Medical stream is one of the most sought after field by aspirants after their HSC. Today one would find that options are many. Medical being one of the popular and honoured fields to serve in, the courses are many but the competition is tough too.
MBBS: The basic / most popular course is the ubiquitous MBBS ( the abbreviated form of Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery abbreviated - one of the professional degree streams offered in India and it is the stream dedicated to the graduate study in the field of Medicine. It is the most sought after course for medical aspirants and since the number of seats are few when compared with the aspirants, it can be said that it is one of the most contested graduate streams. Aspirants have a lot of specializations to choose from once the course is completed and the career choices are many. This course lasts for 5.5 years with 4.5 years of classroom study and one year of house internship.
B.A.M.S: Considering that India was the cradle of the ancient medical science “Ayurveda” there are courses for aspirants interested in pursuing alternative medicine as well. One of the most favourite is the course – Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery. The aspirants for this course are those who wish to pursue a career / academics in the Ayurvedic stream. It is regulated by CCIM – Central Council of Indian Medicine and lasts for 5 years.
B.D.S:Bachelor of Dental Surgery is a professional degree programme in dentistry. The duration of the course is 4 years.
B.H.M.S: Bachelor of Homeopathic Medicine and Surgery is a course for aspirants who wish to pursue a stream in Homeopathic medicine and is presently regulated by the National Institute of Homeopathy. Aspirants should have cleared HSC or equivalent from a Statutory Board. The Duration of this course is 5.5 years.
There are other courses as well, not in mainstream medicine, but in allied fields such as Pharmacology and Nursing.
B.Sc( Nursing ): The objective of this course is to train aspirants with necessary skills to become a qualified nurse upon completion of this course. The duration of this course is 4 years.
B. Pharm – Bachelor of Pharmacy. For aspirants who want to pursue a stream in this field, this is the apt course. Upon qualification an aspirant can get a license to run a pharmacy store.
B.P.T: Bachelor in Physiotherapy: This course is offered to aspirants who wish to pursue a career in the field of Physiotherapy. The duration of this course is 4.5 years.
B.O.T: Bachelor in Occupational Therapy: A course offered to aspirants wishing to pursue options in Occupational Therapy. The duration of this course is 3 years.
B.U.M.S.: Bachlor in Unani Medicine: For those wishing to pursue this ancient science, this is an excellent option. Aspirants must have studied Urdu as a language uptoXth class or equivalent. A medical course based on the ancient unani methods, the duration of the course is 5.5 years.
Eligibility:
The main eligibility expected from aspirants for enrolling in the above degree course are as follows:
- Completion of Higher secondary education with Physics, Chemistry, English and Biology as core subjects with minimum 50% aggregate.( For some courses lesser aggregate is also accepted )
- MBBS admissions are not centralised and differs across universities and the same goes for other courses as well.
- The Entrance examination conducted by the particular college or institute.
It has to be said that there are good prospects for all the above listed courses and choosing of a particular course depends upon the aspirant’s flair and interest.