DIU Ranks as the Best University Again

[md]

We are very much pleased to inform you that the world ranking of our beloved University is staying a very much appreciated position. The detail information is given below: Link is: http://www.webometrics.info/top100_continent.asp?cont=S_Asia

http://www.webometrics.info

 

The objectives of the Webometrics Ranking of World's Universities:
The original aim of the Ranking was to promote Web publication. Supporting Open Access initiatives, electronic access to scientific publications and to other academic material are our primary targets. However web indicators are very useful for ranking purposes too as they are not based on number of visits or page design but on the global performance and visibility of the universities.

As other rankings focused only on a few relevant aspects, specially research results, web indicators based ranking reflects better the whole picture, as many other activities of professors and researchers are showed by their web presence.

The Web covers not only formal (e-journals, repositories) but also informal scholarly communication. Web publication is cheaper, maintaining the high standards of quality of peer review processes. It could also reach much larger potential audiences, offering access to scientific knowledge to researchers and institutions located in developing countries and also to third parties (economic, industrial, political or cultural stakeholders) in their own community.

The Webometrics ranking has a larger coverage than other similar rankings (see table below). The ranking is not only focused on research results but also in other indicators which may reflect better the global quality of the scholar and research institutions worldwide.

Webometrics intend to motivate both institutions and scholars to have a web presence that reflect accurately their activities. If the web performance of an institution is below the expected position according to their academic excellence, university authorities should reconsider their web policy, promoting substantial increases of the volume and quality of their electronic publications.

Thanking you,


Md. Nadir Bin Ali
MCSE, MCDBA, A+, CCNA, CCAI, RHCE
Sr. Assistant Director, IT
LMC and Instructor, CCNAP
Daffodil International University
Web: www.daffodilvarsity.edu.bd
Land Phone: +880-2-9138234-5
Cell: +88  01713493070

[shibli]

The system of private universities is a relatively new concept in Bangladesh. Because of the ever-growing demand for education at the university level, and the fact that existing public universities could not meet the need, the government passed a Private Universities Act in 1992. Starting with a handful, the number of private universities has grown rapidly and stands at 54 to date, compared with 21 public universities.

Part of the reason is that Bangladesh has one of the fastest-growing populations in the world, increasing from 45 million in 1971 to more than 145 million today. But private universities are also popular because the public institutions could not offer enough places in courses of high demand so students opted for lesser-known universities rather than study a subject which might not have good job prospects.

The private universities have capitalised on this situation by limiting what they offer to a few disciplines such as business, computer science, engineering, medicine and so on which are very much in demand in the job market.

A University Grants Commission report says the standard of education in most of the public universities is not up to the mark. The reasons include student politics, irregular and interrupted classes and examinations, unsatisfactory teacher-student ratios and so forth. In contrast, most of these problems are non-existent in the private universities.

Prior to their introduction, most students were not able to enrol in the esteemed public universities and had few options left to them. Some went abroad to study, the majority going to India and a few to the US, UK and Australia.

Eventually, Bangladesh began to suffer from the loss of huge amounts of hard-earned foreign currency, and also the loss of many of its then highly qualified citizens - the brain-drain factor.

So the private universities have directly helped in saving foreign currency as well as reducing the brain drain. Many scholarships are also available for students with brilliant academic results although they are also popular with those who face financial constraints. Critics say more need-based scholarships should be available to create opportunities for a higher number of deserving candidates.

Although some of the universities have come under fire for failing to deliver what they had promised, it has to be remembered that Bangladesh's whole system of higher education is still in its development stage.

In the US, as well as in many other countries around the world, private universities and colleges are as good as the public ones, if not better at times. MIT, Harvard, Yale, Princeton and Dartmouth are all private institutions. In Bangladesh, many private universities are also excellent education institutions.

mahdin.mahboob@gmail.com

* Mahdin Mahboob is a sub-editor on The Star Campus Magazine of The Daily Star newspaper in Bangladesh where this article first appeared.