PNS I DEHRADUN
Many students who want to study Law in their graduation do not want to practice it or invest their additional two years in getting a law degree. They have an aspiration to do a good bachelor’s degree with requisite skillset and graduation experience with a focus on more on building life skills and attitude. For all those students, BA (Hons.) in Legal Studies is the answer. This is a unique program, wherein one gets a BA degree with a focus on Legal Studies.
In the era of multidisciplinary education, every student has a different aspiration and many a times they would like to keep their options open while they continue their graduation journey. However, at the same time they like to have an opportunity of learning and shaping up their life skills. Even as India.inc is firming up to start operations in full swing again, they are looking for multidimensional professionals with cross-functional knowledge rather than a plain vanilla Bachelor of Arts.
Interdisciplinary or cross disciplinary knowledge applies to professionals in the legal field as well. Legal studies in India is evolving and liberal arts as a stream in higher education is gaining importance and now students are curating their undergraduate program integrating different options rather than going for a traditional Bachelor’s degree in Arts, Science and Commerce. One such option quickly gaining significance in India is BA Hons. degree in Legal Studies, a unique and niche program which is essentially meant for students who do not want to enter the core legal profession, but have an inclination to make a difference in the fields of profession including marketing, banking, consultancy, public relations, advertising, research, analytics, journalism, management, accounting, social work, library operations, NGO’s, publishing, media instructor and any other profession accessible by any other regular graduate as well.
COURSE STRUCTURE
This is an undergraduate program spread over 3 years and the curriculum of this course is designed in a way to provide a holistic overview of the relation between law and society when the scholars engage with the courses on international law, human rights, environmental law, business law, regulatory and policy aspects. The syllabi also offers skills on research, critical thinking and drafting through workshops.
WHY DO BA IN LEGAL STUDIES?
This program is currently being offered by very few universities in India like UPES Dehradun. Unique to different universities, this program will largely have the following learning outcomes:
A student is better placed to take advantage of educational and employment opportunities by applying broad-based subject competencies along with core subject qualifications. They are in a better position to select and employ appropriate technology, resources and processes for study, research and practice, relevant to the subject or problem at hand.
A student will demonstrate complex solving competency by integrating multi-disciplinary approach with a domain specific knowledge. Students will start implementing independent thinking and will learn to source data, plan and manage research activities, excise judgement, reflect on and evaluate outcomes without much intervention or supervision. They will display personal and professional attributes for adaptability and collaboration by understanding the strength and limitations of a given context and eventually communicate complex or contentious information clearly and effectively.
Being exposed to an interdisciplinary curriculum, the student is more competent and can efficiently enter and contribute to a competitive and global workforce.
CAREER OPPORTUNITIES:
At the end of the program, the student would get an undergraduate degree in BA with Hons. in Legal Studies which will enable him/her to pursue a career in diverse fields including but not limited to banking, consultancy, public relations, advertising, research, analytics, journalism, management, accounting, social work, NGO’s, publishing, paralegal. A sound grounding in papers of law and policy would also enable the student to pursue their dream of joining a Govt. job by appearing for UPSC and other competitive examinations.
Post this program, if a student is inspired and wants to pursue and practice law, he/she will be able to do that by investing another 3-years in getting a LLB degree recognised by Bar Council of India.
The advanced course on BA Legal Studies has multiple pathways of growth and allows one time to plan his/her future.
