Allergy and Immunology Course Details - Fees, Subjects, Syllabus, Duration, Eligibility, Career Scope

What is Allergy and Immunology

Allergy and Immunology is an important field of study for the living species to learn better to protect themselves from the allergens. Allergy and immunology subjects in general deal with the study of the immune system in detail to learn about the functioning of the immune system. The immune system is an extremely integral part of our body that acts as a shield to the allergens or the pathogens that enter our body. It is a defence mechanism to fight against the disease-causing pathogens and to keep our bodies healthy.

The study of the allergy and immunology is essential because it is the first defence mechanism that fights against the disease-causing pathogens without any medication. The immune system forms antibodies to fight the pathogens on its own so that the body does not feel weak. If the immunity system does not function well, then the person can succumb to even the slightest of the disease-causing pathogens because it will not be able to shield the body from the effect of the pathogen. The study of this defence mechanism, known as allergy and immunology has led to the foundation of the treatment of the diseases that were at first thought to be uncontrollable. The researcher or the people involved in the research of the immunity disorders or the allergies and their cures are termed as the immunologists and the study is known as allergy and immunology . This is an emerging field in medical research and is being taken up as a career by plenty of candidates.

Allergy and Immunology Course Highlights

Eligibility Criteria (UG & PG) of Allergy and Immunology

The eligibility criterion for allergy and immunology courses varies for different institutes by a slight margin but overall are quite similar. Candidates are required to fulfil the eligibility criteria to get admission into the allergy and immunology courses.

 For undergraduate allergy and immunology courses

• Candidates must have completed their 10+2 with Physics, Chemistry, and Biology from a recognised board and institute.

• Candidates should have at least 50 percent aggregate marks in 10+2.

• Candidates will also need to clear the entrance exams conducted for admission to various institutes.

For postgraduate allergy and immunology courses

• Candidates willing to apply for a postgraduate degree in allergy and immunology should have a bachelor’s degree in either immunology, microbiology, chemistry or biology from a recognised university in India.

• Candidates must have at least 50 percent aggregate in the undergraduate degree to pursue allergy and immunology postgraduate degree.

Allergy and Immunology Entrance Exams

There are various institutions in the country that offer courses in Allergy and Immunology. These institutions have separate entrance exams that candidates have to qualify in order to be eligible for the admission in the allergy and immunology courses at that institute.

AIIMS: AIIMS offers both undergraduate as well as postgraduate courses for allergy and immunology. It has various branches all across India that offer different courses that specialise in allergy and immunology. They have an entrance test for both undergraduate and postgraduate courses which need to be qualified for the admission to allergy and immunology courses. The undergraduate entrance exam includes Physics, Chemistry, biology and GK, while the sections in the postgraduate entrance exam depend on the subjects and specialisations.

National Institute of Immunology: This institute offers postgraduate courses for the field of allergy and immunology. The entrance exam is conducted by the NII, and based on the scores of this test, the selection procedure is followed.

Vels University: This institute offers both undergraduate and postgraduate allergy and immunology courses. The entrance exam is considered as per the 10+2 syllabus for undergraduate and the subject disciplines for the admission to postgraduate courses.

JIPMER: This institute offers both undergraduate and postgraduate allergy and immunology courses. For the admission to the undergraduate allergy and immunology course, candidates have to clear NEET, and for the postgraduate allergy and immunology course, candidates have to clear the JIPMER-PG entrance exam.

Government Medical College, Surat: This institute offers undergraduate courses in allergy and immunology.  The prospective candidates are supposed to qualify the NEET exam with good scores to get admission into the allergy and immunology courses.

• If there is no entrance exam for the admission to the allergy and immunology course, then the admission is given on the basis of the merit achieved in the previous level of education.

• In case there is an entrance exam, then the candidate needs to qualify the cut-off for the entrance exam in order to secure a seat in their favourable college.

• There are institutes that follow personal interview rounds as a step in the admission process to check for the qualifications and general skills of the candidate.

• Students who pass through all the stages of the admission process get their admission in the allergy and immunology courses.

Required Skillset for Allergy and Immunology

The field of work that involves allergy and immunology requires in-depth knowledge about the subject and your area of expertise along with the experience of work in that field. These are the foremost skills that are required to work as an immunologist, but apart from these skills, candidates must hold the essence of responsibility, sincerity, diligence and self-confidence to hone their skills to work effectively in the field. The additional skills that would be required as an immunologist will be:

• Observational skills
• Critical thinking
• Versed with latest treatments
• Time management skills
• Patience
• Interpersonal skills