The results of this year’s Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and equivalent examinations show that both the pass rate and the number of GPA-5 grades fell compared with the previous year. Analysts reviewing the past 25 years say the number of top grades rose sharply after 2014, often exceeding 100,000.
This year’s combined pass rate was 62.25 percent, the lowest in 19 years. The last lower rate was 57.37 percent in 2007. A total of 116,676 students earned GPA-5 this year, compared with 139,032 last year. More than 1.857 million regular and irregular candidates filled out forms; 1,418,398 were SSC candidates, 304,286 were Dakhil candidates and 134,660 were in SSC and Dakhil vocational streams. More than 36,500 who completed the form were absent.
Bangladesh introduced the grading system in 2001. Only 76 students earned GPA-5 that year; the number rose to 330 in 2002, 1,392 in 2003, 8,597 in 2004, 17,631 in 2005 and 24,384 in 2006. It was 25,732 in 2007, 41,917 in 2008, 45,934 in 2009, 52,134 in 2010, 62,244 in 2011, 82,212 in 2012 and 91,122 in 2013.
The figure first crossed 100,000 in 2014, when 142,276 students received GPA-5. The totals were 111,901 in 2015, 109,761 in 2016, 104,761 in 2017, 110,629 in 2018 and 105,594 in 2019. The total was 135,898 in 2020, 183,340 in 2021 when automatic promotion was used, and a record 269,602 in 2022. It then fell to 183,578 in 2023, 182,129 in 2024, 139,032 in 2025 and 116,676 this year.
SSC results are important for admission to Class 11 and are also considered, along with HSC results, by universities. For example, the combined SSC and HSC GPA requirement for Dhaka University applications is at least 8 for science and 7.5 for humanities and commerce. Applicants to BUET or medical programmes generally need a total GPA of 10 from the science stream. SSC results also affect scholarships, technical education and some jobs. Four-year diploma programmes generally require at least GPA 2.5, while some public polytechnic programmes require an overall and mathematics GPA of at least 3.
Education researchers say the direct effect of SSC results on working life is more limited, although some job notices require an SSC or equivalent certificate. The Bangladesh Civil Service examination does not set a specific SSC result requirement, but its notices say a candidate with more than one third division or equivalent GPA in their educational career is ineligible.
Researchers offered several explanations for the recent fall in pass rates and GPA-5 totals, including stricter marking, repeated curriculum changes, gaps in teacher preparation, irregularities in teacher recruitment and political instability. Some academics said recent results may reflect more accurate assessment, while others recalled past pressure to raise pass rates and top grades. They stressed that high scores alone do not show how much students have learned; teaching quality, institutional facilities and teacher capacity also matter.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report