An Overview
The Future of Learning                                                                                                     
Only 18 out of 100 students passing out of schools enter college every year. This minority, too, suffers from unemployability blues because of an industry-academia disconnect. India’s demographic dividend will remain unrealised if steps are not taken to make the 120 million students, who pass out of schools each year, job ready
Aditi Tandon
Despite being the largest in the world in respect of the number of institutions, India’s higher education sector enrols less than one-fifth of the potential college-going population. Out of 120 million students who seek entry to colleges and universities annually, only about 25 million manage to make the grades for admissions to 645 degree-awarding institutions, 33,023 colleges affiliated to 174 universities and over 12, 748 diploma-granting institutions.

Liberal Arts
Holistic Approach                                                                                                               
Having transformed from being an ‘option for the fortunate’ to ‘a necessity for all students’, Liberal Arts Education presents itself as an approach to learning that helps in preparing students to deal with complexity, diversity and change. With subjects ranging from science to performing arts, liberal arts education aims to deliver education in a holistic way, helping students to develop an attitude enriched with open mindedness and freshness of thought.

See the pages as they were printed

Humanities
A Touch of Humanity                                                              
With star subjects like philosophy, history, sociology, economics, political science, geography and languages, humanities does not lack the glamour and glitz of the science stream. Vast career opportunities make it a favourite choice for the bright
M. Rajivlochan
Humanities, often dubbed the human sciences, consist of a broad range of subjects that often get classified as the subjects of ‘Arts’. Studying humanities, the human sciences, for a specialised degree currently results in becoming a ‘Bachelor of Arts’. But there is more to it.

Arts/Humanities
Going the Fine Art way                                                           
FINE art and photography have opened several avenues for the young, aspiring students. BFA (Bachelor of Fine Art) offers a three/four year integrated course. The first year deals with integrated education in aesthetics, application of design and art, while the rest of the three years are meant for specialisation- that can be in sculpture, painting, applied art or others.

Science
Rediscovery of Science                                                                                                     
No other field offers the level of freedom that one enjoys in science. It doesn’t recognise boundaries as scientific knowledge belongs to humanity and serves as a guiding light in the haze of unexplored nature. This stream also has ample career opportunities
R. K. Kohli
EACH one of us is confronted with minor or major issues demanding workable solutions everyday. Systematic thinking saves one from failures that one invariably faces from the hit-and-trial approach. This systematic approach to finding solution to any problem is science. The creation of knowledge or providing solutions to problems faced by society gives a scientist a lot of confidence, immense satisfaction, a sense of achievement and an enormous respect in society.

Science
Incentives for the Bright                                                                                                   
THE government is supporting over 4,288 research institutions and there is no paucity of funds for attracting, encouraging and supporting science research in India through several schemes and research funding. Some of these include:
INSPIRE (Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research& Education) Programme: To attract talented students to science at an early stage and build the required critical human resource pool for science research, the Government has started INSPIRE Scheme at three hierarchical levels.

Commerce
A Degree that Counts                                                                                                        
Commerce has become a much-sought-after stream now as it offers a varied platter of courses and careers. A five-year integrated degree programme, a three-year degree course or a short-term diploma, this stream gives enough choices to students to chart out a perfect career plan
Suresh K. Chadha & Bulbul Singh
Perplexed over questions like ‘Which college should I join?’, ‘Which course should I choose?’, ‘Is CA a better option than MBA?’, ‘Should I pursue BCom or BBA or will a degree in economics suit me better?’ Spectrum of the commerce stream is very broad now and it encompasses a number of disciplines. However, if you want to excel in this field then it is important to make an informed, responsible choice and not just follow the crowd.

Commerce
The Professional Courses                                                                                                 
Chartered Accountancy
Cutting through business complexity
Role: Globalisation, expansion and multinational corporate culture have widened the role of a chartered accountant. Now apart from performing accounting and auditing jobs CAs are required for cost management, taxation planning and management, risk assessment, international tax and accounting compliances, business advisory, financial consultancy, corporate governance, project financing and in finalising merger and acquisition deals.

Medical
Be the Hand that Heals                                                                                                     
India needs seven lakh doctors and an investment of Rs 37,000 crore by 2025 to meet its healthcare goals. It is the fresh crop of doctors that is going to make the dream of a healthy and prosperous India a reality
Nitin Behl
THE continuing growth and development of medical science has changed the whole outlook and face of the profession. The aim of medicine is to prevent disease and prolong life; the ideal medicine is to eliminate the need of a physician and the ideal doctor is a person endowed with profound knowledge of life who can intuitively sense any suffering or disorder and restore health by his mere presence.

Fashion Design
Design Dreams                                                                                                                   
Design is an ideal field for those with a creative mind. Surviving in this field, however, requires a thorough understanding of managerial skills and a solid business acumen. This is what a good course in design equips students with
Indeep Sukarchakia
Designing is one of the most lucrative, appealing, glamorous and exciting career options in today’s world. If you have a penchant for creativity, style and originality, a course in designing is ideal for you. Design is the essence and life blood of the fashion industry. The innovation and creativity of designers is reflected in the form of fashion. Design is the applied art devoted to the designing of clothing and lifestyle accessories.

Engineering
Building Blocks                                                                                                                    
In a growing economy, jobs are generated. And, there is no dearth of engineering positions in the present scenario. Therefore, getting placement should not be the prime concern of those venturing into engineering. Just focus on your passion
Vijay Gupta
Engineering is perhaps the most sought after career in our country. Each year more than eight lakh boys and girls try to get admission into engineering courses in numerous colleges and universities. The rate at which new engineering colleges are being opened by ambitious entrepreneurs is an indication of the popularity of engineering education.

Engineering
Go Nuclear                                                                                                                           
FOR those with a futuristic vision, fields like nuclear engineering offer a perfect playing field. Nuclear engineering is a branch that involves designing, constructing and operating nuclear reactors besides breaking down of atomic nuclei and other sub-atomic physics.

Engineering
Marine Drive                                                                                                                        
Marine engineering is an ideal choice for those fascinated by the vast expanse of sea. It deals with nautical architecture and science. This branch applies the principles of mechanical and electrical engineering to develop, design and operate on-board systems like control systems and automation, machinery, power and propulsion plants, etc of marine vehicles like ships, sub marines, etc.

Online Education
Learning in a Virtual World                                                                                               
The Internet is a powerful tool for the dissemination of education. With a wide variety of online courses, it has emerged as the new-age guru. Web-based education offers abundance of content and eliminates the element of bias from the complex teacher-taught relationship
N. C. Wadhwa
Internet and social media have cleared the pitch for new trends like e-learning. Increased Internet penetration has led to a tremendous growth in the online education industry over the past few years. A recent report puts the estimate of the market size of this industry in India at around $20 billion and projected that it would grow to about $40 billion by 2017.

Online Education
Synchronising Lessons                                                                                                       
Prof Rajbir Singh
Learning Management Systems (LMS) are a step towards making e-learning more effective, efficient and user friendly. Content/learning material is available in abundance on the Web but the need of the hour is that a synchronous learning process is designed in a manner that the taxonomy of learning outcome and principles of instructions can be assured fully.

Law
Rule of Law                                                                                                                         
At present, our country does not meet even 50 per cent of the total requirement of legal professionals. This makes our legal system painfully slow and tardy. More professionals are needed to create a speedy justice delivery system
Virendra Kumar
WHEN it comes to choosing a career in law, you seem to be blessed at least twice. One, unlike many other forms of professional education, the stream of legal education instantly provides you with numerous openings to choose from, solely depending on the area of your interest, inclination, resources and capabilities.

Get more from college
The Extra Quotient                                                                                                            
College is the right place to nurture your hobbies and hone skills that will stand you in good stead throughout life. So keep your antennae tuned to catch the signals of different clubs and societies and get more from your college years
Khushwant S. Gill
Having arrived in college, what’s ahead for you now? Studying hard and achieving your goals? Sure, you’ll be doing that. Having loads of fun? Most definitely yes! In fact, you probably have a well thought-out game plan for the years ahead and more power to you for that. But you may want to pause and consider one point — is this enough in today’s hyper-competitive world?

• Region round-up — I

• Region round-up — II

HOME