Application fees for DU admissions quadruple in 8 years, leaving aspirants worried

Rifat's father works as a day labourer, earning barely enough to feed their family of five. His mother works as a seamstress to support the education of their three children.

Having passed his HSC examinations this year, Rifat dreams of studying at the University of Dhaka. But the cost of applying for admission has become a source of worry for him and his family.

Application fees for Dhaka University's admission tests have risen by around 15 percent this year. Over the past eight years, they have more than tripled, rising from Tk 350 to Tk 1,200 for most units.

According to the Dhaka University Admission Test Committee, the application fee for the faculties of Science, Arts, Law and Social Sciences, and Business Studies has increased from Tk 1,050 to Tk 1,200 for the 2026-27 academic year. The fee for the Faculty of Fine Art has risen from Tk 1,250 to Tk 1,400.

The fees have risen from Tk 350 across each unit in 2018-19 to Tk 1,050 in 2023-24.

“Applying to three units at Dhaka University alone costs Tk 4,500. How can I afford that when I cannot even attend a proper coaching centre?” Rifat said.

Toufiqur Rahman Miah said his son, who secured a GPA of 4.86 in this year's HSC examinations, was preparing for admission tests at several public universities because the family could not afford private university education.

“It is unfortunate that application fees for just a few universities add up to nearly Tk 15,000. If the fees are this high, how can we afford to let our children sit for the exams? How will our dreams come true?” he said.

Dhaka University authorities have defended the increase, pointing to higher living and operational costs.

Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Academic) Prof Abdus Salam said prices, including the cost of paper, had risen and admission fees had remained unchanged for two years.

Tanzim Uddin Khan, a Dhaka University professor and former member of the University Grants Commission (UGC), said the university had not adequately considered students from disadvantaged backgrounds when setting admission fees.

“They have failed to consider national inflation or assess what level of increase would still allow children from marginalised backgrounds to sit for these exams. There should be a policy on how much the fee can increase each year,” he said.

Prof Kamrul Hassan Mamun of the Department of Physics told bdnews24.com that Tk 1,200 was affordable for middle-class families, but students who could not pay should receive full waivers.