This is a doleful story of a student pursuing Masters in Science (MSc.) while having only a faint glimpse of hope to earn a comfortable living in spite of toiling relentlessly. Why is it that people of this society regard MSc students as inferior compared to Engineering & MBBS students? Till date, I have not been able to figure out why the people have a blurry viewpoint regarding the intellectual status of science teachers. There are clichéd outlooks of teachers according to the subject they teach regardless of their academic ability.

The fact is that it takes so much of hard work, perseverance and endurance to pursue BSc. and MSc. I am not saying that it’s an easy task to pursue MBBS or an Engineering degree but it is rather unfair that people actively judge students in terms of the subject they pursue based on the spurious framework of social prestige. Studying MBBS or Engineering is far more prestigious as compared to BSc or MSc. Apparently, only MBBS and Engineering students are deemed best able to reap the rewards.

Recently, I was humiliated by one of my relatives in front of my friend, a budding engineer. My friend had received a warm welcome just for being an engineering student. On the contrary, my relative, had treated me as if I didn’t even exist. He had been oddly nice to my friend, obsequiously calling him ‘Engineer babu’ while not even bothering to ask me how I was. “Please be seated, Engineer babu! How may I serve you, Engineer babu?” I found it all totally absurd.

Paper certificates offers mere scope for Science graduates in the context of Nepal. The bitter truth is that the teaching profession is the only option left for them as research-based education still remains a far cry for MSc graduates. Most frustratingly, there is no base salary for the teachers/lecturers with a science background unlike their MBBS and engineering counterparts. If you happen to ask a science student about their life, be patient enough to understand their indignation which comes from years of frustration and heartbreak. Sadly, people in the science field in Nepal tend to be haunted, dejected people. There is no scope for them here so eventually they find a way out by moving to another country.

 This is not merely a single angry voice I am relaying to you—it is the plight of tens of thousands of students who have sacrificed their time, labour, and finances to obtain a science degree. I am part of this community so all of this bears heavily on me. Our only demand is that more opportunities be provided within the country for science

students so that the work we do can be beneficial to our fellow Nepalis and we have something to feel proud about.

Panta is pursuing an MSc at Golden Gate International College, Kathmandu