The Ashoka Scholars Programme

The Ashoka Scholars Programme

Ashoka University, in compliance with UGC guidelines, offers a 3-year Bachelor’s Degree programme.  It also offers a year-long Postgraduate Diploma in Advanced Studies and Research (DipASR).

All undergraduates graduating with Bachelor’s Degrees at the end of their third year, or who have completed by that time at least 92 credits of their degree programme, are eligible for admission into the Postgraduate Diploma in Advanced Studies and Research programme, also known as the Ashoka Scholars Programme (ASP). All ASP students, by completing the Postgraduate Diploma in Advanced Studies and Research, will become eligible to apply for postgraduate programmes in North America and other parts of the world that require 12 years of study at the secondary school level and 4 years of study at the university level.

Students must formally apply for admission to the ASP by the end of the Monsoon semester of their third year. The ASP offers students a defining liberal arts experience that blends academic rigour with a wide range of elective options across a variety of subjects.  These options include:

Advanced Major

ASP students who hope to apply for higher studies in their Major subject or a related field are advised to complete 4 more courses in that subject – two per semester.  By doing so, they will qualify for an Advanced Major.

Minor

ASP students can complete an Ashoka University-approved Minor by taking six approved courses in any given Major or Minor programme.  Courses taken in the Minor subject during a student’s Bachelor’s Degree will be credited toward the Minor that appears on the student’s PG Diploma transcript.  Normally Minors will require ASP students to take at least one and no more than six courses in the Minor subject during the PG Diploma year.

Concentration

ASP students can complete an Ashoka University-approved Concentration by taking four approved courses in any given Major or Minor programme, including approved multidisciplinary subjects that are not represented by Major and Minor programmes.  Courses taken in the Concentration subject during a student’s Bachelor’s Degree will be credited toward the Concentration that appears on the student’s PG Diploma transcript.  Normally Concentrations will require ASP students to take at least one and no more than four courses in the Minor subject during the PG Diploma year.

Second Major Equivalent

ASP students can complete an Ashoka University-approved Second Major Equivalent (SME) by taking twelve approved courses in any given Major programme.  Courses taken in the SME subject during a student’s Bachelor’s Degree will be credited toward the SME that appears on the student’s PG Diploma transcript.  Normally SMEs will require ASP students to take at least six and no more than ten courses in the SME subject during the PG Diploma year. Students can also complete a Capstone Thesis Project in their SME subject (see Expanded Major requirements above) as part of the required twelve courses.

Ashoka Quest

ASP students can complete a year-long social internship programme called the Ashoka Quest.  The Quest partners students with organizations outside of Ashoka University and exposes them to real-life problems faced by Indian communities, ranging from sanitation challenges and gender inequality to lack of digital access and literacy.  The programme is divided into three parts: