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The University
Jahangirnagar University was established in 1970 as a residential public university. Currently it has 35 departments, 6 faculties and 2 institutes alongwith more than 10,000 students and over 500 academics. Its picturesque campus is situated 30 kilometers away from Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh, but is well-linked with a national highway that goes from the main city to different parts of the country. The first parliament of Bangladesh granted the university its charter called the Jahangirnagar University Act, 1973 under which it is being operated. The emblem of the university bears the national flower, white lily, with three petals bordered by strips of a traditional floral design with the name of the university in Bangla ensconcing in a semi-circle like a garland of flowers.
The faculty of Social Sciences includes the departments of Economics, Geography and Environment, Government and Politics, Anthropology, Urban and Regional Planning, and Public Administration.
Dept. of Government & Politics
Initially in 1972 the courses in Politics were offered at minor level for the subsidiary students of Economics, Geography, History, Bangla, and English. The Department of Government and Politics formally came into being in 1976. The department offers undergraduate, Masters, M. Phil and Ph.D. programs. Each year about 65-70 students register in the honors and almost same number in the masters levels. The enrolment of students in the M. Phil and Ph.D. programs ranges within 40-50. The medium of instruction is both Bangla and English. The academic year is July to June. The details of the admission procedures are available in the university website: www.juniv.edu
The curricula of the department include a wide range of fields and are devised to offer a thorough grounding on the discourses of government and politics with scopes for further specialization. The main areas of concentration are: political thought, comparative politics, international politics, public policy, governance issues, social anthropology, political analysis and research methods. The core courses include political theories and classic concepts of philosophers & political scientists and empirical courses cover Bangladesh politics, political systems, behaviors, institutions, processes and issues from multi-dimensional perspectives. The objective of the course is to provide students with knowledge, conceptual tools and understanding of contemporary processes. Students as such obtain a useful educational background for job opportunities in government organizations, NGOs, research positions, educational institutions, political and civic bodies as well as media.
M. Phil and Ph.D. programs are designed to explore and disseminate knowledge and train students in conducting independent research with diverse methodologies and approaches. There are several optional advance (600 level) courses to complement research interests of post-graduate students. Required seminar presentations of M. Phil and Ph.D. students bring forth the faculties, supervisors and students to share and expand critical opinions and excellence in higher research.
The department organizes lectures, discussions and publishes its annual journal called the Asian Studies: Jahangirnagar University Journal of Government and Politics
