Public univ seats nearly double HSC qualifiers

A total of 1,082,288 undergraduate seats are available across 61 public universities in Bangladesh for the 2026�"27 academic session, according to recent statistics from the University Grant Commission. 

This figure is set to surpass around 6.5 lakh students who came out successful in the recently published Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) examination results Of the total seats, 63,656 are allocated to the universities' own campuses, while 1,018,632 are available through affiliated colleges, institutes and other educational institutions. 

This means that the overwhelming majority of undergraduate seats under the public university system are offered outside the main campuses. 

The data also show that the National University accounts for the largest share of these seats, with 946,095 places available at its affiliated colleges.

According to the figures, the University of Dhaka has 6,125 undergraduate seats, while the University of Rajshahi has 3,956 and the University of Chittagong has 4,033.

Jagannath University offers 2,957 seats, Islamic University has 2,515, and Shahjalal University of Science and Technology has 1,636.

Among other major institutions, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) has 1,309 seats, Jahangirnagar University has 1,848, and Khulna University has 1,109.

Dhaka Central University has a reported 11,290 seats. Bangladesh University of Professionals (BUP) has 1,800 seats, while Gopalganj Science and Technology University has 1,580.

Barishal University has 1,570 seats, Noakhali Science and Technology University has 1,611, Begum Rokeya University has 1,395, and Comilla University has 1,070.

The National University has by far the largest number of undergraduate seats among public universities through its affiliated colleges, offering a total of 946,095 places.

Bangladesh Open University accounts for 42,434 seats in its affiliated and associated educational system, while Islamic Arabic University has 11,055 seats in affiliated madrasahs.

Rajshahi Medical University has 5,971 seats in its affiliated institutions, while Chittagong Medical University has 3,905.
Khulna Medical University has 1,486 seats. Bangladesh University of Professionals has another 2,090 seats in affiliated colleges and institutes.

The University of Dhaka has 1,586 seats in its affiliated colleges and institutes, while the University of Rajshahi has 1,784.
Among science and technology universities, Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University has 2,100 undergraduate seats.