The application process for undergraduate admission to the University of Dhaka (DU), the country’s leading university, has begun for the 2026–27 academic year. According to the university’s online admission committee, applications will be accepted until 25 November, and the admission tests begin in the first week of December. Several hundred thousand students who passed the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) exam are once again competing for a limited number of seats.
According to teachers involved in admissions and students who placed on merit lists in past years, planned and strategic preparation in the final month is what makes the difference.
2026–27 admission tests at a glance
| Unit | Test date (2026) | Time and marks | Minimum GPA to apply |
| IBA | 5 December (10:00 am) | 70 MCQ (90 min) + 30 written (30 min) | Combined 8.00 (3.50 in each) |
| Science unit | 12 December (11:00 am) | 60 MCQ (45 min) + 40 written (45 min) | Combined 8.00 (3.50 in each) |
| Arts, Law and Social Sciences | 19 December (11:00 am) | 60 MCQ (45 min) + 40 written (45 min) | Combined 7.50 (3.00 in each) |
| Fine Arts unit | 22 December (11:00 am) | 40 MCQ (30 min) + 60 drawing (60 min) | Combined 6.50 (3.00 in each) |
| Business Studies unit | 26 December (11:00 am) | 60 MCQ (45 min) + 40 written (45 min) | Combined 7.50 (3.00 in each) |
Dhaka University draws up its merit list on a total of 120 marks: 100 from the admission test (MCQ and written) and 20 from SSC and HSC results (GPA). Each wrong MCQ answer costs 0.25 marks, and candidates need at least 40 out of 100 to pass. Details on applications and admit cards are on the university’s official admission website: admission.eis.du.ac.bd
Five effective strategies: what the experts say
1. There is no substitute for the core textbooks. Teachers involved in setting the papers say most questions come directly from the NCTB-prescribed Class 11–12 textbooks, not from coaching-centre sheets or guidebooks. Science unit candidates must be able to solve maths problems quickly without a calculator and apply the basic formulas of physics and chemistry. Arts and Social Sciences candidates should read every chapter, poem and passage of Bangla First Paper (Shahitto Path and Shohopath) and English For Today closely. Business Studies candidates should put extra weight on transaction analysis in accounting and on English grammar and vocabulary.
2. The written section decides the merit list. Most candidates score close to each other in the MCQ section, and it is the 40-mark written test that separates them on the final merit list. Practise writing relevant, informative answers within the space given (about five to seven lines). In translation (Bangla to English and English to Bangla), short paragraphs and explanatory questions, keep the answer script clean, without crossings-out.
3. Work through the last 10–15 years of question papers. Solving past papers gives a clear idea of how Dhaka University sets its questions. Identifying the chapters that produce questions every year and revising them makes the most of limited time.
4. Current affairs and general knowledge. General knowledge matters a great deal for Arts, Law, Social Sciences and Fine Arts candidates. Keep regular notes on the Liberation War, the Constitution, the Economic Review, recent development projects and major international events. Make a habit of reading the editorial and international pages of a national daily for at least 20 minutes a day.
5. Timed model tests and control of negative marking. Poor time management in the exam hall means even known answers get left out. Sit at least two full timed model tests a week at home (45 minutes of MCQ and 45 minutes of written). To avoid negative marking, do not guess on questions you are not fully sure of.
What candidates should do in the final days
Download the admit card as soon as applications close and check the exam centre and seating plan. In the last days, revise what has already been studied rather than starting new topics, and stay calm: that is what carries a candidate to the goal.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report