8th BOS Meeting (Online)

Due to amid pandemic, the 8th Board of Studies (BoS) meeting In presence of Dr. Mohammad Ismail Hossain, Professor of Bangladesh Agricultural University and the expert member of the department of Agribusiness, BSMRAU, held successfully on June 16, 2021. All the members of the BOS, the head of the department, Dr. Debasish Chandra Acharjee, Dr. G. M. Monirul Alam, Mst. Ashrafun Nahar, Farhana Arefeen Mila, Dr. Mst. Tania Parvin, and Md. Ruhul Amin was present.

The meeting started with the welcome address by the Chairman of BoS. Next, the committee acknowledged the expert member’s contribution through practical guidance and mentorship. Finally, the committee primarily discussed the first agenda of the meeting, offering two MS courses for the upcoming Autumn’21 term. The course entitled Agribusiness Management (course code- AGB 501) will be instructed by assistant professor Farhana Arefeen Mila and Mst. Ashrafun Nahar. Another elective course entitled ‘Value chain and inclusive market development’ will be instructed by professor Dr. G. M. Monirul Alam and associate professor Debashis Chandra Acharjee. It is expected that the offered courses developed focusing on outcome-based education will be helpful for students.

Afterward, the committee focused on forming a relevant supervisory committee of the existing graduate students for smooth research and completing students’ degrees in MS in Agribusiness Economics. Along with supervisory committee formulation, the board considered the scope of associating scientists from research institutes to be the research supervisor of graduate students. The academic council officially approved this practice, which is being considered for the department’s new graduate students.

Onwards, the board congratulated Dr. Mst. Tania Parvin, eligible to be a major professor of graduate students, approved by the academic council. The expert member highlighted the increased scope of conducting different research projects for professional skill development, which may help supervise graduate students and increase the departmental resource endowment. The panel encouraged every department member to focus on agribusiness research specialization, crucial for national and international aspects.

Finally, the members shortly discussed the present Covid-19 situation and its impact on Bangladesh’s agribusiness sector. Then, the members shared their experiences of conducting online examinations and critically discussed how to overcome the limitations of online classes and examinations.