6 Things An Arts Student Is Sick of Hearing

Arts students somehow have a reputation of getting the easy way out. People, especially in India, undermine and undervalue Arts on a daily basis without even realizing the importance it holds in their lives. Movies, plays, songs, paintings; we enjoy them all and yet when we see an Arts student we think to ourselves what an easy life they must be living. What is important to note is that their lives are no easier than anyone else’s , that they have the same level of stress and same level of work as anyone else, if not more. Here are some myths about Arts as a discipline debunked:

1. ‘Exam time for you must be so fun!’
That is not true. Exams are exams irrespective of the discipline and exam times are stressful for everyone. Just because a student is studying Arts doesn’t mean that they have fun. If anything that comes close to fun is that, they study what they love and that makes it easier and enjoyable.

2. ‘I wanted to do Arts too, but you know I also wanted a career.’
What does that even mean? Career opportunities are the same everywhere and do not depend on your discipline. They depend on your excellence and interest in a particular field, without which you’ll be jobless irrespective of being an Arts student or a Science student.

3. ‘So do you like paint and draw and that’s it?’
Arts is a well-developed discipline and has a diverse range of fields ranging from Psychology to Literature, from History to Sociology. It is not limited to painting and drawing. Please get your facts right.

4. “Do you even do any work?”
No, you know what actually; we just go, stare at the walls and sometimes the teachers and come back. That’s all we do. We’ve got no work to do, because you’re the ones doing all the ‘real’ stuff anyway.

5. ‘Oh but what was your first choice?’
Why can Arts not be someone’s first choice? Why does it have to be an alternative?

6. ‘So what are you gonna do after, teach?’
Yes, if I want to. But that doesn’t mean there are no other options. Career opportunities after Arts do not come down to Teaching. There are many other jobs and many other ways of earning a living and the opportunities are endless.

– Pragya Achantani