for teacher recruitment in private monthly pay order or MPO-listed institutions will remain fixed at 35.

Education ministry officials have explained that the age cap is based on a high court ruling, which prevents any changes from being made by the executive branch.

Although some candidates registered for private MPO institutions have called for the age limit to be raised to 37, officials have reiterated that the current limit of 35 years is in line with a high court directive, meaning no adjustments can be made.

The age limit for recruitment in private educational institutions was first set at 35 years under the MPO policy issued on Jun 12, 2018.

This was later applied to technical and madrasa institutions in July 2018 by the Technical and Madrasa Education Division.

Zahirul Islam, joint secretary of the Ministry of Secondary and Higher Education’s Private Secondary Branch, told bdnews24.com: "The 35-year age limit for private teacher recruitment was set as per the high court's ruling. Even though the government has raised the age limit for public sector jobs, it is not possible to change the private teacher age limit due to the court's directive."

Candidates like Mahbub Alam, who passed the 14th Teacher Registration Exam for an English Lecturer post, have expressed disappointment over being ineligible to apply due to the age restrictions.

Alam, ranked 154th on the national merit list, urged the authorities to raise the limit to 37 years, arguing it would open up job opportunities for many registered unemployed candidates.

However, AMM Rizwanul Haque, secretary of the Non-Government Teachers' Registration and Certification Authority, or NTRCA, told bdnews24.com that changes cannot be made to the age limit or the validity of registration certificates.

He said, "As per the Appellate Division's directive, we are unable to recommend candidates for recruitment if their age exceeds 35 or if their teacher registration certificate is older than three years."