MCA - As a Career
Over the past one decade, the industry that has most astonished people in terms of growth is the IT Industry, popularly referred to as “INFOTECH” or “SOFTWARE” industry.
In all spheres of life, computers are becoming part and parcel of human endeavors and a career in computers shows unmatched promise, potential and may prove to be a veritable goldmine in terms of rewards.
India too, has not been far behind as far as “Software Development” or InfoTech growth is concerned. With the government's reforms policy started in 1991, the entire InfoTech market has seen a quantum leap. This has created job opportunities for computer-savvy individuals like never before.
MCA is the “flagship” degree that is most coveted among the options available to choose from.
NOW THE QUESTION ARISES : How to get into such a rewarding career? What is the nitty-gritty?
We answer these questions in the following lines :
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MCA is a 3 year post graduate degree course offered by various universities across India.
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The prerequisites – Must be a graduate. Final year students may also apply. Many of the universities, institutes offering MCA require Maths / Statistics at least at 10+2 level. Some institutes even restrict it to a first class Maths graduate. However, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU, New Delhi), having one of the most reputed MCA, does not require Maths even upto to XII level. Before applying for any exam, the candidate should carefully weigh the options.
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There are separate tests for separate universities/institutes across India.
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One needs to be essentially good at Higher Maths, as most MCA Entrance Tests comprise Maths (chiefly up to graduation level), Statistics and know how of Computers. Standard MCA Institutes also have Logical Reasoning, English Vocabulary and General Knowledge in their test syllabi.
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The preparation for MCA Entrance easily takes 5-6 months with a daily and consistent input of about 5 to 6 hours .
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Most of the MCA Entrance Tests are purely objective in nature. But a few tests also have a mix of objective type, short-answer, long-answer type of questions.
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There are two types of MCA Tests, Unified and Separate. For example, for colleges in MP and UP, there is just one exam. But on the other hand, JNU, BHU, DU, Pune University, REC Trichy etc. conduct specific entrance examinations.
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MCA Entrance is tough owing to following factors :
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The number of seats at good institutes is limited.
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For each college across India, there is a different syllabus and it becomes impossible to prepare separately for separate tests. Also there is no minimum common basic syllabus on the basis of which preparations can be done.
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