Report No: AUS0000659 Bangladesh Public Disclosure Authorized Tertiary Education Sector Review Skills and Innovation for Growth Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized © 2019 The World Bank 1818 H Street NW, Washington DC 20433 Telephone: 202-473-1000; Internet: www.worldbank.org Some rights reserved This work is a product of the staff of The World Bank. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this work do not necessarily reflect the views of the Executive Directors of The World Bank or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this work. The boundaries, colors, denominations, and other information shown on any map in this work do not imply any judgment on the part of The World Bank concerning the legal status of any territory or the endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries. RIGHTS AND PERMISSIONS The material in this work is subject to copyright. Because The World Bank encourages dissemination of its knowledge, this work may be reproduced, in whole or in part, for noncommercial purposes as long as full attribution to this work is given. Attribution—Please cite the work as follows: “World Bank. 2019. Bangladesh Tertiary Education Sector Review: Skills and Innovation for Growth. © World Bank.” All queries on rights and licenses, including subsidiary rights, should be addressed to World Bank Publications, The World Bank Group, 1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA; fax: 202-522-2625; e-mail: [email protected]. Graphics and layout design: Mohammad Inamul Shahriar Print: Progressive Printer Pvt. Ltd. Report No: AUS0000659 Skills and Innovation for Growth BANGLADESH TERTIARY EDUCATION SECTOR REVIEW Tashmina Rahman, Shiro Nakata, Yoko Nagashima, Md. Mokhlesur Rahman, Uttam Sharma, and Muhammad Asahabur Rahman March 31, 2019 Education Global Practice South Asia Region ACKNOWLEDGEMENT This report was prepared by a team comprised of Tashmina Rahman (Education Specialist), Shiro Nakata (Senior Education Economist), Yoko Nagashima (Senior Education Specialist), Md. Mokhlesur Rahman (Senior Operations Specialist), Uttam Sharma (Consultant) and Muhammad Asahabur Rahman (Consultant) under the overall supervision of Cristian Aedo (Practice Manager). Research assistance was provided by Jeje Moses Okurut (Consultant), Farzana Shams (Consultant) and Mustahsin-Ul-Aziz (Consultant). The report benefited from useful inputs and feedbacks from World Bank colleagues, including Tekabe Ayalew Belay (Program Leader), Sereen Juma (Country Program Coordinator) and Bushra Binte Alam (Sr. Health Specialist). The authors particularly thank D.H.C Aturupane (Lead Economist); Xiaonan Cao (Senior Education Specialist) and Jason Allen Weaver (Senior Education Specialist) for their insightful review and thoughtful comments as peer reviewers. ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ADB Asian Development Bank ADP Annual Development Program AIF Academic Innovation Fund BAC Bangladesh Accreditation Council BAU Bangladesh Agricultural University BANBEIS Bangladesh Bureau of Education and Informational Statistics BCPS Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons BdREN Bangladesh Research and Education Network BNMC Bangladesh Nursing and Midwifery Council BTEB Bangladesh Technical Education Board BSMMU Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University BUET Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology CEDP College Education Development Project DGHS Directorate General of Health Services DME Directorate of Madrasa Education DSHE Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education DTE Directorate of Technical Education EHS Education Household Survey FCPS Fellow of College of Physicians and Surgeons FMRP Financial Management Reform Project FYP Five-Year Plan ii GB Governing Body GDP Gross Domestic Product GER Gross Enrollment Rate GoB Government of Bangladesh GPI Gender Parity Index HEQEP Higher Education Quality Enhancement Project HSC Higher School Certificate ICT Information Communication Technology IT Information Technology IQAC Institutional Quality Assurance Cells IP Intellectual Property LASI Learning Assessment of Secondary Institutions LMS Learning Management System MCPS Member of College of Physicians and Surgeons MDG Millennium Development Goal MoE Ministry of Education MoF Ministry of Finance MTBF Medium-Term Budgeting Framework NAEM National Academy of Educational Management NEP National Education Policy NSDA National Skills Development Authority NSDP National Skills Development Policy NSQAS National Skills Quality Assurance System NTRCA Nongovernment Teacher Registration and Certification Authority NTSC Nongovernment Teachers Selection Commission NTVQF National Technical and Vocational Qualification Framework PBF Performance-Based Funding PFM Public Financial Management PSC Public Service Commission R&D Research and Development RMG Ready-Made Garments SDG Sustainable Development Goal SHED Secondary and Higher Education Division STEM Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics STEP Skills and Training Enhancement Project TEI Tertiary Education Institution TIB Transparency International Bangladesh TMED Technical and Madrasa Education Division TVET Technical and Vocational Education and Training UDL University Grants Commission Digital Library UGC University Grants Commission UIS UNESCO Institute for Statistics UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization VC Vice Chancellor WIPO World Intellectual Property Organization Bangladesh Tertiary Education Sector Review | iii ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT CONTENTS ii ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS vi EXECUTIVE SUMMARY INTRODUCTION 13 1.1. Background 14 1.2. Study Objectives and Approach 12 15 1.3. Study Methodology TERTIARY GRADUATE SKILLS AND EMPLOYABILITY 19 2.1 Job Market Outcomes of Tertiary Graduates 21 2.2 Relevance of Tertiary Education: Employers’ and Graduates’ Perception 18 ACCESS AND EQUITY IN TERTIARY EDUCATION 23 3.1 Background 25 3.2 Key Issues in Access and Equity in Tertiary Education in Bangladesh 29 3.3 Policy Options for Promoting Equity in Tertiary Education 22 31 Bibliography QUALITY AND RELEVANCE IN TERTIARY EDUCATION 33 4.1 Background 34 4.2 Key Issues in Quality and Relevance in TEIs in Bangladesh 42 4.3 Policy Options for Improving Quality and Relevance in TEIs 32 44 Bibliography RESEARCH AND INNOVATION IN TERTIARY EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS 47 5.1 Background 47 5.2 Status of Research in Bangladesh 50 5.3 Key Issues in Research and Innovation in TEIs in Bangladesh 46 53 5.4 Policy Options for Promoting Research and Innovation in Tertiary Education 55 Bibliography GOVERNANCE AND MANAGEMENT IN TERTIARY EDUCATION 57 6.1 Background 59 6.2 Institutional Governance and Management 61 6.3 Key Issues in Governance and Management of Tertiary Education 56 6.4 Policy Options for Promoting ‘Good’ Governance and Management in Tertiary 65 Education in Bangladesh 67 Bibliography FINANCING OF TERTIARY EDUCATION 69 7.1 Background 70 7.2 Status and Issues of Financing in Tertiary Education in Bangladesh 75 7.3 Policy Options for Better Financing in Tertiary Education 68 76 Bibliography 78 ANNEX LIST OF FIGURES 15 Figure 1: Conceptual Framework 19 Figure 2: Unemployment Rates by Education Level (Left); Employment Status of Graduates after 1–2 Years of Graduation (Right) 21 Figure 3: Skills Employers Feel Polytechnics (left), Colleges (right), and Universities (below) should Train Graduates More On 21 Figure 4: Perception on Skills Relevant for Jobs among Employed Graduates (1 = Not Important; 4 = Highly Important) 24 Figure 5: Gross Enrollment Rate (GER) for Selected Countries and Region, 2016 (in percent) 25 Figure 6: Tertiary Education Enrollment Projection till 2040 25 Figure 7: GPI by Type of TEI in 2010 and 2015 26 Figure 8: Distribution of Enrollment across Income Groups, by Education Cycle 26 Figure 9: Distribution of Enrollment across Income Groups, by Institution Type 27 Figure 10: Students’ Family Background among University and College Students 27 Figure 11: HSC Exam Performance (GPA) among Public University and College Students 35 Figure 12: Satisfaction Rating among Beneficiary and Non-Beneficiary Students (out of 4-point scale) 39 Figure 13: Employers’ Perception of Skills Importance and Skills Sufficiency among Professional Workers in Bangladesh (Share of respondents, percentage) 48 Figure 14: Number of Citable Documents Published per Year by Bangladeshi Researchers, 1990–2015 49 Figure 15: Top 10 Research Areas by Volume of Citable Documents Produced in Bangladesh in 2015 51 Figure 16: Share of Funding Sources for Researches Published by Bangladeshi Researchers, 2015 58 Figure 17: Simplified Organogram of MoE for Tertiary Education LIST OF TABLES 20 Table 1: Average Current Gross Salary in BDT 23 Table 2: Number of Students and Institutions across TEIs in 2010 and 2017 in Bangladesh 24 Table 3: Proportion of Enrollments in STEM Courses in 2015 28 Table 4: Some of the Support Programs Available to Students in Public Tertiary Institutions 36 Table 5: Average Teacher-Student Ratio across the TEIs 37 Table 6: Computer and Internet Access across Tertiary Colleges 40 Table 7: Good Practices of Higher-Order Cognitive Skills and Soft Skills Training in Bangladesh 48 Table 8: H-Index for Selected Countries, 2015 49 Table 9: Number of Research Publications by Type of University in Bangladesh 2013 50 Table 10: Ranking of Patent Filing for Various Countries, 2013 51 Table 11: MoE Budget to Public University and Allocation to Research in Bangladesh (BDT, millions) 69