Greater focus should be on National University and Open University in Bangladesh

"We have had our final honours exam in July last year and our exam result has been announced in April this year". This is a comment of one National University student and this statement is good enough to signify and understand the real scenario of the procedures of our National University. All colleges having honours and master's degree in Bangladesh operate under the same umbrella which is known as National University. There are a good number of students studying in National University and Open University. We would be dead wrong even if we think for a single second that we do not have talented students in both of these universities who we need to educate greater way. Based on the quality, I would like to rank our universities in four categories. BUET, Dhaka University along with one or two private universities could rank in the first category. Open University and National University could be in the third or fourth category. Why do Open and National University rank third or fourth? The main reason is because the education quality is yet to be satisfactory. The fact of the matter is we must make sure quality education for all. It does not matter whether we study in North South University or National University; everyone deserves to receive quality education. But if we analyse the scenario, we can see the widest disparity between these universities. It is conceivable that there are a greater number of students studying in National and Open University, but the education quality is yet to be rich. If someone does not go to classes in National or Open University, heshe could still pass the exam. I am not quite convinced with all students and I would not say that all students are truly eager to get quality education, still there are some good number of students who want to make something different either from National or Open University. We need to make sure that we find out these talents. We should not forget that wealth does not bring result. The wealthy people send their children to renowned institutions, but it does not mean these students would be available to develop our nation; my experience shows that many of these students have aspiration to move to foreign countries for better life, leaving the country interest behind them. The real deals are those students who do not have money to go to expensive institutions, but still would want to make difference with the resources they have. What I wanted to mention is, those talented students who are studying in National or Open University, can be great asset for us. The conditions of these unprivileged institutions are truly shocking. There are no good libraries, no laboratories. Also there is lack of competent and enthusiastic teachers. By far the most depressing scenario is there is no good administration at these universities. I have discussed with a few students who are studying in these universities; it is conceivable from their experience that the quality of these institutions are truly depressing. I asked them if they go to the classes regularly, but they told me that they do not need to go the classes and the most shocking information is they are not asked to go to the classes regularly. These students need to spend huge time to receive their degrees finally from these institutions; if they need to wait such a long time, how they could possibly build motivation to do something different for our country? This is a good sign that the students studying in National or Open University can see their result online, but sorrowfully many of these students do not know how to operate computer; at least they should have been given access to computer and internet, but the National or Open University do not have capacity to provide them with these gadgets. Recent reports show that Bangladesh lost point and found its position in lower order in the Human Development Index provided by the UNDP. Even though there is no connection of this index result with the education system of our country, but still differences have been made with people to people in Bangladesh. A student having a degree from North South University or BUET of Dhaka University expects a good job with higher salary; but contrary to this a student having a degree from National University is not even considered for a position. The end result is we are creating a gap between the people of our country. Can we mention certainly that these students having degree from these under privileged institutions do not have capacity to have good jobs? We need to develop the scenario of our National University and Open University. All the colleges working under National or Open University should develop the class rooms and other facilities for the students. Furthermore, we need to create a strong administration for this system so that students do not need to wait a long time to receive their degrees. They degrees should be regarded as a prestigious degree and they should be considered for all types of jobs. The world is getting more and more competitive; it would be hard to compete in the world if we do not exhibit something different. Students are actually the future of this world and consequently Bangladesh students should not deny responsibilities that they should step forward to make this better. For this very reason learners need to get real life experience that they can get through quality education during their student life. Good student does not mean having a degree from NSU, DU or BUET, a good student is someone who uses creativity, innovation and commitment to make something different. For this, we need to ensure a genuine quality education atmosphere in all institutions in our country. The writer is lecturer at School of Business in Independent University, Bangladesh, email: sahmed@ashland.edu