With National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) compulsory for Indian students to pursue medical and dental courses in India and abroad, several career options available for students in the medical field.
Below is a list of alternative paths to opt:
Bachelors of veterinary sciences & Animal Husbandry: The B.VSc courses focus on veterinary sciences – understanding diseases, and surgery for both domestic and wild animals. This course teaches diagnosis and treatment of animals, apart from prevention and correct medication measures to be taken for treatment. B.VSc and AH courses are of five-years’ durations with an internship programme.
Bachelors of Pharmacy (B.Pham): For a science stream student who does not want to pursue medical courses, then pharmacy courses are a bright option. There are two-year diploma and four-year degree courses available in the field.
The opportunities available to the students who has pursued B.Phama include working with hospitals and government institutions as an in-house pharmacist/chemist, working independently as a consultancy or having an own store, research for both private and government sector companies, and working with various multinational pharmaceutical companies like Glaxo Smith Kline (GSK), Cipla or Biocon.
Bachelors of sciences (B.Sc): The BSc programme can open doors to a variety of options. It offers specialisation in microbiology, biotechnology, nursing, genetics or even environmental science. The added bonus is that most reputed colleges offering B.Sc enrol students based on their class 12 marks.
Botony: It is a well-established branch of biology that involve the study of plants, their structure, processes, growth, etc. Those in the field of Botany conduct research and observation to discover new species, study the interaction of plants and different organisms in their environment, the genetic formation of plants, etc.
With a degree in Botany, a student can work in landscape industries, natural resources centres, environmental consultancies, or as a researcher, teacher/ professor, taxonomist, horticulturist, nursery manager, and environmental consultant.
Zoology: This exciting field involves the study of the animal kingdom. Zoologists analyse the structure, life processes, genetics, physiology, classifications and interaction of various species in detail by observing animals in their natural habitats as well as laboratories.
Microbiology: It is a study of the microscopic organism such as bacteria, fungi, viruses etc and their interaction with humans, animals, plants and other organisms in their environment. Microbiologists research and investigate how different microorganisms affect our lives. It consists of various subfield such as virology, bacteriology, parasitology, mycology etc.
Biochemistry: It is a branch of science that involves the study of chemical processes and substances which occur with living organisms. It is a laboratory-based science that brings together biology and chemistry, as chemistry. Examples of work include improving the process of photosynthesis to improve crop yield, discovering and development of new chemicals process to produce biofuel, etc.
Environmental science: Among one of the emerging career fields, environmental science involves the study of the chemical and biological components of the environment and their interactions. The course investigates environmental issues such as global warming, ozone depletion, waste management, water pollution, etc. and how these issues can be dealt with.
Genetics: The investing field involves the study of genes and their functions, genetic variations and heredity of living organisms. Professionals in the field of study genetic diseases, anomalies, traits, mutations, how genes are transmitted, interactions of their genes and their environment, etc. Geneticists can apply their knowledge to as diverse areas as treating patients with genetic anomalies, to developing pharmaceuticals products.
