Bangladesh continues to face a persistent mismatch between technical education outcomes and labour market needs, limiting productivity and employment opportunities for diploma graduates. To address this challenge, a re-modelled industrial attachment pilot supported by the International Labour Organization has demonstrated how stronger collaboration between industries and polytechnic institutions can significantly improve workplace readiness and employability among Technical and Vocational Education and Training students.
Implemented under the ILO’s ProGRESS project, the pilot was led by the Technical and Madrasah Education Division in partnership with national technical education bodies, with funding from Global Affairs Canada. The initiative redesigned the traditional 16-week industrial attachment by introducing structured supervision, industry-led pre-screening, and outcome-focused workplace learning aligned with real employer needs.
The pilot engaged 47 diploma students from two polytechnic institutes in Chattogram and partnered them with six major private sector companies. Students first completed a preparatory phase focused on digital literacy and soft skills, followed by hands-on industry training under dedicated mentors. Their performance was assessed through real workplace tasks, joint monitoring by institutes and employers, and structured evaluations linked to potential recruitment.
By mid-January 2026, 45 students had successfully completed the programme, with many progressing to job interviews and employment offers from host companies. Employers reported improvements in students’ professionalism, discipline, communication skills and understanding of industrial work environments, noting that the structured model reduced recruitment costs and improved training outcomes.
Students also reported increased confidence, clearer career goals and stronger technical and interpersonal skills. Exposure to multiple departments, mentoring by industry professionals and pre-attachment training in CV writing and interviews were cited as key factors in easing their transition from education to employment.
Despite its limited scale, the pilot highlighted areas for further improvement, including earlier integration of soft skills in diploma curricula, stronger career guidance services at training institutes and more formalised industry–institute partnerships. Stakeholders agreed that these elements are critical for sustaining engagement and improving graduate outcomes.
Following a national stakeholder dialogue in Dhaka, there was broad consensus on the need to institutionalise the re-modelled industrial attachment programme nationwide. Education authorities have expressed commitment to integrating the approach into future TVET reforms, aiming to reduce skills mismatches, strengthen education-to-employment pathways and enhance Bangladesh’s competitiveness in domestic and global labour markets.
