Career Choices and Perceptions of Students at a Rural University for Women in North India

The paper is an analysis of career perceptions of students studying in three different streams at a women's university in rural Haryana (India). Society in Haryana has a patriarchal social structure and gender inequalities are evident in most of the socio-cultural spheres. The ideas of educating women in such societies remain tied with processes of gender socialisation and prevailing ideological beliefs. Choices and perceptions of women students regarding career and professional orientation thus become markers of their identity negotiation processes through education. These processes in turn help to evaluate the relevance of education for addressing gender imbalances in such societies.