The Ministry of Education has published a new policy for student admission in government and private secondary schools for the 2027 academic year. According to the new policy, students for the first grade will be selected through a lottery. On the other hand, students for grades two to nine will be selected through a written admission test.
The Secondary and Higher Education Division of the Ministry of Education issued a gazette notification in this regard on Tuesday (October 13) evening. The notification was signed by Tania Ferdous, Deputy Secretary of the Ministry’s Government Secondary-1 branch.
As per clause 2 of the policy, adhering to the National Education Policy 2010, the age of students for first-grade admission must be ensured to be six years or more. However, as of January 1, 2027, the student’s age must be between a minimum of five years and a maximum of seven years.
To verify age, it has been made mandatory to submit a attested copy of the online birth registration certificate along with the admission application form. However, for students with special needs, there is an opportunity for an additional age relaxation of up to five years.
What is the age for admission in which class?
The new policy has set specific age limits for admission from first to ninth grade. The class-wise age limits are—
First Grade: 5 to 7 years
Second Grade: 6 to 8 years
Third Grade: 7 to 9 years
Fourth Grade: 8 to 10 years
Fifth Grade: 9 to 11 years
Sixth Grade: 10 to 12 years
Seventh Grade: 11 to 13 years
Eighth Grade: 12 to 14 years
Ninth Grade: 13 to 15 years
Maximum 55 students per section
The gazette states that the 2027 academic year will run from January 1 to December 31. Students can be admitted under this policy in government and private secondary schools for grades one to nine, subject to the availability of seats.
Furthermore, to maintain the educational environment and quality, instructions have been given to admit a maximum of 55 students in a specific section of each class.