SOCE is currently houses four disciplines:

1. Rural Development
2. Nutritional Sciences
3. Child Development
4. Home Science

A brief description about each of these disciplines follows:

Discipline of Rural Development

The vast rural landscape of the country, the large number of functionaries working in the area of rural development and the employment opportunities that this developing sector can generate, point to the need to prepare a cadre of professionals to serve as specialist human resource in the field of rural studies and rural development.

Discipline of Nutritional Sciences

The Discipline of Nutritional Studies is devoted to the study of human nutrition and combines expertise in public nutrition, critical and therapeutic nutrition, institution food service management, food sciences and technology, food safety and quality control.

Discipline of Child Development

The discipline of Child Development is devoted to the study of human development in the socio-cultural context, with particular focus on the critical early childhood years. The programmes of study offered in this discipline provide an understanding of the developmental challenges and life-cycle issues in a life-span perspective. Early childhood care and education (ECCE); working with the child with disability; early and middle childhood, adolescence and adulthood; understanding and nurturing the development of the individual in the familial and cultural context; and developing expertise in the domain of counselling and family therapy have been the focal areas in the discipline of Child Development.

Discipline of Home Science

Home Science is a discipline which incorporates many pertinent life skills in its fold. In addition to the development of valuable intrapersonal skills, the discipline also introduces the students to a wide variety of potential career paths such as Community Resources Management and Fabric and Apparel Sciences. These two sub disciplines of Home Science are being addressed through various educational interventions.

Vision:
Lifelong learning is the vision of School of Continuing Education. The benefits of continuing education are `lifelong’ as it continuously strives to fulfill the educational, professional and vocational needs of learners.

Mission:
To build academic knowledge and professional competencies by focusing on a unique basket of employment-oriented skill-based programmes for promoting inclusiveness and sustainable development. The IGNOU Act emphasizes the need for preparing and offering such courses and programmes that would provide access to higher education for large segments of the population and in particular disadvantaged such as those living in remote and rural areas, women, children, persons with disabilities as well groups including those people who wish to upgrade and acquire knowledge in vocational and professional spheres. The School of Continuing Education (SOCE) is working towards this fulfilling objective by developing academic and professional programmes of study.

SOCE initially developed and launched programmes related to Rural Development and Women’s Education. The focal areas of work under Women’s Education were Nutrition and Child Development and the programmes of study addressed women’s practical gender needs. . In the process of its growth, the School indentified new important areas of concern. Retaining its focus on Rural Development, addressing women learners through Nutrition and Child Development programmes, the School also initiated programmes in Disability, Social Work, Youth and Development Work, Women Empowerment Journalism & Mass Communication. Later these areas of work transformed into independent Schools of Gender and Development Studies, Social work, and Journalism and Mass Communication. The School of Continuing Education transformed itself to recognize the four disciplines of Rural Development, Nutritional Sciences, Child Development and Home Science.

With great pleasure, I welcome you to the School of Continuing Education at the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU).

The School offers diverse basket of programmes ranging from Certificate to Ph.D. In all the School offers 9 Certificate programmes, 6 Diploma programmes, 3 Post graduate Diploma Programmes, 4 Master’s Programmes and 4 Ph.D Programmes. Besides the ODL mode, the School also offers programmes in the online mode as well as internationally through E VidyaBharati and the GOAL GUYANA. Keeping in mind the mandate of flexibility and openness inherent in the Distance Education system as well as the focus of NEP, 2020 on inclusivity, outreach and employability, many of the programmes offer lateral entry and exit options and are modular in nature.

Recently the School has initiated development of four FYUP programmes keeping the mandate of NEP 2020 in mind.

Most of the School’s programmes are inter-disciplinary and multi-disciplinary in nature and offer hands-on experience to students through fieldwork, internships, and projects. This has a two pronged benefit - the students are able to apply theoretical knowledge in real-world settings and the society and organizations benefit from their engagement with our students.

There is a conscious focus to inculcate the values of social justice, human rights, and dignity as well as active concern for the marginalised and vulnerable communities by inspiring the learners to respond in empathetic and ethical ways in their communities of practice.

The School offers niche and innovative programmes of study in specialized areas and addresses specific target groups, with a specific employment and skill orientation. Some of the employment avenues that are generated through the School’s programmes are in the areas of Early Childhood Care and Education, Working with Children with Disabilities during early childhood years, Dietetics and Food Service Management, Event Management, Fabric and Apparel Merchandizing, Home Science, Rural Studies and Development as well as Counselling and Family Therapy.

The learners associated with the School’s programmes are from varied backgrounds with 64% being women and 56% from rural areas.