ASER 2023: 46.2% of Nanded teens from 14 to 18 years study Arts or Humanities, 44.2% in STEM courses

Nanded district was identified as it was the closest to the state's average in the previous ASER survey and thus was used as an indicator for the whole of Maharashtra.

Written by Pallavi Smart

Mumbai | Updated: January 30, 2024 05:04 PM IST

3 min read

ASER 2023, Arts, Humanities, STEM courses, agriculture sector, Annual Status of Education, ASER report, career aspirations, higher education, ASER survey, indian express news

Only 2.3 per cent of boys and 4.1 percent of girls aspired to become IPS officers, showing more of an inclination towards joining police forces at lower ranks. (Express File Photo)

Only 2.9 per cent of children between the ages of 14 and 18 years from Maharashtra’s Nanded district aspire to work in the agriculture sector, with about 0.8 per cent of them actually enrolled in related courses at Class XI or higher levels. Whereas, 46.2 per cent are enrolled in Arts or Humanities, followed closely by Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) courses with 44.2 per cent. This was revealed as the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2023 was declared last week.

The ASER 2023, focused on children from the ages of 14-18 years and surveyed one rural district per state. Apart from determining academic achievements of the targeted age group, the survey also gauged career aspirations along with higher education choices. Nanded district was identified as it was the closest to the state’s average in the previous ASER survey and thus was used as an indicator for the whole of Maharashtra.

Even as enrollment in STEM courses was among the highest, boys were found to be more inclined toward engineering as opposed to girls who showed interest in pursuing medicine. While 11.8 per cent of boys expressed an aspiration to become engineers, 7.7 per cent for girls aspired towards this. Among girls, 15.9 per cent of them expressed they aspired to become doctors, while 7.2 per cent of boys aspired towards this. A total of 6.6 per cent girls aspired to become nurses, which was only 0.6 per cent among boys.

Also Read | Study shows Nanded dist kids from 14 to 18 yrs lag in basic Math, English reading skills

A considerable proportion of the respondents showed they aspired to join the police force, with 28.1 per cent of boys and 20.9 per cent girls wishing to become police officials. Only 2.3 per cent of boys and 4.1 percent of girls aspired to become IPS officers, showing more of an inclination towards joining police forces at lower ranks. A significant proportion of boys – 10.1 per cent – aspired to join the Army. This was marginal among girls at 2.3 per cent.

While a very small of the respondents showed an aspiration towards professions like teachers, civil services, entrepreneurship and sports; a significant portion of boys (12.9 per cent) and girls (15.5 per cent) shared that they did not know what they wanted to do.

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