Dated 17th January, 2001

I am a student of Class XII (CBSE). I am interested in joining the merchant navy. What is the procedure? Is it a good option?

S. Venkatesh, Tirupur

Employment in merchant navy is contractual. You may need to qualify as a marine engineer or take up nautical science to ensure profitable openings. You also need to have physics, chemistry and mathematics as your subjects in the +2 to take up the course. You then need to take a joint entrance exam conducted by IIT through which you can gain admission into TS Chanakya, Mumbai and the Marine Engineering Degree course at the Marine Engineering Research Institute, Calcutta. You can write to the mentioned institutes for further information. This line of work includes constant and extensive travel. Working in merchant navy ships can be very fetching as payments are made as per-assignment basis.

I am a science graduate and also hold a diploma in computer operation and programming. I have a strong passion for art and want to be either an art conservator or curator. I have won several prizes and gold medals at the inter-collegiate and state levels in painting. Please furnish details of the institutions offering this course, commencement of the course and admission details, and whether one needs to qualify through an entrance test.

Sudhansu Mohan Raut

Cuttack

The Institute of History of Art, Conservation and Museology at the NationalMuseum in New Delhi has set up a faculty for conservation science which offers full-time courses in art restoration and conservation. Graduates in science are eligible to apply for the course, though a background in fine arts would stand the student in good stead. This is a two-year full time course and the selection is through an aptitude test.

I am Class XII student with maths as an optional subject. I want to do journalism in any institute close to Mumbai or Pune. Kindly give me some details.

Sonia Narulkar,

Satna, (M.P.)

Marathwada University, Pune, Aurangabad, Maharashtra and Bombay University, Mumbai offer a three years degree course in journalism. The minimum-qualifying criterion is 50% at the intermediate/ 10+2 level. You can write to the institutions for further information.

My daughter has passed her Class XII with physics, chemistry, biology and maths, but unfortunately she could not qualify in competitive medical entrance exams. Kindly give me the list of the institutes offering B.Sc/B.Tech courses in biological sciences like biotechnology and microbiology.

Dr. M. N. Mukherjee,

Jharkhand,

Anna University, Chennai, Harcourt Butler Technological Institute, Kanpur, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Regional Engineering College, Jalandar, are some of the universities that offer a B.Tech in Biotechnology, the duration of which is four years. An aggregate of 50 % in Chemistry, Mathematics and English is the eligibility criterion. The Indian Institute of Technology Delhi offers a five-year course in Biochemical Engineering and Biotechnology. B.Sc in biotechnology, a three years course is offered by the Kakatiya University, Warangal, Osmania University, Hyderabad, Patna University, Bihar, Vinoba Bhave University, Bihar, and Kathmandu University, Nepal. Madras University offers both, a bachelor's degree in biotechnology as well as microbiology. Karnataka University, Dharwad, Orissa University, Bhubaneshwar, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, Aurangabad, Goa University, Goa, Gulbarga University, Gulbarga are some of the other universities offering a bachelor's degree in microbiology.

I completed my Class XII in 1992. Now I want to resume my academic career and complete my graduation. I want to take the UPSC examination. I need your advice in this regard.

Alok Kumar,

Delhi

You need to be a graduate to take the Union Public Service Examination and should not have crossed thirty years of age as on first of August. So, pursue a graduate course from any recognised open university to be eligible to take the UPSC examination.

I am Class XII student and I wish to study BCA from a recognised university. Kindly mention the universities, which admit students for the same through an entrance test.

Nawin Kumar Singh

Muzaffarpur

Most universities in India offer a bachelor's course in Computer Applications. Saurashtra University, Gujarat, Punjab University, Punjab, Periyar University, Salem, Mahatma Gandhi University, Kerala, are some of the universities that offer BCA. Admission into a BCA course is always through a common entrance examination known as UGAT (Under Graduation Aptitude Test), conducted by AIMA

(All India Management Association).

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