Faculty of Business Studies

The Faculty of Business Studies (FBS) was initially established as the Department of Commerce under the Faculty of Arts in the academic year 1922-23. The Department of Commerce of the University got elevated to the status of the Faculty of Commerce in 1970. The Faculty of Commerce started its journey with only two Departments, namely the Department of Accounting (currently renamed as Department of Accounting and Information Systems) and the Department of Management. In 1974, the Faculty of Commerce took bold strides in expanding its horizon of teaching and research activities by establishing two more Departments such as the Department of Marketing and the Department of Finance.

Based on a proposal from the Academic Council of the University of Dhaka, the Faculty of Commerce was renamed the Faculty of Business Studies in 1955. The proposal finally won approval from the National Parliament through the passage of the amendment to the ‘Dhaka University Order-1973’.

Over the years, the Faculty of Business Studies continued to expand its academic activities by opening five more Departments viz the Department of Banking and Insurance, the Department of Tourism and Hospitality Management, the Department of Management Information Systems, the Department of International Business, and the Department of Organization Strategy and Leadership. These new Departments were established with a view to catering to the need of the job market. At present, the Faculty of Business Studies comprises nine Departments.

The Faculty of Business Studies is widely recognized as one of the pioneers of business education in Bangladesh. From time to time, all the Departments of the Faculty of Business Studies brought necessary revisions of, and modifications to their curricula as part of their routine activities to keep their curricula updated, keep up with the trends, and meet the requirements of the job market.

In 1977-78, the Faculty of Business Studies underwent a shift from ‘Traditional System’ to ‘Semester System’. Under the Semester System, there appear two semesters per year. Since 1995, the Faculty of Business studies has been offering four-year Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA), and one-year Master of Business Administration (MBA) programs, awarding BBA and MBA degrees to its undergraduate and graduate students respectively. Prior to the introduction of Semester System, these Departments used to offer three-year Bachelor of Commerce, and one-year Master of Commerce programs, awarding B.Com. (Hons.), and M. Com. degrees respectively under the Faculty of Commerce. The Faculty of Business Studies also offers Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Doctor of Business Administration (DBA), Master of Philosophy (M Phil), MBA (Evening), and Professional Master programs, awarding PhD, DBA, M Phil, MBA (Evening), and Professional Master degrees respectively.

The Faculty of Business Studies is run by the Dean who is elected by all the teachers of the Faculty for a two-year-term. Currently, Prof. Shibli Rubayat Ul Islam is giving the dynamic leadership to run the Faculty of Business Studies as the Dean. Under the able leadership of the Dean, there are a range of different committees to look after different areas of the Faculty.

Each Department is run by the Chairman nominated by the Vice-Chancellor. As per the law of the University, the Chainman is chosen in order of seniority among the teachers of the Department for a period of three years.

The Faculty is committed to providing all academic and support services to students studying in different Departments of the Faculty. To ensure rewarding experience for students, the Faculty of Business Studies offers the opportunities to use fully air-conditioned spacious classrooms in a serene natural environment; while providing the other facilities including adequate lighting, in-built microphone system, sophisticated overhead & multimedia projectors for visual presentation, state-of-the-art Computer Labs with 24-hour on-line internet connection, E-library, fully air-conditioned and well-decorated meeting rooms, Food Court, Conference Halls, and Wi-Fi services. The Faculty also organizes different events such as job fair, case competition, debate competition, etc. for students on a regular basis.

The Faculty of Business Studies maintains connectivity with the business community. Business leaders and professional managers are invited to participate in practice-based seminars and workshops and share experiences with students and faculty members. In addition, the Faculty is actively involved in organizing special programs like conferences, seminars, job fairs, etc. on a regular basis.

The Faculty of Business Studies undertakes a wide range of exchange programs in collaboration with different universities around the globe. Under these programs, students can complete some semesters and internship as part of their academic programs from foreign universities. In addition, the faculty members have the opportunities to work as guest faculty members and visiting research fellows in the foreign universities as well under these programs. The Faculty of Business Studies also maintains a regular contact with the public and private sector organizations including multinational companies to place students for internship.

The Faculty of Business Studies highly values and honors the performance of both students and teachers across the Departments. The MBA students earning a CGPA of at least 3.90 on a 4- point scale are honored by inclusion in the Dean’s Honor List. Likewise, the BBA students earning a CGPA of 4.0 on a 4-point scale in any semester are included in the Dean’s Merit List. In addition, as recognition of the performance of teachers, there are 4 awards for research papers/articles published in nationally or internationally recognized journals. Moreover, there are two awards for subject-based fundamental textbooks, creative writing, critical review, and research monographs published by recognized publishing companies.