University of Barishal

University of Barishal
বরিশাল বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়
Former name	University of Barisal (2011-2018)
Motto	জ্ঞানই শক্তি
Motto in English	Knowledge is power
Type	PUBLIC
Established	2011; 13 years ago
Academic affiliation	UGC
Budget	৳ 99.997m
Chancellor	President Mohammed Shahabuddin
Vice-Chancellor	Professor Dr. Shuchita Sharmin
Provost	4 provosts
Dean	6
Academic staff	210 (2024)
Administrative staff	273 (2024)
Students	9300 (2024)
Location	Kornokathi (Dhaka-Patuakhali Hwy), Barisal, 8200, Bangladesh; 22°39′36″N 90°21′43″E / 22.6599°N 90.3620°E
Campus	Suburban (50 acres)
Language	English, Bengali
Website	bu.ac.bd

University of Barishal (Bengali: বরিশাল বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়, Boriśhāl Biśbôbidyālôẏ; also known as Barishal University or simply BU) is a public university located in Barishal, a divisional city in southern Bangladesh.^[2] It is the country's 33rd public university.

The university was established in 2011 and began academic activities at undergraduate level in six departments under four faculties on 24 January 2012. The university offers degrees at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. The university houses 25 academic departments under six faculties, where 24 departments are currently providing postgraduate degrees. Every year almost 1,500 students are admitted to undergraduate programs in the university. The university started its academic activities at the temporary campus at Barishal Zilla School and then shifted to its permanent campus. The permanent suburban campus of 50 acres of the university is located in Barisal Sadar Upazila beside Dhaka-Patuakhali Highway on the bank of Kirtankhola river.

Location

University of Barishal is situated in the district of Barishal under Barishal Division. It is located at Karnakathi on the eastern bank of the Kirtonkhola river beside the Barishal-Patuakhali highway about 2 kilometers from the center of Barishal City. The university campus is spread over 50 acres of land.

History

Demand for a university in the area was first made in 1960 before the independence of Bangladesh. In 1973, then-Prime Minister Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declared he wished to establish a university in Barishal during a rally held in the city. President Ziaur Rahman made a similar statement concerning establishing a university in Barishal on 23 November 1978, at a rally in Barishal Circuit House. In 1990s, former president Abdur Rahman Biswas also made a statement for the establishment of the university.

After three decades, following strong demand from the people of Barisal, the proposal was passed in ECNEC on 20 November 2008, by then Caretaker Government. The law of the University of Barishal has been amended and passed by the National Assembly of Bangladesh on 16 June 2010. On 22 February 2011, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the construction of a building of the university. The university officially started functioning from the first day of July 2011 in a temporary campus at Barisal Zilla School. Educational activities were inaugurated by Minister for Education Nurul Islam Nahid on 24 January 2012, in the temporary campus of the university. President Zillur Rahman and Professor Dr. Md. Harunor Rashid Khan, from University of Dhaka adorned the chairs of the Founder Chancellor and Vice-Chancellor respectively.

The construction of the main campus started in 2012 which is located at Karnakathi on the eastern bank of the Kirtankhola river in Barisal Sadar Upazila. Tk. 900 million was sanctioned to construct the university on 50 acres of land, including 12 acres of private and 38 acres public land.

In academic year 2011–2012 around 400 students were enrolled in six inaugural departments - English, Management, Marketing, Economics and Mathematics.^[2]^[3]

Campus

The university campus covers an area of 50 acres, and is landscaped around the Kirtankhola river with field areas and plants making the campus a natural arboretum. Facilities include academic buildings, administration building, auditorium, library, computer centre, workshop, research laboratories, halls of residence, teachers' quarter, mosque etc. The university has inside its boundaries a bank, a canteen and a large auditorium.^[4]

Transportation

The university runs its own regular bus service to and from the city to facilitate frequent commuting of the students residing there. Friday and Saturday are weekly holidays. The university own single and doubled-decker buses as well as microbuses to facilitate transport of students, staff and faculty members.

Medical Center

The University Medical Center is equipped for primary care but serious cases are referred to a Medical college hospital (Sher -E -Bangla Medical College Hospital) which is about 4 kilometres away.

Sports and entertainment

The university provides facilities for football, cricket, volleyball, table tennis etc. The students play tennis, badminton and other games as well. The students arrange debate, cultural show etc. The annual sports events are arranged at University Playground.

Library

The library has more than 20,000 books and hundreds of journals and periodicals in its collection. Approximately 150 students can use these facilities at a time.^[4]

Halls of residence

There are four dormitories for students.

Boy's halls

Name	Established	Number of accommodations	Note
Bangabandhu Hall	2011	500	Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
Sher E Bangla Hall	2011	500	A. K. Fazlul Huq

Girl's halls

Name	Established	Number of accommodations	Note
Sheikh Hasina Hall	2011	500	Sheikh Hasina
Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib Hall	2023	500	Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib

BU Campus

Barishal University entrance

View from the academic building

Barishal University academic building

View from the highway

Barishal University Campus at night

Barishal University Students and faculty buses

Double-decker students' bus

Bangobondhu Hall

Sheikh Hasina Hall

Play ground view

Administration

According to the laws of University of Barishal, the university is mainly governed by two bodies; the Syndicate and the Academic Council, both chaired by vice chancellor. The position of the chancellor is chaired by the President of Bangladesh and currently held by President Abdul Hamid.^[5] Currently former treasurer Professor Dr. Mohammad Badruzzaman Bhuiyan has been appointed as acting vice chancellor after Md. Sadequl Arefin's term has ended in 2023. Founder chancellor and vice chancellor were President Zillur Rahman and Prof. Dr. Md. Harunor Rashid Khan.

Vice chancellor

List of vice-chancellors
Sequence	Name	Took over	Transfer the responsibility
1	Prof. Harunor Rashid Khan	2011	2015
2	S. M. Imamul Huq	2015	2018
3	A. K. M. Mahbub Hasan (Routine-Charge)	2018	2019
4	Md. Sadequl Arefin	2019	2023
5	Prof. Dr. Mohammad Badruzzaman Bhuiyan (Routine-Charge)	2023	2024
5	Prof. Dr. Mohammad Badruzzaman Bhuiyan	2024	2024^[6]
6	Professor Dr. Shuchita Sharmin	2024

Academics

Academic activities of the university began with undergraduate classes for the 2011–12 academic year on 24 January 2012. The University of Barishal initially started with four faculties (Arts, Science, Social Sciences and Business Studies) and six departments: Mathematics, Management Studies, Marketing, Economics, Sociology, and English. The university currently has 25 departments in 6 faculties.^[7] Both undergraduate and graduate degrees are provided from all the departments. The total number of undergraduate enrollment in all departments for 2023–24 academic year was 1570.The medium of instruction is English, which is the official medium of examination in effect in all departments of the university except in the department of Bangla. Bangla is occasionally followed while teaching.

Faculty	Department	Establishment	Academic Programs	Seat (Undergraduate)
Faculty of Science and Engineering	Mathematics	2012	B.Sc, M.Sc	80
	Chemistry	2014	B.Sc, M.Sc	80
	Computer Science & Engineering	2014	B.Sc, M.Sc	50
	Physics	2015	B.Sc, M.Sc	80
	Geology and Mining	2015	B.Sc, M.Sc	60
	Statistics	2018	B.Sc, M.Sc	40
Faculty of Bio-Sciences	Soil and Environmental Sciences	2013	B.Sc, M.Sc	80
	Botany	2014	B.Sc, M.Sc	80
	Coastal Studies and Disaster Management	2017	B.Sc, M.Sc	30
	Biochemistry and Biotechnology	2018	B.Sc, M.Sc	40
Faculty of Business Studies	Accounting and Information System	2013	BBA, MBA, EMBA	75
	Finance and Banking	2014	BBA, MBA, EMBA	75
	Marketing	2012	BBA, MBA, EMBA	75
	Management Studies	2012	BBA, MBA, EMBA	75
Faculty of Arts and Humanities	English	2012	BA, MA	70
	Bangla	2013	BA, MA	70
	Philosophy	2017	BA, MA	50
	History and Civilization	2018	BA, MA	50
Faculty of Social Science	Economics	2012	BSS, MSS	70
	Sociology	2012	BSS, MSS	70
	Public Administration	2013	BSS, MSS	70
	Political Science	2014	BSS, MSS	70
	Mass Communication & Journalism	2018	BSS, MSS	30
	Social Work	2023	BSS, MSS	30
Faculty of Law	Law	2014	LLB, LLM	70