Dhaka College

First modern designed student hall of Dhaka College (1908), now known as Dr. Muhammad Shahidullah Hall of University of Dhaka

Dhaka College is one of Bangladesh's most important as well as earliest higher-secondary educational institutions. It was established by James Taylor Wise (civil surgeon at Dhaka) in 1835 as an English Seminary School (present Dhaka Collegiate School). Wise organized a local Committee of Public Instruction with the help of district magistrate Grant. The school building was built partly out of public donations on the grounds of an English factory. On 18 July 1841, the school got its approval from the college. On 20 November 1841, the foundation stone of the college was placed and buildings were completed in 1846, with the aid of the Bishop of Calcutta. In the first graduating class there were both Muslim and Hindu students, as well as a number of foreign students, mainly from Armenia and Portugal.

The college was relocated in 1873 to a large building to the east of Victoria Park in order to accommodate the physics and chemistry laboratories. In 1908, it shifted to Curzon Hall while the science departments were housed in the present chemistry building of the University of Dhaka and two new halls were built there as well. In 1921, the college shifted again to the old High Court Building as the University of Dhaka was established there. During the Second World War, it moved to Siddique Bazar in Purana Dhaka. Finally, the college found its own permanent campus on Mirpur Road, Dhanmondi near Dhaka New Market in 1955.[4]

Affiliations

• Calcutta University
  (18 July 1857 – 1 July 1921)[5]
• University of Dhaka
  (1 July 1921 – 20 October 1992)
• National University, Bangladesh
  (21 October 1992 – 15 February 2017)
• University of Dhaka
  (16 February 2017 – present) [6][7]

Partial list of the principals

• IK Selim Ullah Khandakar (2021–present)[23]

"Shongkhocil Bus" of Dhaka College

The library of Dhaka College was established in 1841 at the time of establishment of the college. It has a collection around 50, 000 books.[24]

Dhaka College offers HSC, four years Honours, and one year Masters course in various majors.[25]

• Ayub Ali, educationist
• Akhtaruzzaman Elias, novelist and short story writer
• Akhtar Imam, educationist
• Iqbal Azeem, poet
• Nurul Haque Miah, professor of chemistry
• Walter Allen Jenkins, 7th vice-chancellor of the University of Dhaka
• George Harry Langley, 2nd vice-chancellor of the University of Dhaka
• Muhammad Mansuruddin, author, literary critic, essayist, lexicographer
• Mohammad Noman, educationist
• Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, Teacher, Politician.
• Shaukat Osman, novelist and short story writer
• Alauddin Al-Azad, poet, novelist, educationist
• Mohammad Rafiq, poet
• Prasanna Kumar Roy, first Indian principal of Presidency College, Kolkata
• Abdullah Abu Sayeed, educationist[38]
• Kazi Abdul Wadud, essayist, critic, dramatist[39]

• Official Website
• Dhaka College Alumni Category