All you need to know about BAMS course

Ayurveda is the earliest classical work that was delineated as a medication that has eight parts and since then it has been used within the field of medication. These eight major branches (Kaya Chikitsa, Kaumar Bhritya, Graha Chikitsa (Bhoot Vidya), Shalakya Tantra, Shalya Tantra, Agad Tantra, Rasayana, Vajikarana (Vrishya Chikitsa) are collectively known as Ashtang Ayurveda. Ayurvedic treatment and therapies are developed worldwide for health and welfare applications. Within the past many years, ayurvedic science has been evolved as a definite entity from remote antiquity. Ayurveda has been growing rapidly as a form of alternative medicine. Currently, this alternative method of healing has many applications and results which is now used by people all over the world. Even the World Health Organisation has provided a worldwide forum for promoting Ayurveda and other traditional medicines. Various ayurvedic applications have been transformed into professional courses which have been actively taken up by the students at present.

Course Description

With the aim of inculcating the knowledge of Ayurveda in the form of a professional course, Bachelor of Ayurvedic and Medical Sciences or BAMS was introduced. The curriculum includes studying and teaching of modern pathology, anatomy, physiology & diagnostic procedures, applications, and principles of Ayurvedic medicine, preventive and social medicine, Pharmacology, Toxicology, Forensic Medicine, ENT, Gynaecology & Obstetrics, Ophthalmology, principles of surgery, etc., along with corresponding Ayurvedic subjects such as Rachana Sharira, Kriya Sharira, Dravyuaguna, Svasthavritta and Yoga, Roga Nidana and Vikriti Vijnana, Kaya Chikitsa, Kaumara Bhritya, Prasuti Tantra, Shalya Tantra and Shalakya Tantra. It's a five-and-a-half-year undergraduate course in the field of medical sciences. The course includes a one-year internship for hands-on training while the academic year of the course is divided into three sections, one and a half years each. This makes this a professional course. The curriculum of the first professional course includes the following subjects:

• History of Ayurveda
• Ayurvedic Philosophy
• Ayurvedic Anatomy
• Ayurvedic physiology

The second professional course comprises following subjects:

• Pathology
• Pharmaceuticals of Ayurveda
• Pathology and Pulse diagnosis
• Jurisprudence and Toxicology

Third and the final professional course includes subjects like:

• Surgical Techniques
• ENT
• Gynaecology and Obstetrics
• Paediatrics
• General Medicine
• Medical Ethics & Yoga

Eligibility Criteria

Any aspirant of BAMS needs to fulfil some minimum eligibility criteria, which are:

• The applicant must have passed higher secondary examination in the Science stream with PCB (Physics, Chemistry, Biology).
• The applicant must score a minimum cutoff percentage generally between 50%-60% that varies from college to college.

BAMS Admission Procedure

• The candidate should appear in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) exams and qualify it
• Admission to the BAMS course is accorded through the candidate's NEET score based on which merit list is prepared followed by centralised counselling
• Some universities have direct admission on the basis of merit

Getting into the merit list of any medical college is not a cake walk. You need to have a good amount of practice and knowledge in order to clear any Medical Entrance Test and get a decent rank. Here are some of the tips for clearing Entrance Test based on my personal experience that you can read:

• Concentrate on NCERT books and focus on building concepts rather than cramming
• Solve as many MCQs from previous-years’ question papers of AIPMT/NEET/AIIMS/JIPMER. Solving MCQs is the most important part
• Try solving chapter-wise MCQ from any of the entrance books available like Pradeep, universal, or any of the coaching vooks if you’re taking one
• Join test series of any of the coaching institutes like Allen or Akash, you could go there or take online test series whichever convenient. This is also the most important point because it helps you to assess yourself as to which are your weaker areas and plan time management during the exam. This is a crucial aspect of any competitive exam. Also, have the practice of marking circles of OMR
• Keep a diary which should contain all the physics formulae, chemistry important conceptual points. This helps in quick last-minute revision
• Keep a track of all your weak areas in all three subjects and focus more on them while revision
• Revise at least three times as revision is the key

Top BAMS Colleges

Some of the highly acclaimed institutes that offer BAMS course are:

• Institute Of Medical Sciences (Varanasi)
• Baba Farid University of Health Sciences (Faridkot)
• Maharashtra University of Health Sciences (Nashik)
• Datta Meghe Institute of Medical Sciences (Wardha)
• Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (Bangalore)

Some of the institutions such as Guru Govind Singh Indraprastha University, Institute of Medical, Sciences Banaras Hindu University (Varanasi), Patanjali Ayurveda College (Haridwar), DY Patil University, and Maharashtra University of Health Sciences are also considered as a great option for pursuing BAMS. The average fee for one year varies between Rs 50,000 and Rs 70,000 per year in private colleges, which is comparatively much less than all the government colleges.

About Author

Abhyuday Joshi is a III-year BAMS (Bachelor of Ayurveda, Medicine and Surgery) student at Patanjali Ayurvedic Medical College, Haridwar. He likes to write in his free time. Abhyuday also likes to sing and dance.

 

 

 

 

Note: The views expressed in this article are solely author’s own and do not reflect/represent those of Shiksha