Published : 24 Aug 2026, 10:13 PM
Updated : 08 Sep 2026, 09:35 AM
The education administration has reversed its decision to start the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and equivalent exams from Jan 7 next year.
Taking into account the opinions of examinees and guardians, it has decided the exams will begin in March after the holy month of Ramadan and Eid-ul-Fitr.
Next year's SSC and equivalent exams will start on Mar 14, said Prof Syed Akhtaruzzaman, president of the Inter-Education Board Coordination Committee.
The Dhaka Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board chairman told bdnews24.com on Monday, "It will start on the 14th of March and end on the 15th of April. The routine will be posted on the website shortly."
The holy month of Ramadan is likely to start in the second week of February next year.
Accordingly, Eid-ul-Fitr will be in the second week of March, after the end of Ramadan.
On May 14, Education Minister ANM Ehsanul Hoque Milon announced that next year's SSC and equivalent exams will start on Jan 7.
The announcement led to debate and criticism from educators, students, and guardians. The proposed schedule for the exam has already been published.
However, on Jun 2, while facing reporters at the Secretariat, the education minister said that if stakeholders want to push for a change to the schedule, the exams could be pushed back.
Students set to take their SSC exams next year have seen several disruptions to their education.
They studied the new curriculum formed by the Awami League from grades 6 to 8 before they were brought to the revised curriculum of 2010 in grades 9 and 10 according to the decision of the interim government.
The interim government also had issues getting textbooks to students on time.
Many examinees and their guardians felt that if the schedule were moved up to February, it would only pile onto the disruptions faced by the approximately 2 million students set to take the exams next year.
Although it was once customary for SSC and equivalent exams to be held in February and Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) and equivalent exams in April, the schedule has been disrupted regularly since the COVID-19 pandemic and the July Uprising. Subsequently, the SSC and equivalent exams have started in April and HSC and equivalent exams in July.
Education Minister Milon had planned to readjust the SSC and equivalent exams to January to save time for students.
