HSC Full Form: Higher Secondary Certificate

HSC Board Full Form

If you don’t know the HSC full form yet, it denotes the Higher Secondary Certificate exam. HSC is a stepping stone for the students of the Indian continent to continue their further studies in colleges. This exam comprises two years of senior secondary classes (Class XI and XII) mostly. Once the students clear SSC or secondary school certificates, they get to study in the higher secondary with a diverse choice of subjects. This senior exam prepares them for further studies.

Various Indian states carry out HSC exams to determine the student’s eligibility for further studies, and some of them are Maharashtra, Gujrat, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Goa, Tamil Nadu, etc. The education boards of the respective boards carry out the exam. Currently, India has 52 sanctioned boards that serve in various states. These boards are WBCHSE, CBSE, ICSE, MP and UP board, etc.

HSC Facts and Figures

Every year lakhs of students appear for the HSC exam in each state making it one of the biggest exams ever conducted in India. For example, in 2023, a total of 14.57 lakh students appeared for the HSC exam under Maharashtra from different streams at different exam venues. Since every education board of the Indian state conducts the exam, the methods differ. Even though there are differences, let us present to you some common facts about this exam –

• Students can choose the subjects for the next two years if they perform well in the SSC or Madhyamik Exam.
•  The assessment of Class 11 is done internally. Class 12th’s assessment is carried out by external evaluators.
•  A set of qualified, skilled, and knowledgeable teachers collaborate to prepare the question papers from three essential streams – Science, Arts, and Commerce. However, the questions are also prepared from cross-combinations like Bioscience, Pure Science, and commerce subjects.
•  The HSC exam takes place in a space of three hours to complete each paper.
•  The students must qualify in five out of six subjects to successfully clear the HSC exam. In some states, the boards have set the qualifying percentage at 40% in the main five subjects.
•  The examination boards award grades to the students based on their percentile in marks scored out of 100.
•  The HSC exam includes both theoretical and practical exams. While some boards have practical exam provisions for science subjects, others have the option of practical exams for almost all the available subjects.
•  After the publication of the result, the students reserve the right to do RTI or scrutinize their papers.

The importance of this exam

As the full form of the HSC exam relegates to the Higher Secondary Certificate exam, you can understand this exam decides your fate for higher studies. Whether you want to do engineering or appear for NEET, this exam is valuable. It ensures your academic journey in colleges or universities.

Fields in HSC

The students must choose their field according to their future academic journey. The subjects you will select will decide for you whether you are eligible for a particular course. For this reason, you must study hard and pay attention to the subjects in your secondary exam.

Before you go on to selecting the subjects, you must understand the HSC full form – Higher Secondary Certificate exam. Every subject you will choose comes with an advanced level of study. In any case, you should know, there are three prime sections of higher secondary education –

• Arts
• Science
• Commerce

These three sections are again divided based on two categories – The science program and the Non-science program.

Science programs

If you wish to study science, you will have the option to choose from the following subjects. These subjects decide which field you can choose – medical and non-medical. Physics and Chemistry are common in both these fields. You can select Mathematics if you choose to pursue engineering, aeronautics, architecture, etc. The students prefer Biology if they wish to follow their medical dream.

Apart from these common subjects, you can do other subjects as well, subject to the availability in the schools. These other subjects are Computer Science, Psychology, Economics, Physical Education etc. You can pursue different courses after 12th such as B. Tech, MBBS, Bachelor of Science (to pursue a further academic journey as an option), Bachelor of Pharmacy, etc.

Non-science programs

The non-science programs cater to the subject of Arts and Commerce. Arts is more of a creative field while Commerce points to the business-oriented field. If you select the creative field, you can choose from a range of subjects like Bengali (regionally can be different), English, History, Political Science, Education, Geography, Sanskrit, Economics etc. If you prefer Commerce, you will have ample options to choose from – Accountancy, Commerce, Business Mathematics, Company Law and Business Studies, Economics etc. Apart from these common subject options, you can opt for a cross-section of subjects with Anthropology, Psychology, Philosophy, Home Science, etc.
All these subjects will allow you to pursue graduation after the Higher Secondary Certificate exam. The students often choose these days Diploma courses that specialize in Nutrition, Nursing, Digital Marketing, Advertising, Hotel Management etc.

Benefits of HSC

Some experts believe that the future of HSC Full Form has changed and is now declining. A more centralized educational system is being prioritized by the government, increasing public awareness of Delhi boards such as ICSE and CBSE.

However, this system has many benefits that have lasted for over a century. Among them are:

The abbreviation’s degree of deep penetration Higher Secondary Certificate HSC Full Form.

more affordable and less expensive than other boards.

• Valid everywhere and recognized nationally.
• A localized educational system that values the culture of the area
• Easy access to study resources

Common Subjects and the States Where HSC Examination Happens

Almost all the Indian states conduct the HSC examination during March and April. However, the examination boards conduct the exams at the specified time. There are two divisions in the boards –

State level boards

The Maharashtra Secondary & Higher Secondary Boards of Education Act 1965 (Maharashtra Act No. 41) established the Maharashtra State Boards of Secondary & Higher Secondary Education and Eight Divisional Boards. Code No. 18 of the Act outlines the State Board’s rights, responsibilities, and functions. The State Board’s guidelines and the provisions of the rules and regulations govern how the Divisional Boards operate.

These boards are specific to the states. For example, in Maharashtra, the HSC exam is conducted by the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education or MSBSHSE. The board is responsible for carrying out both secondary and higher secondary exams. Similarly, some other state boards are as follows –

1. Kerala Board of Public Examination.
2. Board of Secondary Education, Rajasthan.
3. Board of Intermediate Education, Andhra Pradesh.
4. Bihar School Examination Board.
5. Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board, etc.

National Level boards

These boards can operate across states that adopt the education system for secondary and higher secondary classes. These national boards are of three types –

1. Central Board of Secondary Education which offers All India Senior School Certificate Examination.
2.  Council for the Indian School Certificate Examination.
3.  National Board of Open Schooling.

When it comes to the subjects, many states have similar subjects that they have in their syllabus. These common subjects mostly belong to the science category such as mathematics, chemistry, physics, biology, etc. Other common subjects are English, geography, education, Sanskrit, sociology, psychology, etc. You can find similar commerce subjects in many state board exams – accountancy, economics, etc.

Conclusion

HSC full form is the Higher Secondary Certificate examination, one of the most important milestones in a student’s life. You can opt to take the HSC exams in three main branches, like Arts, Commerce, and Science. It is essential to score good marks in HSC as it will determine the pathway for the rest of your career. The HSC marks are essential in getting your dream college and career field where you want to establish yourself.

Along with HSC Full Form, learn about some other full forms:

AICTE Full Form	NIIT Full Form
SCERT Full Form	CWSN Full Form
CET Full Form	CLAT Full Form
ISC Full Form	CCE Full Form
LBSNAA Full Form	CPT Full Form

HSC Full Form: FAQs