SUBJECT MATTER: POLITICAL SCIENCE POLITICALLY CORRECT GAURI CHABBRA Humanities has emerged as the most popular stream in this year’s admission season. It has scored over the traditional favourites such as commerce and economics. Miranda House principal Pratibha Jolly had commented during the admission process that seats in Political Science and History (Honors) were filling up so fast and there might not be a second cut-off list. LSR’s cut off for political science shot to 97 per cent this year from 95.25 per cent last year. At 97 per cent, the cut-off for political science at the college is almost at par with the other popular DU course, BCom honours which was 97.5 per cent. Political Science has been the favourite among students who wish to take up Law as a career or those who intend to go in for the UPSC. WHAT WILL YOU STUDY? Political science is the study of constitution and different political aspects. As a student of political science you would be required to study the governmental, non-governmental systems and operations. You would also study the workings of trade unions, corporations or other forms of groups that need not be political but have similar complexities of governmental procedures. Besides, you will study international relations, political theories, history, political economy, foreign policies, public administration, Federation, Information Technology and a number of other academic fields. SKILL TEST The ability to take criticism, along with skills to solve problems, make decisions, manage teams and the time effectively are also some of the essential traits. Another important aspect is the ability to manage crisis and being emotionally stable and mature. You not only need to have excellent reasoning and analytical skills, but also communication skills - both oral and written. Furthermore, you would acquire skills in data analysis and data mining. A bachelors degree would lead you to becoming a research assistant. A masters degree and a Ph.D would lead you to teaching. You can also appear for Civil Service Examinations like UPSC, SSC and State Public Service Commission and Joint Public Service Commission (JPSC) or opt for NET or SLET. CAREER OPPOURTUNITIES As a political science major, you will have a multitude of career options in government administration, politics, public policy, non-profit organisations, international relations, business and journalism open before you. It would also prepare you to pursue graduate programmes in business, law or diplomacy. POLITICS Recent elections have shown that more and more youngsters are getting drawn to politics. Many law students join political parties for their summer internships. Political science degree not only equips one to enter the world of politics but can also prepare you to use the tools of data analysis and market research to conduct surveys to find out peoples opinion on political issues; or use matter to analyse election results, interview relevant individuals and scrutinise available documentation. Some even attend legal proceedings and observe public events. Besides, you could prepare reports and documents after identifying, researching, analysing public issues. If you have a flair for writing, you would be writing articles for publications in the newspapers, magazines and journals and advising party high ups on strategic issues. TEACHING AND RESEARCH Teaching and research are almost synonymous with each other. You can get a teaching assignment in intermediate colleges, degree colleges, or at university graduate departments and management institutes. Many teaching positions, particularly in the universities, Information Technology Institutes, Management institutions require research activities. Your common topics of research would be relations between India and other countries, the international institutions like the UNO and the decisions of the Legislature, Executive and the Judiciary. You may also use your research and analysis skills in Central, State and local government. You could be an administrator, manager or developer of a programme, and engaged in policy analysis or problem-solving. At the state level, you would be engaged in urban planning, health planning and in criminal justice systems using your skills in survey and evaluation research and specialisation in fields as aging, criminal justice, demography. This can help you predict the trend of a particular government policy and its effect on the general population. You might also cooperate with full-time researchers and apply the knowledge of political science. PUBLIC RELATIONS AND MEDIA If you have a degree in pol science then you can also opt for print, television, or radio journalism, where in you can apply your understanding of political systems to create reports about consent events. You might cover elections, conduct interviews, or attend press conferences. However, you need to be objective in your approach and present your stories and reports in a manner that reflects factual information rather than opinions. MANAGEMENT You can couple your political science degree with an MBA and specialise in Human Resource Management. You would be an expert in increasing productivity, work with the physically challenged, and women in the work force, bring about Assistive Technology and also work on improving the corporate culture, group dynamics and organisational development. Your unique skills would solve a wide range of business problems and improve the ROI besides promoting a rich culture of power dynamics and group thinking that leads to synergy. You can use statistical tools to analyse the demographics, do a trend analysis and plan for the future; deal with organisational change and growth using training techniques and organisational and competitive analysis; and increase synergy through team coherence in case of mergers and acquisitions. So if you are ready to ride on the crest of the dynamic world of politics, foreign affairs, and public policy, healthcare, and immigration pick up the subject of perennial interest — political science.
Posted on: Fri, 29 Aug 2014 02:16:35 +0000
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