University of Dhaka

About University

On 31 January a delegation led by Nawab Sir Salimullah,Nawab Syed Nawab Ali Chowdhury and Sher e-Bangla A.K. Fazlul Hug met Viceroy Lord Hardinge on his visit to Dhaka (then Dacca) and raised the demand of the establishment of a University in the region.

On 2 February, a communique was published stating the decision of the Government of India to recommend the Constitution of a University at Dhaka. On 4 April, the Government of British India invited the Government of Bengal to submit a complete scheme of the University. On 27 May, the Government of Bengal published a resolution regarding the proposed University and appointed a Committee of thirteen members with Sir Robert Nathaniel as President to frame the scheme. The Committee, known as the Nathan committee, submitted the scheme in the same year.

The University made supreme sacrifices with fourteen teachers, one officer, twenty-six employees, and hundreds of students of the university losing their lives in the war for the Independence of Bangladesh. The second women’s hall, Shamsunnahar Hall, was established. The University completed its second phase of development and started the third phase of development with the emergence of the People's Republic of Bangladesh.

In 1972, the Department of Applied Chemistry (now Applied Chemistry and Chemical Engineering) was opened in the Science Faculty, and the Department of Public Administration was opened in the Faculty of Social Sciences. On July 1, 1921, the University began its journey with 3 Faculties: Arts, Science, and Law; 12 Departments: Sanskrit and Bengali, English, Education, History, Arabic and Islamic Studies, Persian and Urdu, Philosophy, Economics and Politics, Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, and Law; and 3 Dormitories for students: Salimullah Muslim Hall, Dacca Hall, and Jagannath Hall.

On 22 February, the University held its first Convocation. Lord Lytton, Governor of Bengal and Chancellor of the University of Dhaka, was the convocation speaker. In 1974, The Institute of Modern Languages started functioning in the University. The Faculty of Biological Sciences was established with the Departments of Soil Science (now Soil, Water and Environment), Botany, Zoology, Biochemistry (now Biochemistry and Molecular Biology), Psychology, and Pharmacy.

The Departments of Finance (later Finance and Banking) and Marketing were established in the Faculty of Commerce. The Bureau of Business Research started functioning. In 2008, The Faculty of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The Faculty of Engineering and Technology, and The Faculty of Fine Arts were opened. The Department of Biomedical Physics and Technology was opened in the Faculty of Science. The Department of Theoretical Physics was resuscitated in the Faculty of Science.

A 2-Year Regional Masters Programme in Journalism, Media, and Communication began at the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism in partnership with The Oslo University College, Norway; The University of Punjab, Pakistan; and the College of Journalism and Mass Communication, Nepal. Teachers and students from all these partner countries take part in teaching and learning in this Programme.

The Center for Administrative Research and Innovation, The Center for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue, The Center for Buddhist Heritage and Culture, and The Center for Trade and Investment came into existence. In 2010, The Centre for Genocide Studies was established. A studentship expulsion order imposed by the Executive Council on the then young student leader, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (later Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman) for expressing solidarity with the ongoing movement of class-IV employees union of Dhaka University in 1949, was unanimously revoked by the University Syndicate in August this year.

Three new Departments were opened at the University: The Department of Television and Film Studies under the Faculty of Social Sciences, The Department of Nuclear Engineering under the Faculty of Engineering and Technology, and The Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology under the Faculty of Biological Sciences. The Renewable Energy Research Centre was converted into the Institute of Renewable Energy.

The Government of Bangladesh decided to hand over the Bangladesh College of Leather Technology to the University of Dhaka for transforming it into an Institute of the University. The Kotler Centre for Marketing Excellence (KCME) was established. Two new Departments were opened under the Faculty of Earth and Environmental Sciences: The Department of Oceanography and the Department of Disaster Science and Management. The Institute of Disaster Management and Vulnerability Studies and The Institute of Leather Engineering and Technology have been set up. It may be noted here that the Bangladesh College of Leather Technology was handed over by the Government to the University for transforming it into an independent institute under Dhaka University.

Two centers, namely The Scandinavian Study Centre and The East Asia Study Centre, were established. Four new Departments were opened at the University: Department of Dancing under the Faculty of Arts, Department of Applied Mathematics under the Faculty of Science, Department of Communication Disorders under the Faculty of Social Sciences, and Department of Pharmacy under the Faculty of Pharmacy. Six Research Centres, namely The Centre for English Teaching and Research, The Chromosome Research Centre, Centre of Excellence for Teaching and Learning, Centre for Culture and Resilience Studies, and Centre for Bioinformatics Learning Advancement and Systematics Training, were established. The Air Quality Research and Monitoring Centre has been established at the Advanced Research in Sciences (CARS).

In 2019, two new offices named 'Office of the International Affairs' and 'Dhaka University Technology Transfer Office' were opened. The Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Research Institute for Peace and Liberty will be established in the 'Mujib Year'.