BA Degree Has New Specialisations Did You Know About Them?

Navya is part of the Creative Team at a leading advertising agency. Five years back, she graduated from a good college with a BA Fine Arts degree. Her parents were worried about her earning and employment prospects as most people feel Fine Arts graduates don’t earn well. Five years into her career, she is living an affluent lifestyle and is financially independent. Her work days are long, and work often spills into weekends. She is proud of her achievements and seems to be doing as well as many of her batchmates who pursued the sciences or business courses from her batch. Her knack for creative advertising and client management has given her an edge.

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The BA degree was always considered to be lesser than the degrees in science and commerce. Students and parents together felt there was no future in the BA. degree. A couple of decades back, many students viewed this degree as the eligibility requirement for civil services or an MBA programme. However, in the last few years many new and job-oriented courses have emerged that are becoming increasingly popular with the youth. This article lists some of the less well-known and recent BA courses that are gaining relevance and popularity.

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Environment Science and Sustainability

All the climate change and sustainable lifestyle dialogues have increased the need for environmentally conscious youth who work to build a healthier ecosystem aligned with the needs of a circular economy. A series of different courses that look at sustainable lifestyles, sustainable urbanism and environmental consciousness are offered at the undergraduate level in a few universities in India. Some of these include Dr BR Ambedkar University – Delhi, OP Jindal University – Sonipat, Flame University – Pune, Allahabad University etc.

Journalism, Media and Communication

A few years back, if a student wanted to specialise in media and communication, they could pursue a course at the postgraduate level only. However, in recent times BA. Media and Communication/Journalism degrees are offered by many government and

private universities. You may find these courses focusing only on Journalism or only on Media & Communication or both. This is a very application-oriented course that is often taught by guest faculty, professionals from the field of media and includes many projects and internships. Some of the colleges that offer these include Indraprastha College for Women – Delhi University, Amity University – Noida, Symbiosis – Pune, Institute of Home Economics – Delhi etc.

Law/ Legal Studies and Politics

Are you fascinated by the law, but not sure you want to commit to a five-year integrated BA. LLB degree? You may find a solution in the BA degree in Legal Studies. This degree equips a student for a legal or a paralegal career. After this degree, you may choose to pursue a three-year LLB degree or pursue another subject or career. A combination of Law and Political Science equips a student to undertake legal and political journalism too. Students of this course can pursue a postgraduate degree in political science or law and further their career prospects as per their interests. This course is also good for students who want to pursue legal research or education-based career opportunities. Jindal Law School – Sonipat offers this course amongst a few others.

Performing Arts

Did you know that your hobby classes of guitar, sitar, tabla, theatre, Hindustani vocal, Bharatnatyam etc. can help you carve a career in performing arts? If you are keen to pursue dance, theatre, singing or playing a musical instrument, this is the perfect course for you. These are usually taught by professional dancers or singers and the exposure and training you get in a good department can be very useful for a performing arts career. Some of the universities that have BA. degrees in performing arts include Miranda House – Delhi University for Hindustani Music, MSU – Baroda for courses in music and dance, Christ University - Bangalore for courses in music, dance, and theatre etc.

Visual Communication, Fine Arts, and Graphic Design

The above courses are useful if you are artistic and creative by nature and are considering a career in graphic design, animation, photography, cinematography, videography etc. You need to have a good visual sense and be comfortable working with gadgets and technology. These are practical courses and both visual communication and graphic design are available as BSc courses too where you understand some of the principles of physics and psychological aspects of communication and design.

Some universities may have well-structured courses, and some may be less structured. It is important for students of this course to be self-directed and work towards their projects and gain the experience they need. The projects are usually demanding and time-consuming, and students who are creative and have a determination to carve a career in this area will benefit from this course. Some of the institutions where you could apply for these courses include Loyola College - Kolkata, Pearl Academy and Christ University - Bangalore, Stella Maris College - Chennai etc.

Another course, Film & Television Production, Web Series is also offered in some of the universities and focuses on aspects of film production only for different platforms. You can pursue these courses at Bennett University and Sharda University – Greater Noida.

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Public Policy, Governance and Administration

Are you interested in a career in administration, public policy, and governance? Maybe you are looking at giving the UPSC exams and want a BA. degree that will help you prepare for this career. In this case, a BA. degree in Public Policy, Governance & Administration is a good choice for you. The subjects offered are usually relevant for IAS preparation and are often taught by UPSC aspirants and coaches. This course is gaining relevance for this specific reason and is offered by Jindal Law School – Sonipat.

Some students also pursue post graduate courses in management and administration after this course.

Defence Science and Strategic Relations

The recent global politics and tension across the borders of the nation has created a need for youth who understand the political and psychological aspects of war, conflict, peace, and negotiations. This course is to help the youth understand principles of nationalism and develop a good understanding of war, international conflict and how to strategically protect the country while maintaining good international relations. This course is being offered at the undergraduate level in a few colleges like Amity University – Noida, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya – Gorakhpur University, Annamalai University – Tamil Nadu etc. Students who pursue this course may want to focus on international relations or even try for the Indian Foreign Services.

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BA in Statistics/ Maths

Did you know that you can pursue a BA degree in Statistics or Maths? Yes, if you like quantitative research or pure maths and would like to pursue a career in market research, analytics or even teaching, this may be a good choice for you. Courses in statistics and mathematics are offered in many government and private universities in India.

BA with Multiple Electives
Social Sciences and Humanities, Liberal Arts

The BA programme courses in many colleges and universities allow you to choose amongst a series of subjects over a few years. For example, at Ambedkar University you can choose three different electives like English, Sociology and Psychology and study each of these subjects for one year each. Thereafter a specialised course helps focus on

any one stream. Similarly, a course in Philosophy, History and Languages is available at Ahmedabad University where one can study many Indian and foreign languages as well as acquaint students in intellectual debate regarding events of historical and political significance. Ashoka University – Sonipat, Bennett University – Greater Noida and a few other universities offer a Liberal Arts degree where you study a wide variety of subjects ranging from Science and Maths to Humanities and Research. A Liberal Arts degree prepares students for a wide range of careers including sales, research, human resources, business, education etc. So, if you like many subjects and would like to get exposed to many different topics, this is a good course for you.

– The author holds a PhD in Organisational Psychology and is a Career and Life coach who works with teens, adults and returning professionals to help them find alignment in their careers and life. After working for over two decades, she founded LifeVidya in 2019 and has worked with hundreds of students, professionals, and women. She can be reached at www.lifevidya.in.