Course Groups
Biodiversity Conservation
Biodiversity conservation, management, and habitat restoration requires a multi-pronged approach, and an interdisciplinary understanding is essential. This OT will acquaint students with the rich biodiversity of the Indian subcontinent and the associated threats to them, and provide the students with the lens to identify pertinent questions such as — what to conserve, why to conserve, when to conserve, and how to conserve. The field of conservation binds the need for species and ecosystem conservation with the requirements for human well-being, livelihood, and rights. Through this curriculum, the students will be aware of the interdisciplinary approach in this field and will…Biology
Courses in Biology, Mathematics and Physics. iThink Biology: Our free online textbook to study and teach Biology.Biology Major
Students will explore phenomena at multiple length and time scales (from molecules to ecosystems). This integrative exposition will be enabled by well-crafted pedagogic techniques and a thoughtful combination of classroom-based and experiential learning.
Chemistry Major
The goal of the chemistry curriculum is education, broad in its focus and intent. In practice, balancing education and training entails emphasis on a holistic view of chemistry that expands modes of thinking beyond the science classroom.
Climate Studies
These courses will help you develop the knowledge necessary to understand the earth’s climate systems. You will examine and analyse the role of human activity on the earth’s climate and its effects on the present and future climate scenarios, and identify the effects of climate change on biodiversity through the lens of historical changes in the Holocene. We hope you will apply systems thinking to examine the origins of the climate crisis and proposed solutions and grow comfortable with civic engagement and transfer of knowledge and resources for climate solutions at different levels.Computational and Integrative Biology
This track is designed for students who are keen on understanding molecular and cellular scale processes through multiple perspectives including computational analysis and physical laws. Students will be able to appreciate why multiple perspectives are needed to study phenomena operating at a range of time and length scales (such as development).Concentrations
Choose 4 elective courses of 12 credits in total covering a specific theme or topic in development.Core Economic Courses
Our core courses train you in foundational knowledge and skills necessary for understanding economics from the developmental context of contemporary India. The courses cover traditional economic theory and methods, as well as the institutional developmental and ecological concerns we face in India.Creative Expressions
As an essential component of the core curriculum, Creative Expressions courses utilise artistic mediums, sports, and embodied learning to cultivate creativity, foster social cohesion, and build resilience. Encouraging students to take risks in unfamiliar disciplines, these courses nurture curiosity, self-discovery, and overall well-being. Through Creative Expressions, students are empowered to participate with meaningful social connection, fostering a community of active and responsible citizens.
Cultural Studies
Actions, thoughts and expressions related to different aspects of our lives — nation, gender, religion, family — are involved in continuing contestations. How do we understand all these aspects of ‘culture’? These courses will take you through different kinds of texts and teach you how to read them from different disciplinary locations.Data, Democracy and Development
The set of courses will orient you to think about data as an essential part of building empathy and democratic values. We ensure you have the requisite tools for data collection, analysis, presentation, and dissemination so that you can construct the right platforms and build technologies that embody democratic principles. These courses will foster a culture of investigation with data, keeping in mind questions of ethics and politics.Design for Communities
Design concerns itself with envisioning, planning and creating objects, spaces or interactive systems to address a need or a problem. It attempts to meet the needs of a variety of users with responses that are aligned with their specific contexts. It aims to understand situations and create holistic, appropriate solutions. While design is a large discipline with many domains, this Occupational Track will look at the design of products, the practical use of technology in various enterprises and the design of spaces for accessibility and interaction. It includes the process of ideating, developing and refining products that meet specific market…Development
Development aims to create social conditions for individual and social well being. How are development issues framed and what issues are involved in bringing about social change? What are the theoretical, conceptual and practical contestations around the political project that is development? This set of courses explores the many interdisciplinary fields like the humanities, social sciences, science and technology that inform development challenges.Development Studies
Development aims to create social conditions for individual and social well being, How are development issues framed and what issues are involved in bringing about social change? What are the theoretical, conceptual and practical contestations around the political project that is development? This set of courses explores the many interdisciplinary fields like the humanities, social sciences, science and technology that inform development challenges.How do we address these continuous issues in a country that upholds equality in its constitution? We explore the many challenges of India and its social inequalities. India has high school dropout rates in rural and tribal communities,…Disability, Accessibility and Inclusion
The Occupational Track (Minor) prepares students to understand disability as a social, political, and rights-based issue while building the practical skills needed to create more inclusive environments. Rooted in contemporary disability studies, the programme explores the shift from a medical model of disability to a social model that focuses on removing barriers and ensuring dignity, participation, and equal opportunity.Students engage with the realities of disability in India, where access is shaped by intersections of caste, class, gender, poverty, and geography. The track introduces learners to disability rights frameworks, including the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities…Early Childhood Education
Focus on learning, development, and curriculum for children aged 3 – 8, with options for independent or field-based study. (No longer offered in the Bengaluru campus)
Ecology and Environment
This track is designed for students who are interested in ecology and environmental biology. It will build upon fundamental concepts of ecology covered in the Introduction to Biology courses and allow students to gain a deeper understanding of methods used to study our natural surroundings and the effect of human activity on our environment.Economics
We live in a world with economic data and models as a central part of public service and life. With these courses, you will benefit from using your philosophical abilities to the discipline of economic thought. You will work with constructing models, evaluating economic policies and work with data.Economy, Labour, and Environmental Histories
Using well-established historiographic approaches and subfields in the discipline of history, this set of courses explore key social, economic and political processes that have had impacted labouring peoples and historically marginalised social groups across time.Education
You will apply your philosophical capacities to the discipline of education.Education
In this set of courses, you will learn the nature and content of education, and its context and structure, especially in India. We begin by a broad overview of what a democratic conception of education entails, and what the values and ethics that define educational structures are. We examine aspects of education that encourage learning and the role of a teacher in the learning process. will explore and evaluate classroom practices and environments and learn how educational processes determine what is worth teaching.Education
The Occupational Track (OT) in Education at Azim Premji University leverages the liberal arts tradition by fostering a deep understanding of human society and its relationship with education. This program delves into psychology, sociology, politics, and philosophy, revealing how these disciplines influence how individuals and societies approach learning. Additionally, the arts, humanities, and diverse philosophical perspectives enrich our understanding of educational thought and practice.The OT in Education recognizes the importance of analysing educational processes and systems at various levels, from individual student experiences to national and international trends. By examining different perspectives – personal, communal, organisational, national, and international –…Financial Management for the Social Sector
This Occupational Track (Minor) is designed to prepare students to address the financial and governance needs of social sector organisations. Rooted in the liberal arts tradition, it combines conceptual understanding with practical skills to help students engage with the financial realities of nonprofits, community institutions, cooperatives, foundations, and mission-driven enterprises.Students learn the fundamentals of accounting, budgeting, financial planning, internal controls, and statutory compliance while also examining how finance can promote equity, accountability, and sustainability. The programme pays special attention to the role of financial systems in communities, including access to savings, credit, insurance, pensions, and other services for low-income households.Through…Foundations
Courses to strengthens critical thinking, logical reasoning and trains you in effective verbal and written communication.Foundations
These courses will help you develop a toolkit to prepare for your undergraduate study. You will develop your critical reading and writing skills and communication abilities. The key areas you will work on are language capacities, reading, writing and speaking. We will work with different forms of writing, ranging from autobiographical writing to mappings and note-taking. These classes will include classroom discussions, presentations, collaborative works, group work and practicums.Global and Connected Histories
Courses in this cluster of electives will expose students to history in an interconnected and global perspective. They break away from a nationalist mooring of the discipline of history (and its implicit Eurocentrism) to ask questions about shifting territorial and fluvial frontiers, oceanic worlds, diasporas and migrations, and the travel of people, cultures, and ideas across the globe.
