Nim Dorji | Trongsa

Graduates of the Bhutanese and Himalayan Studies (BHS) of the College of Language and Cultural Studies (CLCS) can now compete for the postgraduate diploma in education (PGDE) in History, starting from this year.

The RCSC reviewed and approved the revised BHS course content for PGDE History in September of this year.

The revised BHS course content starts from the 2018 intake.

The first batch of students who studied the revised courses graduated this June and two more batches are pursuing the course.

A final year student studying BHS, Lok Bdr Ghalley, said he is happy to know they can now compete for the PGDE. “It renewed our ambition to study hard.”

Students said they were worried when the BHS course was discontinued this year. They said they felt they were studying a course without any job opportunities.

A student, Sherub Dorji, said students should have been given opportunity to compete for the PGDE in History a long time ago.

“It would have helped many students who have graduated,” he said. “Only students from these three batches will benefit now.”

The college president, Lungten Gyatso,said that the BHS course was started in 2012 and the first batch graduated in 2015, but when the students wanted to sit for the PGDE in History, the RCSC deemed the syllabus that graduates has studied at the college inadequate to qualify to teach history in schools.

“We then immediately reviewed and revised the curriculum in 2018 and the first cohort of graduates this June,” he said.

According to the president, when the course started, it was not targeted for students to teach history, but to give them a broader perspective on Himalayan Studies that Bhutanese will find meaningful. “But we revised the course because students were denied the opportunity to compete for the PGDE course.”

The programme leader of BHS, Sangay Phuntsho (K), said the revised course has in-depth content.

“There are also a greater number of modules related to history in the revised curriculum. There are around 17 modules for a three-year course in the revised curriculum, but only 9 modules in the old curriculum. The eligibility criteria and grading percentage are also revised,” he said.

There are 250 students who are pursuing the BHS course at the moment and more than 980 students with a BA in BHS who have graduated from CLCS.