Faujdarhat Cadet College

Faujdarhat Cadet College boards up to 300 boys for grades 7 to 12. Every year, 50 students are admitted to the college at grade 7 through a nationwide admission test composed of written (Bangla, English, Mathematics, General Knowledge), Viva and Medical Examinations.

It was the first cadet college to be established by Field Marshall Muhammad Ayub Khan in erstwhile East Pakistan facing the Bay of Bengal. It was established on 28 April 1958.[1] Until 1965, it was known as the East Pakistan Cadet College. The school has an area of 185 acres making it the largest high school in Bangladesh. The school was designed by the most prominent artist of Bangladesh, Joynul Abedin.

The principal of the school is usually ranked Colonel or Lieutenant Colonel, and is appointed by the Adjutant General's branch of the Bangladesh Army.[2]

From 2003, the cadet colleges in Bangladesh were converted to the English version of the National Curriculum.

Cadets in class room

Cadets are enrolled in class 7 of the Bangladesh National Curriculum and continue their study for six years up to the end of higher secondary or college level (high school in international standard). They follow the English version syllabus of the National Curriculum and Textbook Board.[3] Three national exams are taken by cadets, once in class 8, named Junior School Certificate (JSC), another in class 10, named Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and the high school leaving examination in class 12 known as the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC).

Each class generally has fifty students, divided into two sections which are known as forms. The Junior School Certificate (JSC), Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) examinations are administered under the direct control of the Board of Education of Chattogram Division. Cadets have shown a clear trend of securing top positions in the merit lists of board examinations every year.

Being one of the older educational institutions in the country, and with a long list of illustrious alumni, the college maintains a regular cycle of Reunions every 4 years. Usually, the Old Faujians Association (alumni association of the college) organizes this event teamed up with the college authority.

Diamond Jubilee Reunion (Reunion 2018)

Diamond Jubilee Gate of Faujdarhat Cadet College

On 18 January 2018, the Old Faujians Association (alumni association of the college) organized an event called Diamond Jubilee Reunion. Chief of Army Staff, General Abu Belal Muhammad Shafiul Haque inaugurated the event.[5] The program lasted for three days. It started on 18 January and ended on 20 January. On the second day of the program, the legendary singer of this subcontinent, Runa Laila performed on the occasion.[6]

There are four buildings to host the cadets, each two-storied. Each of the houses is given a name, a symbol, and a color.

• Rabindra House:  
  • House Color: Yellow
  • House Symbol: Lion
  • House Motto: Strike and Strive
  • Former Babar House (South House)
• Shahidullah House:  
  • House Color: Red
  • House Symbol: Tiger
  • House Motto: We Shall Never Surrender
  • Former Akbar House (North House)
• Fazlul Huq House:  
  • House Color: Green
  • House Symbol: Panther
  • House Motto: Never Give In
  • Former Ayub House
• Nazrul House:  
  • House Color: Blue
  • House Symbol: Jaguar
  • House Motto: They Live Who Dare
  • Former Shahjahan House

Usually, each house has 75 students, 12 to 13 from each grade. Students are divided into houses during their initial intake year. Year-round extra and co-curricular competitions and activities are arranged in the broad categories of cultural, sports and gardening competitions, as well as in academics. Based on results from each competition, the houses earn 'points' and the highest scoring house in a year is announced a winner at the end of the year. This enhances the competition and holistic development of all the cadets.

The college dining hall is named after its former principal Lt. Col. William Maurice Brown. The dining hall is modeled after the interior of a ship. The dining hall is supervised by a Faculty Member appointed as the Officer-in-Charge Dining Hall And the dining hall is co-operated by a Cadet of grade 12, appointed as The College Dining Hall Prefect. The college dining hall serves meal to the Cadets five times daily. Many ceremonies and farewell dinners are also held in this auspicious dining hall.

The college library is named 'Birsrestho Abdur Rouf Library.' There are around 20,000 (twenty thousand) books in the library with collections from all around the world. The collection of this college library offers books on language, linguistics, mathematics, religion, literature, arts, physics, chemistry, biology, geography, history, computer science, philosophy, psychology, agriculture, statistics and political science. The Library is enriched with valuable reference materials available such as atlases, dictionaries, encyclopedias, annual reports and publications, survey reports, census reports, country reports, statistical yearbooks, military publications, and audio-visual materials.

Faujdarhat Cadet College has a well-developed hospital. It is named after Birsrestho Nur Mohammad, who was killed in the Liberation War of Bangladesh. The hospital is run by a specialized doctor ranked Major or Captain from the medical corps of the Bangladesh Army. Besides cadets, it provides treatment to employees of all classes along with their families. All kinds of basic and first aid treatments are available. It is well-equipped with pathological tools to diagnose basic diseases. In case of critical diseases and emergency situations, patients are sent to Combined Military Hospital, Chittagong.

1. Demography and the Global Business Environment (Alfred Marcus & Mazhar Islam)

• Shakoor Majid, Class Seven 1978, Onnyaprakash, Dhaka, February 2008. ISBN 984-8684-72-7.(review)
• Mohammad Ataul Karim, A Steeplechase Story, Katskill, December 2008. EAN 9843000029319

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