Students of evening post-graduation progamme at Dhaka University pay between Tk 50,000 and Tk 55,000 as tuition fees per semester in a sharp contrast to their fellow students in regular course, which they pay Tk 600 only.
Splitting in six semesters, students of an evening course pay over Tk 300,000 to complete a two-year long degree.
Although they pay more than regular students, they enjoy fewer privileges including transport and accommodation facilities as the DU authorities have been maintaining a dual policy for long.
Sources said DU introduced evening-programme in a bid to increase revenues. But teachers take home 60 percent of course revenue - a double or three-fold of their regular salaries.
It is alleged that teachers at different departments with no evening-courses, are keen to launch new courses. Their love to evening-progamme is hampering the academic activities of the regular students.
Data from DU’s Admission Department shows that tuition fee for a regular student is between Tk 300 and Tk 350 per semester. In total, a regular students pay around Tk 8,500 including transport, accommodation, union, examination and other fees to complete a two-semester master degree.
On the other hand, a student of evening-progamme pays Tk 5,000 tuition fee per semester with Tk 42,000 for course credits and Tk 5,000 for lab fee. So, a student pays around 165,000 for one year, split in three segments.
To obtain a two-year post-graduation degree, students are required to complete 22 different courses, and around Tk 350,000 throughout six semesters.
Students of the evening-progamme are charged nearly 42 times more regular student!
Asked how the tuition fee for evening-progamme is fixed, DU Business Studies Dean Prof Shibli Rubayat Ul Islam said, “Academic committee of the department concerned makes a proposal and forwards it to faculty, which is scrutinized by dean’s committee. Later, university’s academic council finalized it.”
Some 25 departments and eight institutes of Dhaka University currently run evening-courses with four thousand students enrolling every year in addition to 2,500 regular students. Authorities collect about Tk 6.6 million in revenue every year.
Graduates and post-graduates from different public and private universities including National University and service holders along with students of Dhaka University enroll in evening-courses.
Evening-courses are available in most universities across the country including Dhaka University, Jahangirnagar University, Rajshahi University, and Jagannath University. These courses are launched on condition of developing the university, which RARELY happens.
Explaining the expense pattern of the revenues, University Grants Commission Chairman Abdul Mannan said, “In line with regulations, certain portion of the revenue from evening programme goes to the university treasury. Sometimes it may not happen.”
“But these funds also help universities develop their infrastructure,” Mannan said.
Taking to Bangla Tribune, several teachers, officials and students of DU, JU and JnU said that authorities at Business Studies faculties first introduced the evening progammes, encouraging Social Science, Arts and Science faculties to follow suit.
Teachers are keen to launch evening-course to earn extra, they alleged.
Sources of DU said, the Department of Law planned to launch evening-courses last year, drawing protest from students. Despites the protest, the university authorities approved the plan.
When Bangla Tribune contacted to Law Faculty Dean Rahmat Ullah over phone, he declined comments.
On the question of salary, a teacher, who wished to remain anonymous, said, “Teachers’ keenness is obvious. Their interest is the first things to launch an evening-course. Then, it requires approval of the university.”
Besides, how much does a teacher earn? Many teachers take classes in private universities, if they can earn money in the department why will they take class in private universities, argued Rahmat Ullah.
Students alleged that introducing evening-coursers severally affected academic activities of regular students. Teachers pay more attention on evening course and less to regular classes and examinations.
 former student of Finance and Banking department, JU told Bangla Tribune, “Juniors informed us over phone that teachers postponed classes without notice. But that teacher was seen taking class in the evening.”
There is an allegation that teachers are doing this because they want to earn more, money, ultimately regular students suffering the loss. As a result, they cannot maintain quality of education at both levels, alleged a student, who preferred to go unnamed.
In contrast, evening-course students claimed that sometimes teachers also charged more money showing different reasons.
A student of a DU evening-course told Bangla Tribune, “While paying admission fees, students have to pay extra for different reasons each semester.”
Explaining how students are charged more, the student said that their practical classes included event management. They paid fee on event management during enrollment. But authorities charged a big amount for the second time on the same head while classes started,
“Usually, fees for an evening-course being very much higher already, the subsequent charging of extra fees is totally inhuman,” she said.
When asked, Prof Shibli Rubayat Ul Islam said, “Treasury of the university maintains a bank account. Students deposit admission and other fees to the account after university approves their enrollment. Then, the money is transferred to the dean’s offices and the departments, so, there is no opportunity to avoid paying the university.”
Admitting that teachers should not compromise quality of education, UGC Chairman Abdul Mannan said, “Teachers’ has interest too. But, most important is who are studying the evening-courses.”
“It is not true that people who are unable to attend study in the day, are being given certificates in exchange of money,” Mannan argued suggesting no compromise on quality of education.
In line with regulations, teachers receive 60 percent of the revenue from evening-courses and another 30 percent goes the university treasury with dean’s office having 10 percent.
Asked about a teacher’s average earnings from evening-courses, the DU Business Studies faculty dean showed inability to disclose the figure.
Sources at DU said, a professor earned between Tk 130,000 and Tk 150,000 monthly from taking classes in evening-course, followed by an associated professor earning between Tk 110,000 and Tk 120,000 monthly.
An assistant professor earned between Tk 90,000 and Tk 150,000 monthly, followed by a lecturer making at least Tk 80,000 monthly.
In Jagannath University, teachers received 60.5 percent of the revenue from evening-courses and another 32.5 percent goes the university treasury with dean’s office getting three 10 percent, JnU Business Faculty Dean Maniruzzaman told Bangla Tribune.
According to the dean, the revenue is distributed in line with regulations.
Criticizing teachers’ special interest in evening progammes, Raihan Rain, Professor at JU Philosophy department, said, “Last year, teachers at several departments demanded students’ enrollment for evening-graduation progamme with ongoing masters progamme, arguing low salary of the teachers.”
Classes will be taken in two shifts. Later many of our colleagues protested the move, putting an end to it”, Rain said.
Teachers use infrastructural facilities of the university and earn thousands of taka month after month, but they give a few to the institution, taking 60 percent of the revenue”
Previously, regular students attended classes for six days a week, now reduced to five days after introducing evening programme. Regular examinations are not held, teachers do not even finish seeing test papers that should be stopped, said the JU Professor.