Like the trend has been for a few years now, courses in the commerce branch continue to be the most sought after in degree colleges in Bengaluru, while courses like psychology, forensic sciences, and fashion technology have gained prominence this year.
After the II PU results were announced last week, admissions have begun in full swing in colleges. Many have also seen a slight increase in the number of admissions this year.
Most college managements predict that commerce courses are going to continue to hold relevance in the years to come mostly due to the employability factor the courses provide.
“Along with qualifications like knowledge of finance, economics accounting, statistics and taxing, commerce students also come with computer skills. This kind of skill set is difficult to find in students who graduate from other courses. For instance, humanities students might not have a lot of computer knowledge while science students might not know much economics. Commerce students usually land jobs right after graduation and this is why most students choose these courses,” said H. Prakash, principal, Maharani College. He said that the applicants’ interest in accounting seems to have gone up this year while in humanities, they are keener on taking up subjects like psychology and economics.
“We have issued a record number of applications this time. Bcom, BCA, and BBA seem to be the most preferred courses for many students. Apart from this psychology and forensic science is also in demand while the interest in basic science courses seem to have reduced,” said Augustine George, principal, Kristu Jayanti College, Autonomous. He said that the interest in psychology, especially clinical psychology has grown in the years after the COVID-19 pandemic when mental health was greatly in discussion.
Colleges also reported that with science courses, most applicants are seeking out subjects like artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and computer science instead of physics, chemistry, and mathematics. Life sciences like biology still seem to be doing well.
“There is too much prominence for technology now and hence, AI and ML are in such demand. Our courses on physiotherapy and forensic sciences are also doing very well, while commerce and management courses continue to be evergreen. Besides, fashion technology has also garnered a lot of demand in the last few years,” said Christo V. Joseph, director, Garden City University.
While admissions for engineering courses will only commence after the results of Common Entrance Test 2024, colleges are predicting AI, ML, and computer science courses to dominate those admission processes too.
