IIT Madras provides a 5-year integrated M.A. program in two streams: Development Studies and English Studies. The program is offered by the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Madras. The programme encourages students to engage in critical thinking and research on ideas, people, society, environment and the human condition.
The admission to the above programs is through the humanities and Social Sciences Entrance Exam (HSEE). The exam is usually conducted in July once a year.
The programme has a total number of 58 seats for both Development Studies and English Studies streams; each stream will have 29 seats. The allocation will be according to the candidate’s preference and availability of seats.
Available Seats
Stream |
Open |
GEN-EWS |
OBC-NCL |
SC |
ST |
Total |
Development Studies |
12 |
3 |
8 |
4 |
2 |
29 |
English Studies |
12 |
3 |
8 |
4 |
2 |
29 |
Total |
24 |
6 |
16 |
8 |
4 |
58 |
The eligibility criteria for HSEE 2023 is as follows:
The admission process at DHSS, IIT Madras is typically a two-staged process as describe below:
Stage 1: Application
Candidates must register for HSEE by visiting the official website (https://hsee.iitm.ac.in), and upload all details as required. In addition, you must also pay the examination fee of INR 2,400/- (INR 1,200/-) for reserved categories. Attach any supporting documents as required.
The admit card will be released shortly after the application submission process. Candidates are required to keep their admit card with themselves until the entire admission process through HSEE 2023 is completed.
Stage 2: Exam and Merit List
Candidates must sit for the exam according to the schedule mentioned on their admit card. After the exam, a merit list (or Common Rank List) will be prepared on the basis of results.
The Common Rank List will contain the list of candidates who have scored at least 50% marks in HSEE (45% for GEN-EWS and OBC-NCL; 25% for SC, ST and PwD). The list will be on the basis of aggregate marks, including both part 1 and part 2 sectional scores.
The final admissions will be on the basis of merit list along with preferred choice of course and availability of seats.
The exam pattern of HSEE 2023 is as follows:
Exam Pattern |
Syllabus |
Weightage |
Part 1 |
English |
25% of part 1 |
Quantitative Ability |
25% of part 1 |
|
General Studies |
50% (divided into four sub-parts) of part 1 |
|
Part 2 |
Essay Writing |
100% of part 2 |
The HSEE is divided into two parts with 3 sub-sections in the first part and a single section in the second part. The details are as below:
Reading Skills: |
To test reading comprehension skills through a given passage |
Grammar: |
Sentence structure and usage, the use of tenses, verb patterns, articles, and active and passive constructions, etc. |
Vocabulary: |
To test the ability to understand meaning, structure and collocation of words. |
Numbers |
Algebra |
HCF and LCM |
Calendar |
Basic Statistics - Average, Ratio and proportion |
Profit and Loss |
Percentages |
Simple and Compound Interest |
Work and time |
Discount |
Age sums |
linear equations |
elementary trigonometry |
Data interpretation |
Analytical reasoning |
Logical reasoning |
Brainteasers |
Patterns |
Economy
Understanding the Economy: Scarcity, opportunity cost, resource allocation, economic systems and their characteristics, features of market economies, forces of demand and supply, elasticity of demand and supply. |
Main Features of Indian Economy: Natural resources; human resources -population size and composition, literacy and education, occupational distribution. |
Major Economic problems: Poverty, Unemployment and Inequality -concepts, measurement, trends, sectoral distribution and policies, inflation - trends, causes and remedies. |
Economic Growth and Development: Meaning and measurement of economic growth, stages of development, national income concepts and trends, trends in savings and investment; human development index, national policy on education, health and health care policies. |
Planning in India: Five-Year Plans - objectives, priorities and problems. |
Sectoral Development: agriculture - Green Revolution and technological changes, current issues and policies; industry-evolution of industrial policies in India (from 1948), strategies for industrial development, public and private sectors, small and medium industries, infrastructure, transport and communication, service sector etc. |
Foreign Trade and International Economy: balance of payments, foreign exchange reserves and trade policy, I.M.F., W.T.O., international aid. |
Money, Banking and Public Finance: Concepts of money and measures of money supply. |
Indian Society and Culture
Structure of Indian Society: Caste, Class and Tribe, Institutions of Marriage, Family and Kinship, Political institutions, Demographic Indicators and Trends. |
Social Change in India: Sanskritization, Modernisation, Westernization and Secularization, Social Movements and Regionalism, Panchayati Raj Institutions & Governance, Affirmative Action Programme of the Government, Commissions and Policy Interventions. |
Medieval and Modern Indian History: Delhi Sultanate and Mughal era; British Raj; Uprising of 1857; (Social) Reform, and Resistance Movements; Indian National Movement and the Emergence of the Indian nation. |
Indian Philosophy and Thinkers: Jainism, Buddhism, Orthodox Systems, Sikhism, Sufism, Gandhi, Swami Vivekananda, Rabindranath Tagore, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan. |
Indian Traditions and Knowledge Systems: Classical dance forms, Architecture, Education, Ethics, Language and Grammar, Painting, Music, Theatre, Textiles Indian Literature, Mathematical and Medical systems. |
World Affairs
Emergence of the US and USSR; emergence of UN system; the Cold War and nuclear race; disintegration of Soviet Union, decline of Communism and rise of nationalism; Arab-Israel conflict; India and the World; NAM and role of India; India-China and India- Pakistan relations, China and the World, conflict and wars. |
Democracy and Development; Challenges to democracy; North-South divide on issues of development; UN and its various developmental and peacekeeping operations; Nuclearisation and Non-proliferation; India in SAARC and ASEAN; International terrorism, fundamentalism and the War on Terror; Indo-US relations; New centres of power in Asia, Latin America and Africa. |
Hunger and Poverty; Human Rights, Democracy and Development; Environmental degradation and green politics; Issues of Race, Ethnicity and Gender; Deprived Classes and minority politics; Religion in the contemporary world; Culture and Civilization; Globalization and changing economic, cultural and political landscape; Mass media and cultural change; Emergence of various popular mass movements. |
Environment and Ecology
Global Environmental Picture: Population Growth, Degradation of Soils, Global Atmospheric Changes, Loss of Biodiversity. |
Ecosystems: Structure of Ecosystems, Biotic Structure, Categories of Organisms, Feeding and Non-feeding Relationships, Ecosystems and how they work, Elements in Living and Non-living Systems, Energy Laws, Nutrient Cycling. |
Pollution: Major forms of Pollution and their Impact, Primary and Secondary Pollutants, Control Strategies, Indoor Pollutants, Global Warming, International Treaties. |
Principles of Solar Energy, Hydropower, Wind Power, Biomass Energy, Ocean Thermal Energy, Geothermal Energy, and Tidal power. |
Essay
The topics for the essay will be on current affairs and general knowledge. The official guidelines for essay states that "the essay should build an argument, demonstrate a clear perspective and be substantiated with examples, wherever possible."
Particulars |
Fee (Indian Nationals) |
One Time Payment |
Rs. 3,550 |
Semester Fees |
Rs. 11,200 |
Refundable Caution Deposit |
Rs. 2,000 |
Estt. ’A’ charges |
Rs. 6,000 |
Extra-curricular Fee |
Rs. 1,500 |
Medical Insurance Premium |
Rs. 792 |
Refundable Hostel Deposit |
Rs. 3,000 |
Hostel and other fees |
Rs. 19,450 |
*The fee structure is subject to vary from time to time.
The MA integrated programs are beneficial for students seeking to gain an interdisciplinary understanding of their preferred choice of course, as the program will also train students in key research techniques and critical thinking. The programs combine the undergraduate and postgraduate study in one course, this helps in gaining in-depth knowledge. As the admissions are through HSEE, make sure to watch the important dates. The deadline of application forms is usually May-end.