How to become a Poet: Career Guide, Courses, After 12th, Jobs, Scope, Salary

What does a Poet do?

Some of the job responsibilities a Poet can do are given below

• They write copies or articles for newspapers, broadcasts, magazines and in the internet
• They work with various editors and clients to shape material for publishing
• They conduct various research to get correct detail and factual information 
• They proofread the written material to meet the personal standards
• They prepare appropriate formats or structures for writer and publishers

Steps to Become a Poet

Those aspiring students who want to become a Poet, here we will discuss the steps you should follow to start your career as a Poet.

• Before pursuing a course in writing in order to be a Poet, a student needs to do some studies about the career. You should have to know about their benefits, what skills are needed or what degree or certification they have to pursue in order to be successful in this field. 
• The first and foremost step is to choose their specialization such as what are the subject combinations required they need to choose in 10+2 and what courses they pursue in order to start your career as a Poet.
• Students must choose a stream that would help them in pursuing this career. If a student wants to become a creative writer, he can choose an English subject in their senior secondary or graduation. If he wants to become a lyricist writer he can pursue communication or journalism courses as well.
• You need to have a good score in your higher secondary or have a strong command over those languages in which you are going to write.
• To start your career as a Poet you don't need to appear in any entrance test. However, some may appear in university entrance tests to get admission in the relevant courses.
• Choosing a recognised university or institute is an important step in your Poet career. Students can check out various rankings released by different surveys related to course college. Pursuing education from a well known college with a well versed faculties will help you to know about the writing or thinking environment.
• A poet, lyricists and a creative writer don't need any work experience for their job. But having an experience will help to upskill their profession, candidates can consider some certificate or freelance writing jobs such as an Article writer, Lyrics writer to be a reputable Poet.

Types of Poets

Students after completing their 10th, 12th or higher level education can choose a Poet job as their career in India. This career will mainly depend upon their skills and abilities to present their creative thinking in a written format. Given below are some of the types of poet, lyricist and creative writing job roles: 

• Script Writer: A script writer is someone who prepares scripts, screenplay in a way which enables their reader to connect with the emotions. They mainly work with producers, directors and actors to draft and redraft their scripts.
• Copywriter: They are mainly responsible for writing compelling marketing and promotional articles for a wide range of products and services. They are responsible for taking a customer's advertising Idea and writing it specifically to generate and grab the attention of the readers.
• Author: An author is an individual who writes fiction and non-fiction scripts, biographies and conducts research to get factual information and details. They develop story elements such as plot, theme, dialogue, character and styles for a book.
• Novelist: The job of a novelist is to write books, fiction, creating imaginary characters, plots based on real incidents. They must find new and fresh ideas about the story and find a publisher and land a contract in order to sell their writings.
• Lyricist: They are responsible for writing the words of songs to entertain and capture emotions of the viewer. They arrange, compose and edit the lyrics and work with various singers to clearly convey their lyrics.

How to become a Poet in India?

To start your career as a Poet in India is a very convenient process. A poet, lyricists and creative writer works need a lot of skills and dedication. Students must have to start their poet, lyricist and creative writing work along with their studies as well. However, to become a Poet the students must have good command in their language subjects. The following are the various steps that will help in providing answers to how to prepare for a Poet career at school level.

School Level Preparation

• At school level, students have to start their preparation although there is no hard and fast rule required for the eligibility of a Poet.
• They need to prepare themselves during their school level.
• They should be familiar with their writings and deal with their creative thinking and language in which they write.
• A Poet job needs a lot of patience and understanding, which they can focus on during school.
• They must hold commands in subjects such as english, Hindi, social, which will help students in their career.
• They also have to start preparing for certain university entrance tests needed for admission

How to become a Poet after 12th?

After finishing your school preparation, one of the career options for the candidates is to take admission in a journalism or communication course that would help them to get a job in the related discipline. Below we have discussed how to start your preparation for this career.

Undergraduate Preparation

• During your undergraduate preparation, you can first start preparing for some university level test to get admitted in their interested course.
• This could be any level of education from diploma to bachelor such as BA in English, Mass Communication etc
• Students along with their studies should start focusing on developing skills in writing and creative thinking
• Apply for and qualify in a relevant entrance test for admission to the relevant courses. 
• They can start writing for organisations to upskill themselves in writing.

Post Graduation Preparation

• Most of the professionals who want to get Specialization can opt for post-graduate courses.
• Having a master's degree helps them in poet, lyricist and creative writing help them getting higher position in an organization
• The candidates can pursue an MA program for this profession. 
• The eligibility criteria for MA course is having a bachelor degree with at least 50% marks from a recognized university
• They also have to qualify in equivalent entrance tests for admission.
• After getting admission into the course, students can also look for poets, lyricists and creative writing for different organisations in various disciplines

Courses to become a Poet

There are various types of courses available which an individual can pursue in order to be a Poet. Given below are the list of relevant courses for the same:

Diploma in Journalism

Diploma in Journalism is a diploma degree course of a duration of 2 year. This course is focused on advanced professional learning in writing news for newspapers, broadcasting, magazines, news on radio and many more. It deals with subjects like Contemporary Communication Studies, reporting and editing, basic animation, communication theories and many more. The total cost of pursuing this diploma course is around INR 10,000 to 80,000 depending upon the college. 

Admission Process

Admissions to this diploma program is usually done on the basis of certain entrance tests. Some of the institutes offer admissions on the basis of merit. A merit list will be prepared on candidates marks basis by the institute for admission. 

Eligibility Criteria

• Students must have a 10+2 or undergraduation degree from a recognized board or university
• Obtain a minimum aggregate percentage of at least 50.

BA English

BA English subject is an undergraduate program of a duration of 3 years. This course will teach you to improve your language skills. Lady Shri Ram College for Women, Miranda House, Christ University, Presidency University are some of the top colleges offering admission to this course. The total cost of pursuing this course is INR 20,000 to 2.3 Lakhs. After completing this course they get opportunities to work as a content writer, poet, lyricist, script writer with a salary of 20,000 to 35,000 per month.

Admission Process

BA English Admissions are done through both merit and entrance exams. Candidates who are aspiring to get admission in BA English colleges can apply by both offline and online method.

Eligibility Criteria

• Students must have cleared their 10+2 or equivalent level examination with at least 50% to 55% of marks or equivalent CGPA, from a recognized board.
• They must clear the university entrance tests and obtain a decent score above the college cut-off marks

BA in Mass Communication

BA in Mass Communication is a full time 3 year duration undergraduate course for those students who want to teach students about mass communication. In this course, students will be familiarised with media communication through print media, broadcast media, social media. The average cost of this undergraduate course is around INR 50,000 to 4 Lakhs depending upon the university or institutes. Altius Institute of Universal Studies, Dayanand College, IAAN School of Mass Communication are some of the popular colleges for this course. Students after graduating from this course can expect a salary between 3 to 6 Lakhs per annum.

Admission Process

Most of the colleges offer admission in Bachelor in Mass Communication program on the basis of candidate’s score in the relevant entrance test followed by a counselling. Some of the universities also give direct admission for this course.

Eligibility Criteria

• The basic eligibility criteria for this is to have an aggregate marks of 50% in 10+2 from a recognized board
• Candidates from any stream are eligible for this course

MA English

MA English is a postgraduate program of a span of 2 years separated into 4 semesters. The course primarily focuses on poetry, lyricist, writing, language, prose, drama and linguistics. The total fees of this course is INR 20,000 to 1 Lakhs. After successfully completing the degree the students will get the opportunity to work as a lyricist, creative writer, script writer under various departments with an annual salary of around 4 Lakhs.

Admission Process

Most of the colleges offering this program provide admission on the basis of relevant entrance tests. Students after clearing the admission can get admission. However, some colleges like Miranda college, hindu college offer either through merit marks of last qualifying exams or through direct basis.

Check: MA English Admissions

Eligibility Criteria

• Candidates must have done bachelor levels of education i.e. BA in English completed from a recognized educational Board.
• They must have a relevant degree of study at the bachelor level.
• At least 50% marks (45% for reserved category) at the bachelor level.

How to become a Poet Abroad?

Becoming a Poet is a rewarding career all across the world. Students who prefer to pursue a Poet course abroad can get more advantage. One of the important reasons for studying abroad is the quality of education and infrastructure they provide. Students don't have to worry much for their career after education from abroad universities. Thus the best places to prepare for the career are USA, UK, Canada and Australia.

USA

To become a Poet in the USA students don't need any degree, however having an undergraduate or postgraduate degree in English or Mass Communication can benefit them.

UK

Students applying for the programs in the United Kingdom should have a GMAT score of 680 and 325 in GRE.

Canada

To pursue a Poet career from Canada, students need to pursue intermediate in any stream with a relevant subject. To pursue post graduation degree, students must have done their undergraduate in any specific discipline. Top courses are creative writing, mass communication, journalism etc.

Australia

Australia offers full time Mass Communication or Journalism programs. Some graduate programmes require students to have prior work experience in their resume or CV. Candidates have to submit their test scores of IELTS, TOEFL etc.

Benefits of Becoming a Poet

The students having the drive for constant increase in job opportunities and a flair for having good written skills should pursue this career. Below are given some of the valid reasons which will you in choosing this career

• Poet, is a rewarding career so being a Poet is not just a challenging profession, but also has its own perks like good salary,learning opportunity, people orientation, written skills and the most important added value to students.
• Career as a Poet is a fast-paced and demanding field. However, the pay is something decent.The average pay for a Poet, irrespective of experience, is INR 2 LPA. A mid level can earn upto INR 4,00,000. A Poet with more than 10+ years of experience can earn a salary of INR 8,00,000 per annum.
• With the increasing number of websites of digital products, writers for the websites are in great demand . 
• Choosing poets, lyricists and creative writing gives an impact on today's society by shaping the new era. poets, lyricists and creative writers are those who not only write but also help in increasing the value of the products.

Skills Required to Become a Poet

To become a Poet you must hold some useful skills needed in this career. There are a variety of specializations one will attain to focus on on one side of the Poet. The following are some skills for a Poet career.

Salary of a Poets in India

The starting salary of a Poet in India varies from INR 2,00,000 to INR 4,00,000 LPA. The salary however may change depending upon the organizations, gender, roles and how much experience a person has.

Average Annual Salary

Specializations Wise

Gender Wise Salary

Experience Wise