Audiology

Audiology is the field of study focused on the anatomy and physiology of auditory senses in living beings. Audiology courses can be studied after completing 10+2 higher secondary education in India. After completing a bachelor’s course, students can study further and specialise in Audiology-related fields by pursuing a master’s or PhD degree. To be eligible for any audiology programme, applicants need to complete the necessary elementary education and sit for either the NEET entrance exam or a college-specific entrance exam.

Audiology courses can be extremely beneficial, especially for students wishing to pursue a unique career path in medical sciences. Some of the best Indian colleges for course study are Christian Medical College, Jawahar Lal Institute of Medical Education & Research, AIIPMR, and SRM Institute of Science & Technology. The overall course fee can range from INR 500 to INR 20,00,000 depending on the qualification and type of audiology course chosen.

Students can refer to the following summarised course highlights about audiology courses in India:

Audiology courses can prove highly beneficial for students in medical sciences. If the audiology courses are observed in the spotlight, the following reasons are why students pick this field of study:

Socio-economic Rewarding Career: Audiologists not only serve society as medical professionals but also serve those patients who are nearing the loss of hearing or are born deaf.

Huge Scope of Advancement: The most advanced course of treatment in the field of auditory sciences is the Hearing Impairment Correction Device. This device has helped many people suffering from acute hearing loss, however, those born with the disability have yet to be catered to. Hence, there is a huge scope of advancement in this field, both in terms of technology and medicinal treatment.

Base of Advanced Biological Diseases: Hearing-related problems are often a primary symptom of advanced heart or neuro diseases, such as dementia, clotting, chronic anxiety, etc. Audiologists help save their patients from severe diseases and biological conditions by helping them identify problems on a very basic level.

Chance to Create Social Awareness: Study of audiology is a huge benefit to society. With disabilities being viewed as a subject of pity, audiologists can work towards removing this stigma and educating the masses.

The types of Audiology courses available in India are summarised below:

The entrance exams applicable for admission to audiology courses in India are:

• University Entrance Tests: They are conducted by different colleges for internal admissions, such as Delhi University Entrance Exam, SRM University Entrance Exam, etc.

• Common Entrance Tests: Entrance exams like the NEET-UG or NEET-PG are examples of common entrance exams required for audiology courses in India.

The eligibility criteria to get admission in audiology courses differ as per course type and study level.

Certificate Audiology Courses

The eligibility criteria for certificate audiology courses are neither extensive nor demanding. If students can pay a lump-sum amount as tuition or programme fees then, students are registered for a certificate course in audiology.

Diploma & PG Diploma Audiology Courses

To get considered for admission to diploma courses, students must have:

• At least 50% in 10+2, for general audiology diploma courses, or

• At least 50% in bachelor’s degree for audiology PG diploma courses.

Bachelor’s in Audiology Courses

The exact eligibility criteria for audiology bachelor’s courses admission will differ according to the medical college or institution. Generally, the following requirements are commonly dictated by colleges in India:

• At least 50% in 10+2 higher secondary examinations, and

• Cut-off marks in college entrance examinations.

Master’s in Audiology Courses

The common eligibility criteria for admission to master’s audiology courses are:

• A bachelor’s degree in audiology or medicinal sciences,

• Cut-off scores in college entrance examinations, and

• Performance in the college admissions interview.

PhD in Audiology Courses

Colleges consider the students for PhD audiology courses if they:

• Have a bachelor’s or master’s degree in audiology or medical sciences,

• Clear cut-off in college or national entrance examinations, and

• Clear the GD and personal interview sessions of college admissions.

The admission process for different types of Audiology courses is given below.

Bachelor’s in Audiology Courses

To get admission to bachelor’s in audiology courses in India, students need to:

Step 1: Shortlist the colleges and check their course structure.

Step 2: Outline eligibility criteria and course fees, and check for any college entrance test.

Step 3: Attempt the college entrance exam.

Step 4: Compile the entrance exam scores and other documents required for the application.

Step 5: Fill out the application form and attach/upload the test transcript and other documents.

Step 6: Await the college acceptance letter or admissions list after paying the application fee.

Master’s in Audiology Courses

Students can apply for master’s in audiology courses through the steps below:

Step 1: Shortlist the colleges and meet the eligibility criteria.

Step 2: Appear for the entrance examination.

Step 3: Apply for admission with college entrance examination scores and other required documents.

Step 4: Pay the application fee and await an invitation for the college admissions interview.

Step 5: Appear for the college admissions interview and await the college acceptance letter or admissions list.

PhD in Audiology Courses

The steps to apply for PhD audiology courses are:

Step 1: Shortlist the colleges on basis of course structure, fees, and eligibility criteria.

Step 2: Clear the college or national entrance examination.

Step 3: Apply for admission with entrance examination scores and other documents.

Step 4: Pay the application fee and await an invitation to the college admissions process.

Step 5: Appear for the GD interview session and clear the same.

Step 6: Appear for the personal interview session.

Step 7: Await the college acceptance letter or admissions list.

Top 10 colleges in India to study Audiology, along with their annual tuition fees are given below:

Indian students can opt to study audiology courses abroad in foreign universities. The best universities abroad to study audiology courses are:

The average fees for audiology courses in India differs not only on qualification basis but on an institutional basis as well. Generally, the fee structure in private medical colleges is higher than in government or public medical colleges.

Although the syllabus of audiology courses is different for all colleges, the common subjects covered by the courses across varying degrees are:

• Speech and Language Pathology

• Human Anatomy and Physiology

• Acoustics and Electronics

• Linguistics

• Psychology related to Speech and Hearing

• Speech Pathology and Audiology

Upon completion of audiology courses in India, students can try for the following professional courses as their careers:

• Audiologist

• Speech Pathologist

• Audiometry Technician

• Auditory Courses Professor

• ENT Hospital or Clinic Head

The salary of an audiologist in India in the starting years ranges from INR 4,00,000 to INR 8,00,000. With time and experience, audiology professionals earn an average of INR 20,00,000 annually.

Audiology courses will help the students to become qualified Audiologists. However, there are some inherent and developed skills that students need to be successful in their professional life. These skills are holistic, which is the combination of both hard and soft skills.

• Communication: An audiologist must be a great communicator in all mediums, such as written, spoken, and sign language. This is because their patients are hearing impaired and they need to communicate with them to know their problems and suggest solutions.

• Critical thinking: The information they will get from their patients and their guardians will be highly informal, and to convert the same into workable deductions, an Audiologist requires critical thinking.

• Information Analysis: An audiologist has to decipher non-traditional bits of information when working on the case of any patient. It includes alphanumeric data, and they must know how to deduct them into usable information.

• Management Skills: Although an Audiologist is a science field professional, they must also have basic management skills such as organising, time management, delegation, direction, operations management, negotiation, persuasion, etc.