DU’s rankings woe rooted in political bias: PM Tarique

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Tuesday blamed politically motivated teacher recruitment and a weak research culture for the University of Dhaka’s poor showing in international academic rankings, calling on the country’s premier institution to overhaul its hiring practices and embrace merit-based appointments.

Speaking during a views-exchange programme at the university’s Muzaffar Ahmed Chowdhury Auditorium, the prime minister was candid in his assessment.

“Unfortunately, the kind of image we associate with Dhaka University is not reflected in international rankings,” he said, responding to a question from a student.

“One of the key reasons is that teachers were probably not recruited in the way they should have been in the past.

From what we have heard and read in newspapers, political bias seems to have received more priority.”

He argued that reversing this trend was not impossible. “If we recruit teachers based on merit and academic results, I think this condition can be changed,” he said.

Tarique Rahman also pointed to the near-absence of research publications and citations – key metrics in global university ranking systems – as a structural weakness.

“We have seen an absence of the publications and citations that are usually required for teachers and universities,” he said, noting that at reputed institutions worldwide, everything from initial recruitment to promotion to departmental leadership is determined by academic performance.

He urged Vice-Chancellor Professor ABM Obaidul Islam to make these reforms a priority.

Tuesday’s visit was the prime minister’s first official trip to his alma mater since taking office.

Beyond rankings: A broader vision for higher education
Earlier in the day, Tarique Rahman addressed a workshop titled “Transforming Higher Education in Bangladesh” at the same campus, where he laid out a broader reform agenda for universities across the country.

The prime minister warned that Bangladesh risked falling behind in a rapidly changing global economy if its universities did not break free from what he described as a memorisation-based and certificate-oriented education culture.

“Not only textbook-based education – if universities do not pay attention to research and innovation, it will become hard for us to survive in the competitive world,” he said.

He called for deeper industry-academia collaboration, expanded internship and apprenticeship programmes, and the promotion of entrepreneurship on campuses.

The government, he announced, plans to establish “Innovation and Entrepreneur Development Institutes” and “Science Parks” within higher education institutions, and will introduce seed funding and innovation grants through competitive processes to help students commercialise business ideas.

“The purpose of this is to create business entrepreneurs from the campus,” he said, adding that a student equipped with practical skills need not wait for a job – they could instead create employment for others.

Tarique Rahman also made a direct appeal to successful Dhaka University alumni at home and abroad to invest in the institution’s research and development, citing similar philanthropic models in Britain and elsewhere.

“I humbly call upon the educationists present here to take initiatives to involve those alumni in the development of education and research,” he said.

Values alongside advancement While pushing for technological and academic excellence, the prime minister struck a cautionary note on cultural preservation.

“We must not lose the age-old religious, social and moral values of our state and society,” he said, urging teachers, journalists, intellectuals and professionals to remain “cautious and vigilant.”

Tarique Rahman framed the broader education reform drive within the political context of Bangladesh’s democratic transition, noting that the current government had come to power “after more than one and a half decades, at the cost of thousands of lives.”

“The present democratic government wants to build a knowledge-based and merit-based state and society,” he said.

“The main foundation of building such a society is to create an environment where education, research, merit, qualification and creativity will get the highest importance.”