Off the beaten track

  MUSIC: The Indian music industry has expanded tremendously with new artists and singers entering the music industry every day. This fits even better for music lovers, who are genuinely considering to combine their interest and hobby with their profession. The competition is immense, but the talented ones do find a place for themselves. TV channels, radio stations, film industry, schools and colleges are some of the areas where one can explore interesting job prospects.The course of B.A Music (H), is offered in almost all the universities across the nation. Satpal Sharma, Music teacher in D.P.S, Karnal did Music (H) from Allahabad University. He says, “music as a profession can offer decent job opportunities. One can become either a vocalist or an instrumentalist, depending on ones preference and inclination.”

Advantage:  Both academic and professional options are open which otherwise will not be available if one goes for specialisation in music after 12th.

Eligibility:  A 10+2 qualification, with some universities requiring a minimum of 45 per cent marks.
 

COSMETOLOGY

Cosmetology is no more gender specific. The business has expanded over the years as people are becoming more conscious about their lifestyles. Men and women both like to groom themselves. Beauty spas and salons have come up in large numbers in cities, small towns and even remote villages. Consequently, it provides more chances for the young pass-outs to opt for cosmetology as their career. The scope and competition, both are tremendous. An important progress in this direction has been promotion, production, advertising and marketing of beauty products, spas and salons. Students with good professional degrees can also open their private salons. Tanisha, Branch Manager & Make-up Artist, Looks Salon in Delhi, says “It is a very good option as it requires 10+2 qualification only. ” She even stresses, “this profession is not affected by market recession. If a working lady needs a facial treatment, she will not think of skipping it because recession has hit the market.”
 
Advantage: It is a domain of both men and women. One can become a beauty consultant, beauty therapist or even start their own business.
 
Eligibility: 10+2 in any stream.

 

BACHELOR OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION

B.El.Ed is a four year professional programme which helps you to get the right knowlede and skills required to impart elementary education to the children. The programme is specially designed to deal with human development, communication skills and subject knowledge. All admission to the course is made through an entrance test, followed by an interview.

Syed Rafath Praveen, did her B.El.Ed and got her first break in D.P.S Mathura Road. She says, “self development workshops, school contact programmes, school internships and the various projects undertaken helped me in acquiring the right skills needed to be a good teacher.”
 

Both professional and academic areas are available. The comparative advantage of this course over B.Ed is that it doesn't require a graduation degree to qualify for the entrance test and is equivalent to a graduate with a B.Ed degree.

 
Eligibility: Best four at 10+2 should be a minimum of 50 per cent.

 

BACHELOR OF NATUROPATHY AND YOGIC SCIENCE

India has given birth to yoga and has its own yogic tradition that the world is recognising today with much more renewed force. Bachelor's in Naturopathy and Yogic Science, definitely an offbeat course, can provide a major career of a yoga therapist and yoga instructors to a candidate. Now a large number of institutes are offering courses in yogic science. Amreesh Gahlot, Yoga trainer, has been in the profession for the last nearly eight years now. Amreesh completed his M.D in Naturopathy from the All India Centre for Alterntive Therapies, Bangalore. He says, “the benefit that I derived from this course is money, fame and flexibility of time. Yoga classes are generally held during morning and evening hours, which leaves me with enough time to spend with my family.”
 
Advantage: A student with a successful degree in hand can start his own yoga centre, work in a hospital or a gym or even give private yoga lessons that are growing in demand by the day. There is also a rising demand of yoga instructors in both government and private schools. Flexibility of time is an asset.
 
Eligibility: 10+2 qualification in any stream.


 

FOREIGN LANGUAGE COURSES

India's diplomatic and economic ties are getting stronger with the world. In the age of globalisation, where there is extensive use of communication, languages play a crucial role. Hence, going for a Bachelor's Degree in Foreign Language Courses can prove beneficial in fetching you a job of a Diplomatic officer, translator, tourist guide, interpreter, or even a teacher. Foreign Language courses provide a plethora of options such as Spanish, French, Chinese, German, Persian, Arabic, Russian and Korean etc. There are also bright chances of getting placed with the multi-national corporations as there is a huge demand for translators there.“What interested me the most was the literature of the subject,” says Dr. Manisha Taneja, Assistant Professor, Department of Germanic and Romance Studies at University of Delhi. “The main advantage a student scores is getting job opportunities after completing his/her bachelors.”
 
Advantage: A degree in Foreign Language provides job opportunities in diverse fields because of the fact that translation is not just related to literature but also related to other scientific, technical and business fields.
 
Eligibility: The candidate should have 10+2 qualification.

 

BACHELOR OF FOOD AND NUTRITION

The course of food and nutrition is among the latest trends. As people are becoming more conscious about their lifestyles, they consult dieticians and nutritionists for maintaining healthy food habits, which is often overlooked. Students find job opportunities in health sector, hospitals and research and development. One of the emerging spheres of specialisation is ‘sports nutrition’. The curriculum of bachelor's in food and nutrition covers topics such as food chemistry, microbiology of food and food product development. Charu Tyagi, Senior Executive, R&D (Microwave) at a multinational corporation says, “Foods and nutrition is a highly demanded course under Home Science. The course offers a plethora of options after graduation. However, going for a specialisation after your bachelor's would be a wise decision. The curriculum isn't that easy though. To get good job offers, one has to explore different opportunities through individual efforts.”
 
Advantage: With good experience in hand, one can open a private clinic and can experiment with the job profile.
 
Eligibility: Students must study Home Science with a specialisation in food and nutrition, which requires 50 per cent marks in Sciences at 10+2 level.