e_Paper, Tuesday, June 20, 2017

2
TUESDAY, JUNE 20, 2017
DT
News
Education destination:
A good number
of foreign
nationals come
to Bangladesh
to pursue higher
studies for the
affordable costs
• Mahadi Al Hasnat
SPECIAL
Until a few months ago, Mohammad
Ashuur, from Mogadishu, Somalia,
thought his dream of studying
abroad was over when he could
not find a programme that he could
afford in developed countries.
However, he learnt of Bangladesh
and found that education was
comparatively cheap here. Now,
Ashuur is studying pharmacy in
Daffodil International University,
on his way to fulfilling his dream.
“After completing high school
in Somalia, I decided to go abroad
for higher education. I had almost
given up hope of studying in European
or American universities
because of the huge costs, but then
I learnt about Bangladesh from one
of my friends studying here, and
made a decisive choice to come
here,” said Ashuur.
Abdul Hakim, another Somalian
student, has been studying electrical,
electronics and telecommunication
engineering at Dhaka International
University since 2016.
“A good number of African students
have been studying in different
universities in Bangladesh because
of the high-quality, low-cost
education system here,” Hakim
told the Dhaka Tribune.
Over the years, Bangladesh has
been a favourite destination for
higher education for thousands of
foreign nationals from Cameroon,
Ethiopia, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya,
Mali, Nigeria, Somalia, Tanzania,
Uganda and Zimbabwe.
Students from developed countries,
such as Australia, Canada,
China, Korea, Germany, Italy, Japan,
Jordan, Poland, the Netherlands,
Turkey and the US also
pursue higher education in Bangladesh,
according to the University
Grant Commission (UGC).
Students from Bhutan, India,
Indonesia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan,
Palestine, Papua New Guinea,
A haven for South Asian medical students
• Mahadi Al Hasnat
SPECIAL
Many South Asian students flock
to Bangladeshi medical schools because,
as prices for medical studies
are going up in developed countries
in Asia, Europe and America,
Bangladesh is increasingly standing
out as an attractive option for
medical aspirants.
Every year, many students from
Afghanistan, Bhutan, India, Pakistan,
Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka
enrol in both public and private
medical colleges in Bangladesh,
which offer high yet affordable
standards of education.
There are more than 75 seats for
international students in various
government-run medical colleges in
Bangladesh, while 20-25% of seats in
private medical colleges are reserved
for them, according to sources.
Bangladesh is a popular destination for higher education among students particularly from South Asia and Africa
“Foreign students are increasingly
interested in studying in
Bangladeshi medical colleges because
of the quality education and
low costs,” said a high official of
Dhaka Medical College.
Speaking to the Dhaka Tribune,
several foreign students said the
quality of medical studies in Bangladesh
is similar to that of India,
both in terms of syllabi, books,
teaching methods, and duration of
study.
Krishna Kumar Isar, a medical
student from Rajbiraj in Nepal
who has been attending the Dhaka
Community Medical College and
Hospital since 2015, said: “The
number of seats in medical colleges
is not enough in Nepal, but in
Bangladesh, Nepalese students can
get admitted easily because of the
availability of seats. Bangladesh
is geographically close to Nepal,
which is another advantage.”
Azae Sha, another Nepalese
student from Kathmandu who is
currently enrolled in MH Samorita
Hospital and Medical College, said:
“Medical studies cost $100,000 in
India, which is too expensive. But
we can get the same quality of education
in Bangladesh with only
$30,000-$45,000.”
Given these advantages, 400-
500 Nepalese students come to
Bangladesh for medical studies, he
added.
Bangladesh attracts large numbers
of Indian students from West
Bengal, Jammu and Kashmir, Kerala,
Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Uttar
Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra
Pradesh, Punjab, Karnataka, Tripura
and Manipur as well.
Bangladesh is particularly popular
among Kashmiri students because
it is a Muslim majority country,
said Yasir Javed, a student from
Jammu and Kashmir who goes to
SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN
the Philippines and the UAE frequently
attend public and private
universities in Bangladesh as well.
According to the UGC Annual
Report 2015, a total of 593 foreign
students were studying in 18 of the
country’s 37 public universities in
2015, compared to 432 in 2014 and
Sher-e-Bangla Medical College.
“Bangladeshi culture is quite
familiar to Kashmiri students because
of its Islamic traditions. The
quality of education is also pretty
good, and the cost is affordable
for middle-class families,” he explained.
Tousif Khan, a student from
Kolkata who goes to Uttara Modern
Medical College, said Indian
students trained in Bangladesh
frequently come out on top in the
entrance examination of the Medical
Council of India, which is for
Indian students completing their
medical degrees abroad.
“Many Indian students favour
Bangladeshi medical colleges as
they don’t require the NEET score,
which is compulsory in India because
of the limited seats and huge
number of applicants. The tuition
cost is also higher in India,” he said.
“Indian parents also prefer Bangladesh
for their children’s higher
studies, since it is close to home.”
When contacted, Education
Minister Nurul Islam Nahid said
Bangladesh had become a popular
destination for foreign nationals because
of the significant progress in
the standards of higher education.
“India may be wealthier than
us, but it cannot meet the demands
of its vast population, which is
why many Indian students come
to Bangladesh for higher education.
Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, and
other neighbouring countries also
have confidence in our quality of
education,” he told the Dhaka Tribune.
He further said if the educational
institutions in Bangladesh
continued their progress and further
hone the quality of their education,
more students from foreign
countries would be encouraged to
study here. •