If all this while you had been thinking you cannot study any discipline of your choice from home you are wrong. IGNOU does not only give you the general courses that are offered in all universities of India, it also offers some new and exciting courses which are as contemporary as applicable.

What is IGNOU?

IGNOU or the Indira Gandhi National Open University was established in the year, 1985. It was created in order to make higher education in India democratic. That is to say, all learners in India should have the opportunity to study whatever, they wish for. The instruction method of this university is in distance mode. The course fees have been made affordable. Apart from academic courses, vocational courses are also offered.

IGNOU caters to the needs of more than a million students all over India. The university has 48 Regional Centers spread across the country.

Courses Offered At IGNOU

Apart from the usual – Arts, Commerce and Sciences there are Bachelor’s Degree offered in

• Water Resources Engineering
• Hospitality and Hotel Management
• Construction Management
• Tourism Management
• Library and Information Sciences
• Social Work
• Computer Applications

Contemporary Master’s Degree Programmes are offered in:

• Rural Development
• Dietetics
• Public Policy
• Distance Education

Post Graduation Diploma Programme in:

• Radio Prasasan
• Audio Programme Production
• Maternal and Child Health
• Library Automation and Networking
• Geriatric Medicine
• International Business Operations
• Intellectual Property Rights
• Environment and Sustainable Development
• International Business Operations
• Translation
• Management

Certificate Courses in :

• Computing

Diplomas in:

• Content Writing in English
• Content Writing in Hindi
• Early Childhood Care and Education
• Nutrition and Health Education
• Tourism Studies
• Management

Evaluation System in IGNOU

The evaluation system is done in two steps:

• Computer marked assignments throughout the year
• An end of term Exam

Both of these assessments are given proportionate weightage. Gold medals are awarded to students who have secured highest marks in their first attempts.

People who are bored with the usual courses and monotonous work can opt for these courses. IGNOU is a distance education university but one should infer that there are no classes at all. There are some contact classes. One thing which you can be sure of is the good quality of the syllabi of all the courses.