Chapter 3: Pathway to Course Options

In Chapter 1, the importance of choosing appropriate combination of subjects at he 10 + 2 level has been stressed. Students are at the crossroads when they complete 10 + 2 education. The Chapter has given a broad idea about the implications of the choice of specific subjects for future course options after this stage. The prevailing trend is to opt for agriculture, medicine, dentistry and engineering, considered to be elites among professional courses. Despite large-scale expansion facilities in these areas, the competition is extremely stiff. Then, what are the options, if they cannot join these courses? Again, not all students are keen to take these courses. In which case, what opportunities our educational system offers them? Then there is the case of overwhelming majority of students who cannot, for various reasons, ever make it to the class 10 level. What options do they have? This Chapter attempts to present, with the help of flow chart, a bird’s eye view of different routes one can take at the end of each of the four stages, viz., Pre-Class 10, Class 10 and 10 + 2 and graduation. This would help the names of courses mentioned in the discussion are by no means exhaustive but only illustrative. Wherever relevant, the number of the Chapter in which the topic has been discussed in the second part of the book is also indicated in parenthesis.

Let us first give a look at the flow chart-a schematic presentation of the diverse course pathways given on page 18. It has been discussed in Chapter 2 that Indian Educational system comprises the School Stream, the College and the University Stream and the Non-University Stream. The diagram however, shows two blocks-the School, the College and University Stream put together and the Non-University Stream. While the former has three components-General Education, Distance Learning and Professional Education, The latter has only one, viz., Professional Education. The term General Education has been used to indicate the educational programmes conventional in nature and often called liberal education, as distinct from professional education as both are generally understood. However, the introduction of professional and vocational subjects in the general education curriculums often blurs such distinction.

As has been mentioned in Chapter 2, the Non-University Stream offers mainly professional as well as vocational courses. This is a sort of parallel system, which offers programmes both at the school and higher education levels. The diagram shows General Education as a straight path form which one can branch out at four points on the completion of Pre-Class 10, Class 10 and 10 + 2 and first degree stages. Students can take up courses offered by both the streams. The diagram, however, does not show that at the end of Class 10, 10 + 2 and first-degree stages students can try their luck at various competitive examinations for employment in armed forces, banks and other financial institutions and a wide range of State and Central civil services.

General education is a straight path beginning with school education and ending in doctoral studies. During the past several decades the bulk of the student community has been traversing this path, often aimlessly, because options were limited. Though dubbed as “degree mill” system, a Macaulay legacy, which are in no way inferior to those that the professional courses promise. a number of emerging areas of specialisation, multi-disciplinary in nature, are now being added to university curriculums both at the first degree and postgraduate degree levels. Biotechnology is one of the most shining examples. Even in some of the traditional subjects like Economics and Mathematics, the course contents are being substantially enriched to meet the changing requirements of the world of work. Students with strong academic foundation even in these subjects have always an edge over others in competitive examinations. Teaching and research are still the coveted career options for the competent ones. Also, the establishment of new research outfits is opening up new avenues for employment. The range and number of scholarships and fellowships are being substantially increased to encourage talented students to take up research careers. Integrated Ph.D. programmes, after the first-degree level, have been introduced by several institutions to enable students to make early decision in this respect (See Annexure 3 of Chapter 4-The University Stream). Ph.D. course need not necessarily be a stopgap arrangement until students decide their future course of action. This is not only true for disciplines labelled as general education but also the professional ones such as engineering and technology, medical and agricultural sciences.

The diagram also shows yet one more straight path-Distance Learning-a parallel system outside the traditional classrooms (Serial No.1). It is a boon to those who for various reasons could not enter the portals of schools and colleges. This mode of education has been discussed in Chapter 6 (learning from a Distance). It covers all levels of education-secondary, higher secondary and higher education. A number of professional courses are also now available. One can add, step by step, to the list of qualifications, beginning with the secondary school certificate. On completion of a particular stage, the student has the option to join the regular courses. However, they must also be cautious about the pothole that abound in this pathway. Further, distance-learning courses offered by many institutions in the Non-university Stream should be taken with extreme caution. Most of them are of dubious quality offered by fly-by-night operations.

Let us now consider branching out at different terminal stages on the straight pathway. After the + 8 stage (pre-secondary), the only option is to join a vocational course in one of the available trades offered by Industrial Training Institutes (ITI’s) (Serial No.2). Similar opportunities are also available after the Class 10 stage. Students completing this stage can opt for both ITI and polytechnic courses. (Serial No.3) Polytechnic course of three-year duration leads to diploma in specific engineering disciplines. The number of trades and subjects offered by the ITI’s, Polytechnics and many other polytechnic-type institutions mostly established by Governments is indeed very large. A polytechnic diploma holder can take admission to the second year of the first-degree engineering course in the concerned discipline (Serial No.3 to Serial No.4). A broad overview of the opportunities available at both the stages has been given in Chapter 51 (Vocational Education).

As is well known, it is only after the 10 + 2 stage that a wide variety of course options become available in the college and the University as well as the non-university streams. The former offers professional first-degree courses (Serial No.4) in a large number of disciplines. Many such disciplines have been discussed in the second part of the book-Agricultural and Animal Sciences (Chapter 16), Allied Health Sciences (Chapter 17), Architecture and Planning (Chapter 19), Computer and Information Technology (Chapter 25), Dairy Science and Technology (Chapter 27), Engineering and Technology (Chapter 30), Home Science (Chapter 33), Indian Systems of Medicine and Homoeopathy (Chapter 35), Medicine and Dentistry (Chapter 43), Nursing (Chapter 44), Pharmacy (Chapter 46) and Teacher Education (Chapter 50). There are also courses like performing Arts (Chapter 45) and Art and Design (Chapter 20), which fall in this category. In a small number of disciplines, several universities have introduced integrated courses of five-year duration open to 10 + 2 passed candidates (See Chapter 4 Annexure 7). In most of the disciplines further educational opportunities are available both at the postgraduate (Serial No.5) and doctoral and post-doctoral levels.

The Non-University Stream also provides a host of opportunities. As has been stated in Chapter 5 (Non-University Stream), apart from a number of exclusive courses, such as packaging, aircraft maintenance, shop radio operators, flying, merchant navy, it also offers many courses available in the College and University stream. In fact, several courses, which were exclusive to this stream such as Hotel Management (Chapter 34), Fashion Design (Chapter 20), Industrial Design (Chapter 20), have now been included in the university curriculums. While many institutions and their course in this category are recognised by the concerned regulatory authorities, some are not. Therefore, one needs to be cautions and must be able to identity the right institutions. This has been discussed in Chapter 13 (Dream Merchants of Education-“Fake” Institutions). Nevertheless, this stream is an important component of the Indian educational system. Three categories of institutions in this stream deserve special mention:

1.  Autonomous institutions mostly established by the Government such as National Institute of Design, National Institute of Fashion Technology, Indian institutes of Information Technology, Indian Institute of mass Communication, Film and Television Institute of India (Serial No.6). They offer courses, which are open to 10 + 2 passed candidates as well as graduates.

2.  Institutions established by professionals in the field of engineering and technology for maintaining high level of professional standards (Serial No.7) and

3.  Institutions established by Acts of the Government of India (Serial No.8).

Categories 2 and 3 primarily conduct examinations, although some of them also offer some sort of coaching to prepare students for the examinations. The institutions in category 2 i.e., the professional bodies of engineers, conduct examinations in various engineering disciplines leading to the award of associate membership recognised by the Government as equivalent to degrees in concerned disciplines. This has been discussed in Chapter 31 (Engineering in Technology-alternative Routes). Institution he other category there are institutions which conduct examinations in Actuarial Science (Chapter 15), Chartered Accountancy (Chapter 21), Company Secretary-ship (Chapter 24) and Cost and Management Accountancy (Chapter 26). And finally, there is a plethora of courses in the emerging area of Information Technology (Serial NO.9) offered by the Non-University Streams. Some of them have been discussed in Chapter 25 (Computer and Information Technology) and Chapter 52 (A Mixed Bag).

We now take up the postgraduate programmes. In the General Education category, the postgraduate courses are generally offered by the Arts (or Social Science), Science and Commerce faculties. Professional programmes are organised in the engineering and technology, medical, agricultural and law faculties. The postgraduate courses in General Education category which deserve attention are Archaeology, Archives and Museology (Chapter 18) Chemical Sciences (Chapter 12), Commerce (Chapter 23), Earth Sciences (Chapter 28), Economics (Chapter 29) Environmental Science (Chapter 28), Economics (Chapter 37), Life Science (Chapter 40), Mathematical and Statistical Science (Chapter 12), Physics (Chapter 47), Psychology (Chapter 47) and Social Work (Chapter 49). It has been stated earlier, that after obtaining first degrees in professional subjects students can pursue postgraduate and thereafter doctoral and postdoctoral programmes, in that order.

Those who complete first-degree courses in the general Education category have also the option to take up postgraduate degree programmes in professional subjects (Serial NO.10). There are two categories of such programmes-Master of Business Administration (MBA) of two-year duration (Chapter 41) and Master of Computer Application (MCA) of three-year duration (Chapter 25). The other category also leads to Master’s degree, but the students are required to pass through two stages each of one-year duration-first getting the Bachelor’s Degree, then the Master’s Degree. These programmes include: Journalism, Mass Media and Communication (Chapter 36), Library and Information Science (Chapter 39), Teacher Education (Chapter 50). Law (Chapter 38) needs three years of study after the first degree to get the Bachelor’s degree followed by two years study for Master’s Degree. There is also the option to take up the integrated law course of five years after 10 + 2.

A plethora of postgraduate professional diploma courses, mostly of one-year duration (Serial No.11), is also offered by all the universities. However, many of them can at best be considered as a sort of value addition to their existing qualifications. In the non-university stream, the professional postgraduate diploma (Serial No.12) programmes include Management (Chapter 41) and several branches of performing arts (Chapter 45) like film, and theatre. The nomenclature of awards from the non-university stream is “diploma” because, under the University Grants Commission Act, 1956 only universities and university level institutions can award degrees. The two-year postgraduate diploma programmes in management offered by recognised management institutions for all practical purposes are equivalent to Master’s Degree. Several management institutions have also introduced Fellowship programmes equivalent to doctoral degree.