The Ministry of Education has published the admission policy for government secondary schools across the country for the 2027 academic year. Under the policy, students seeking admission to Class One will be selected through a digital lottery, while admission to Classes Two through Nine will be based on written examinations.

The Secondary and Higher Education Division of the Ministry of Education published the policy on Tuesday evening (October 13). It was signed by Tania Ferdous, deputy secretary of the ministry’s Government Secondary-1 branch.

Lottery System for Class One
According to the policy, students must be selected for admission to Class One through a lottery. Each applicant can list a maximum of five educational institutions in order of preference. However, if an applicant chooses both shifts of a double-shift school, it will count as selecting two schools.

Multiple applications to the same institution will result in the cancellation of all applications.

The Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education (DSHE) will centrally conduct the digital lottery and complete all related admission procedures. The lottery must take place in the presence of admission committee members, with transparency ensured throughout the process.

Alongside the list of selected students, a waiting list containing as many candidates as there are vacant seats must also be prepared. If a selected student fails to enrol by the deadline set by the admission committee, candidates from the waiting list will be admitted in sequence.

Written Examinations for Classes Two to Nine
Under the new policy, students seeking admission to Classes Two through Nine will be selected through written examinations, with admission decisions based on merit rankings for available seats.

A waiting list equivalent to the number of vacant seats must also be prepared. If a selected student does not enrol within the stipulated time, candidates from the waiting list will be admitted in sequence.

Admission Test Marks and Duration
For Classes Two through Five, the admission test will carry 50 marks, including 15 marks for Bangla, 15 for English and 20 for Mathematics. The examination will last one hour.

For Classes Six through Nine, the test will carry 100 marks, comprising 30 marks for Bangla, 30 for English and 40 for Mathematics. The examination duration will be two hours.

Admission Notices and Publicity
According to the policy, school heads will publish admission notices specifying the number of vacant seats at their respective institutions, following decisions by the admission committee.

The committee will also arrange for wide publicity by publishing notices in national and local newspapers and on websites.