One BCS, One Year: Can Bangladesh’s civil service exams finally be streamlined?

Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) exam takes on average three and a half years to complete, leaving thousands of graduates in despair. Photo: TBS

When Ritu sat for the BCS preliminary examination in 2018, she was prepared for a tough road ahead. Like thousands of others, she had spent years studying textbooks, memorising laws and policies, and practising essay writing. What she was not prepared for was the waiting period. 

The written exam came many months after the preliminary. Results took longer still. By the time her viva was finally held, more than three years had passed. "I felt like my life was on pause," she exclaimed. "Everyone else was moving ahead, but I was stuck."  

Ritu's experience is far from unique. Generations of graduates have lived through the same prolonged cycle, where Bangladesh's most prestigious and competitive exam—the Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS)—takes on average three and a half years to complete. Many describe the process as a "second degree" in itself—a parallel education that drains energy, time, and resources.

It is this cycle that the Bangladesh Public Service Commission (PSC) now says must end. Under a reform plan branded "One BCS, One Year," the Commission is aiming to complete the entire recruitment process within twelve months. For the country's job seekers, the change would be nothing short of transformative. 

But getting there requires tackling entrenched bureaucratic hurdles and restoring powers the Commission says it lost more than a decade ago. 

Why does it take so long?

Dr Chowdhury Saima Ferdous, a member of the Commission, admits this was the very question she asked before joining the PSC. "When we were outside this Public Service Commission, we also had this question: why does it take so long?", she said. "When we started working on this, we found that a lot of unnecessary time is spent due to many complexities. There are many process inefficiencies. But the main reason for the delay is bureaucratic complexity."

The central issue, she explained, is that the PSC no longer controls its own processes. "What has happened is that the core task of the Public Service Commission—controlling the examinations—has been gradually brought under the ministry since 2011. It is now an independent commission in name only. Even for any decision—whether related to holding the exam, or decisions regarding the internal processes of the exam—every small detail requires a ministry decision."

This bureaucratic dependence has created endless bottlenecks. "The Secretary of Public Administration himself told us that a file for one task has to go through 10 offices," she said. "Because of this, the circular we can easily handle at Dhaka University takes four or five months here. We send it one way, but they interpret it their own way and add new clauses. We object again. It keeps rotating."

Process inefficiencies and stopgap fixes

Despite these external constraints, the PSC has tried to fix what lies within its reach. "We have resolved the internal process inefficiencies, otherwise this gridlock would not have been broken," Dr Saima said.

One major reform is the circular system of evaluation, a replacement for the multi-stage script-checking process that once consumed an entire year. "The circular system of evaluation is a huge task, but it is nothing like rocket science," she explained. "We are implementing it following models from Dhaka University and BUET. It not only ensures financial efficiency for the government but also saves time for the Commission."

Work on the system is more than halfway complete, with protocols and rubrics already developed. Once cleared by the Finance Ministry, it is expected to reduce costs by 51 per cent and cut months off the cycle.

"The number one complexity now is operational inefficiency; we lack independence in general, and we do not have financial independence as well. If these two things are granted to the Commission, the result will be that our process inefficiencies will be tackled."

DR CHOWDHURY SAIMA FERDOUS, MEMBER OF PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION (PSC)

The Commission has also moved to reduce its dependence on external printing presses, which previously consumed up to nine months in delays. "Can you believe that the digital Public Service Commission has no dedicated printing press?" she asked. "It took us six to nine months of running around. Now, the Commission's own dedicated printing press will be inaugurated this very month."

An assessment centre is also being developed, with UNDP providing oversight, to move towards competency-based interviews. And smaller but significant changes—such as digitising parts of the process—have already shown results. "Previously, results took three months; now we give the results in one week," Dr Saima noted. "In the history of the Public Service Commission, there is no precedent, but we completed the Special BCS in less than four months. But even that could have been delivered two months earlier."

Independence as the missing piece

For the PSC, however, these reforms cannot go far without restoring independence. "The number one complexity now is operational inefficiency; we lack independence in general, and we do not have financial independence as well," Dr Saima stressed. "If these two things are granted to the Commission, the result will be that our process inefficiencies will be tackled."

She pushed back against proposals to expand the Commission's size, calling them distractions. "Now they are increasing the number of commissions, increasing the number of members—these two things are not our problem here. The problem is not work overload or resources. The problem is operational and financial independence."

The issue, she emphasised, is constitutional. "As a constitutional body, this is the right of this commission. A similar kind of right exists in the Election Commission. The Anti-Corruption Commission is not even a constitutional body, yet it was granted independence. Why was the independence of the Public Service Commission taken away?"

Currently, the Commission estimates it enjoys just 10 per cent autonomy. A draft amendment has been submitted to increase its independence, but it has been awaiting approval for months. "We have sent submissions based on all the relevant regulations to the ministry," she said. "The remaining work requires daily running around to different ministries, either by a member, or the chairman, or the secretary. This is how it is." 

What a one-year cycle would look like

If autonomy were restored, the PSC argues, the one-year cycle would become realistic. Candidates could sit for their preliminary exam in January, receive written results by summer, appear for viva boards in the autumn, and receive their postings by the end of the year.

This would align recruitment with the natural career timelines of graduates, sparing them years of uncertainty. "Suppose I declare that if everyone passes the cut-off, everyone must be given a viva. This creates a huge pool, which is why the delay occurs," Dr Saima explained. "If I want to set a specific cut-off or change the syllabus, why do I need permission? Operational independence means that when I administer the examination process, in what format I will take it, and how I will take it—that should be within our jurisdiction."

The benefits would extend beyond individual candidates. Vacancies in government service would be filled more quickly, improving administrative efficiency. The PSC also argues that restoring independence would protect recruitment from manipulation or outside influence, ensuring the process remains fair and merit-based. "If it is to truly work independently, maintaining its activity, and working freely, it must remain neutral and transparent. Then it must rise above any kind of influence," she said.

Frustrations and the way forward

For now, the frustrations persist. "For one task, we might have to run to the ministry five or ten times," Dr Saima admitted. "No work gets done here. People say that the PSC is not working. Why should we take the balme?"

Even basic modernisation has been difficult. "After coming here, the internal situation is quite basic. For example, many software systems are extremely old. We worked in places like public universities—we don't know of any common school that uses this—yet the Public Service Commission uses it."

Still, progress is visible. The digital press is weeks from completion. The circular evaluation system is nearly ready. Special exams have already proven that faster results are possible. For candidates like Ritu, those changes may come too late. But for future graduates, the dream of 'One BCS, One Year' holds out the hope of a fairer, faster, and more transparent recruitment process.

As Dr Saima concluded, "Now, the rest depends on restoring the Commission's independence. Only then will the BCS truly serve the nation as it was meant to."