Why I chose Botany in graduation: Rohan Kumar Biswas

My journey from the class X till graduation has been full of ups and downs. As my parents gave me the freedom of choosing my career, I had to make many decisions which sometimes were very frustrating, but most of the time, they gave me satisfaction because there was no one except myself who was responsible for all the outcomes.

I divide this journey of mine into some time periods, so that everyone can understand better.

Subject selection after class X

As I was a student of West Bengal Board, I had to choose my stream after class X results. Though I got 96 marks in History and Physical Science, I chose the Science group with Biology as my first subject, Chemistry as the second, then Physics as the 3^rd and Maths as the 4^th with the compulsory language group Bengali and English. This was my interest in Biology which allowed me to do so because if I went for a subject which I didn’t like, it could have been the worst for my future.

The phase of class XI and XII

The syllabus of XI and XII was more vast than the secondary level. Books became 6x larger and chapters got more pages and material. So, I had to increase my time of study and practice more. Basically, I used to write more than I read to remembe things better. I made time tables for 4 days to 1 week and stuck with it, while always trying to revise one chapter in a week. As I decided that I would go with Biology, I put Mathematics in optional to put a double focus on Biology. I used to solve test papers and give exams in time. When I practiced a 10-marks question, I tried to solve it in 20-25 minutes, because we got 3 hours for 70 marks; so if we divide, we got 2.5 minutes for 1 mark. Side by side, I used to study English a lot which helped me in the future.

College and subject selection

I never wanted to be a doctor or engineer, I always wanted and still want to do research, so I chose a subject with a honors course. But the question was which subject and college to choose? After the Higher Secondary exam, I made a list of colleges in which I could apply and survive for three years with my calibre. It is very important to know about your own calibre to put yourself in the right place. As I am a Biology student, it was obvious that I choose any subject related to it. Biology is very diverse. The courses it has fall in two categories – classical (Zoology, Botany) and specialized (Biochemistry, Microbiology, Physiology, Biotechnology, Biophysics, ENVS, etc.). If I went for a specialized course, though it is slightly easier than a classical or mother subject, I would not be coming into classical again for M.Sc or beyond. But if I chose classical, I could go for a specialized course in MSc. For example, if I chose Botany in UG, I could choose Microbiology or ENVS in PG, but the reverse was not possible. So, I selected Botany in Asutosh College under the University of Calcutta (CU). I chose Botany over Zoology because many students avoided it for its toughness and it was a low scoring subject. So, it was obvious that I had less competition than a zoologist.

Three years of graduation

As Botany was a rather tough subject and in CU, it was harder to score well, I again increased my study time as I did in class XII, made a shorter routine and gave exams. I also worked on practical experiments more. I bought a microscope with my pocket money savings for my practical experiments. You can also buy it from any online site for Rs 1500-2000. Side by side, I am also preparing for MSc entrance exams.

About the Author:

I am Rohan Kumar Biswas. I just completed my graduation in Botany Honours from University of Calcutta. Now, I am preparing for MSc and giving exams for some universities to continue my higher studies.