Humanities records highest failure rate in 2026 HSC exams

Students from the humanities group recorded the highest failure rate in this year's Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) and equivalent examinations, according to results released on Saturday.

The average pass rate across the 11 education boards stood at 52.12 per cent.

The information was disclosed by Prime Minister's Adviser on Education and Primary and Mass Education Mahdi Amin during the results announcement ceremony at the Secretariat on Saturday (October 31).

According to data from the nine general education boards, a total of 258,932 male students appeared in the humanities group, of whom 90,664 passed. Among female candidates, 348,803 sat for the examinations, with 165,647 passing.

The combined pass rate in the humanities group was 42.17 per cent.

In comparison, the science group recorded a pass rate of 73.12 per cent, while the business studies group had a pass rate of 50.77 per cent.

Across all 11 education boards, a total of 1,270,583 regular and irregular candidates took part in this year's HSC and equivalent examinations, although a considerable number of registered candidates remained absent.

The nine general education boards recorded a combined pass rate of 51.62 per cent, with 35,948 students securing GPA-5.

Meanwhile, the Madrasah Education Board reported a pass rate of 61.07 per cent, with 3,250 students achieving GPA-5.

This year's HSC and equivalent examinations began on July 2. Written examinations were scheduled to conclude on August 8, but several examinations under the Chattogram Education Board were postponed due to natural disasters. The postponed examinations were subsequently held.

-MT