Long queues and groups of anxious parents and students have become a common sight in city colleges ever since the results of Plus Two examinations were announced on May 7.
While there is a mad rush for engineering and medicine, as always, demand in arts and science colleges is no less, say educationists. Most of these colleges have released their second list of shortlisted candidates.
Commerce, Mathematics and English are much sought after, says The American College Principal Davamani Christober. “The craze for commerce is increasing year after year. We have received 3,500 applications for the four streams of B.Com.,” he says.
Echoing his views, Thiagarajar College Principal T. Rajasekar says, “We have introduced B.Com. with specialisation in professional accounting, which has also become popular. Many students plan to do Chartered Accountancy after B.Com.”
Another popular choice after doing B.Com. is taking up Masters in Computer Applications. “For those eyeing M.C.A., B.Sc. Maths remains the most popular route since they believe it also helps them take up short-term computer courses with ease. It also helps them crack competitive exams,” says Mr. Christober.
Lady Doak College Principal Mercy Pushpalatha says doing Maths also enables students to take tuition classes and prepare themselves for a teaching career.
English Literature
“There is a demand for people with strong communication skills and a good grasp of English in the corporate sector. So, the interest for English Literature is always there,” Ms. Mercy says. “Besides B.Com., students should also consider B.A. Economics. They can join top companies as analysts, and can also dabble in the stock market. The acceptance for this course is yet to pick up in colleges down south,” Ms. Pushpalatha says.
First for south
Thiagarajar College has introduced Bachelor’s in Psychology, a first for a college in the south. It is getting a good response, says Mr. Rajasekar.
The Bachelor’s in French programme at The American College is slowly but steadily gaining the attention of students. Victor Packiyaraj, Head, French Department, says there are job opportunities in higher education services sector, translation firms, besides the corporate sector.
A section of the students prefer pure science courses with Physics being the favourite.
M. Vinoka, who plans to study B.Sc. Physics says, “With a pure science degree, I can concentrate on research and further my interests in the subject. I can also get into teaching.”
