1. Politics begin to interest you more and you start keeping track.
Unless you were a hardcore political lover from the beginning, admit it, this is a new found interest for you. You start following news articles and watch channels to keep updated on the latest issues and finally understand what all the ministers are there for. Having likeminded or people with the same interests as yours (talking about classmates and department people here) you get a chance to discuss all the information you have digested, form your own opinions about them and grow your knowledge about the state of politics in the nation and around the world.
On the other hand, if you had consciously chosen political science and have already been doing all the above since you could understand news, then you have probably developed a wider understanding of the ‘whats’ and ‘whys’ of the polity.
2. You learn to think critically of every issue that you come across.
One of the benefits of studying the subject is that you learn to develop a critical mindset. You do not willingly accept everything that you hear and learn to question every policy or programme put forward by an authority whether it be the college political party’s or the governments’. Repeated practice of putting up debates or counter debates in class lectures helps polish this line of thinking.
3. People assume you know the Constitution of the country like the back of your hand.
Yes, we are students of political science and no, we do not know the constitution by heart. It is not necessary that we know each and every law there is out there. It has been in my experience that people have asked me numerous times what certain laws and rights are. Although I have been more than happy to give them a satisfactory answer (and at times blank looks) all knowledge about rights and regulations are not always on the tip of our tongue.
4. “Political Science? Oh so you are joining the civil services!”
This happens more than a lot. Maybe not just for Pol. Science students but it’s a definitely for us. Sometimes there is not even an ‘if’, just a “Have you started preparing?”. Although once in class almost everybody raised their hands when the teacher asked for civil service aspirants, it does not hold true for all. It is no secret that many of us have taken major in this subject because it was the best option for us given our percentage. Pol. Science is not just a stepping stone to conquering the UPSC exams. I have seen many students who are more interested in other activities like photography or doing social service. It is just one of the many assumptions that we have to deal with.
5. You slowly develop your own political philosophy and your set of beliefs about the world.
Reading about Marx, Kant, the works of Mill and other thinkers of the political world and their ideologies, beliefs and theories puts before us a plethora of conceptions to go through. At times we find ourselves agreeing with some and at sometimes not so much. Over time, as we articulate our thoughts and views we find them parallel to the views of some other thinker. And as such, slowly we develop our own ideologies, political or otherwise.
Political Science as a subject can be really challenging and given the vast nature of the subject, sometimes it may seem like an impossible feat. Even for the subject lovers who might at times be daunted by the vastness of the course, the circling conceptions and debates which do not have definite answers. But at the end of the day, it helps us see the world in a different light and with a new found understanding which is worth it.
Featured image credits: www.itimes.com
Arindam Goswami
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