National University Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr ASM Amanullah has said 87% of the university's students are employed in the formal and informal sectors, challenging its portrayal as an institution that produces unemployed graduates.
He made the remarks while chairing a SIM distribution ceremony under the "Connecting Every Campus" initiative, jointly organised by National University and Grameenphone at Siddheswari College's auditorium in Dhaka today (14 October), according to the press release.
SIM cards were distributed among principals of 370 colleges in Dhaka division offering undergraduate, postgraduate and professional programmes.
"National University is called a factory for producing unemployed graduates, but that is not the reality. Our students work in various sectors at home and abroad. They also contribute to the growth of the country's remittances," Amanullah said.
He said major reforms were under way in the university's curricula and syllabuses to improve students' employability.
The curricula were being designed to help students demonstrate their abilities in competitive recruitment processes, he said. Emphasis was also being placed on enabling them to use their skills to earn from home rather than depend solely on salaried employment.
Providing an update on the reforms, Amanullah said the second-year honours syllabuses had been uploaded following validation.
There were around 5,000 courses across approximately 50 subjects, he said. Work to revise these courses had begun, with reforms completed for 400 courses.
He expressed hope that the degree pass programme syllabuses could be validated and uploaded within the next two weeks.
Amanullah, also a development researcher, stressed the importance of improving students' ICT skills. Teachers were receiving ICT training, and initiatives would be taken to establish ICT laboratories at colleges that did not have them, he said.
Grameenphone CEO Yasir Azman praised the vice-chancellor's knowledge of modern technology and his plans for the university, pledging the company's support for its future development.
He said National University students were performing well internationally despite various limitations, highlighting recent achievements by students from outside major cities at an AI Olympiad.
Young people must be equipped with education of a global standard by making use of emerging opportunities in artificial intelligence, Yasir said.
Grameenphone was ready to provide digital solutions and technological support for National University's extensive academic community, he added.
The "Connecting Every Campus" initiative aims to digitally connect colleges affiliated with National University. It will facilitate uninterrupted communication between the colleges and the university while providing access to digital learning support.
National University Registrar Molla Mahfuz Al-Hosen, Chief Engineer Md Mizanur Rahman and Siddheswari College Principal Sheikh Md Zulhas Uddin attended the programme.
Md Aminul Akter, director of the university's Regional Centre Coordination Office, delivered the welcome address.
The programme was moderated by Salma Parvin, director of the Teacher Training Office, and Md Akram Hossain, deputy director of the Regional Centre Coordination Office.