Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) offers numerous MA programs in various specializations at its Mumbai campus. The aspirants need to appear in the CUET PG examination for admission to the TISS MA course. Shortlisted candidates have to appear for CUET PG followed by an online PI round. Based on the entrance exam score and performance in the PI round, the candidates are finally selected for admission.

Check: TISS Mumbai Admission

TISS MA Course Highlights

  • MA program at TISS is a 2-year program that includes 4 semesters.
  • The MA program is offered in various specializations under different schools in all 4 campuses namely Hyderabad, Mumbai, Guwahati, and Tuljapur.
  • Almost all the MA courses are offered in offline mode. MA in elementary education is offered through online distance learning at the Mumbai campus.
  • The application form for the TISS ODCL Programs is open which costs INR 1000/-. 
  • Following are the TISS Mumbai department for MA courses:
    • School of development studies
    • School of habitat studies
    • Human ecology
    • School of management and labour studies
    • School of media and cultural studies
    • School of social work
    • Jamsetji Tata school of disaster studies
    • School of education

TISS MA Admission Dates 2024

Event Dates
Final Offer May 16, 2024 (Tentative)
Completion of Admission Formalities June 13, 2024 (Tentative)
Commencement of New Academic Session for Junior Students June 11, 2024 (Tentative)

TISS MA Eligibility Criteria & Fees

The below mentioned table illustrates the detailed eligibility criteria for various MA Courses offered at TISS: 

Department Specialization Course eligibility
School of management and labour studies Master of Arts (Organisation Development, Change, and Leadership) The candidate must have completed a bachelor's degree of a minimum of 3 years duration or its equivalent. The candidate must have a minimum of 2 years of professional working experience after the bachelor’s degree.
School of habitat studies M.A (Urban Policy and Governance) The candidate must have completed their bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Architecture, Management, Physical Sciences, Geography, Planning, Law, or Social Sciences, with an interest in habitat-related issues/sectors.
School of human ecology MA in Applied psychology candidates who have completed/are in the process of completing B.A./B.Sc. Honors in Psychology,B.A./B.Sc. General – with a minimum of three papers in Psychology. Candidates who have completed any Bachelor's Degree from a recognized University and have completed a University recognized one-year, part-time/full-time post-graduate diploma in counseling fulfilling the UGC criterion of a minimum of 40 credits (Distance and online diploma courses will not be considered)

TISS MA Fees

The detailed Fees structure for different specializations of MA Programmes at TISS has been mentioned below: 

Specialization 1st-year fees ( in INR)
Social work 83,000
Disaster management 88,000
Development studies/women studies 69,000
Media and cultural studies 1,01,000
Hospital administration / health administration 81,000
Public Health Policy, Economics and Finance, and Public Health in Social Epidemiology 81,000
Library and information science 79,000
Education (elementary) 69,000
Water policy and governance 76,000
Urban policy and governance 74,500
Climate change and sustainability studies 71,000
Regulatory governance 69,000
HRM and labour relations 1,11,000
Social entrepreneurship 81,000
Organization development, change and leadership 4,31,000
Analytics 3,50,000

Read more: TISS Fees Structure

TISS MA Admission Process

The admission process for the MA course at TISS Mumbai is conducted in online mode.

  • Visit the official website for the E-Application process only. However, the candidates from remote places where there is no internet connection can get a printed copy of the form from the institute.
  • Then, fill the application form, and upload or attach the necessary documents.
  • Pay the application fees. The application fees can be paid through credit/debit card or net banking or by cash through the bank.
  • The candidate can apply for a maximum of 3 programs across any two campuses.
Category Fee for each study program
General INR 1000 + bank charges
SC/ST candidates whose family income is less than 2.5 lacs INR 250 + bank charges
OBC (NC) candidates whose family income is less than 1 lac INR 250 + bank charges
SC and ST candidates INR 500 + Bank charges

TISS MA Application Process

Candidates seeking admission to TISS MA Programmes have to apply through the online application form only. Below mentioned are the steps involved in filling up the form

  • The candidate needs to register first with an email id. The candidate will receive a password to be used to login and fill the online form.
  • Next, the candidates are required to fill in their basic & academic details 
  • The candidates have to mention the programmes they wish to apply for in the order of preference.
  • Pay the application fee depending on the number of programmes applied for either by depositing cash in a branch of SBI or through Credit card/ Debit Card/ Net Banking 
  • Scan and upload a photograph, signature, marksheet of last exam passed and other necessary certificates.

Candidates unable to access to internet services (remote areas) can write to Mumbai campus for submitting printed application form. They have to fill the application form and submit before last date of submission.

Application fee payment:

 Below mentioned are the course fee of the TISS MA Programme depending upon the no. of programmes applied for at the campus.

Mode of Payment
No. of programmes Online Payment by Credit Card/Debit Card Online Payment by NetBanking Cash Deposit in any SBI Branch using the prescribed challan
General Eligible Goi-pms SC/ST/OBC(NC) / Not-Eligible Goi-pms SC/ST (only) General Eligible Goi-pms SC/ST/OBC(NC)/ Not-Eligible Goi-pms SC/ST (only) General Goi-pms Eligible SC/ST/O BC(NC) / Not-Eligible Goi-pms SC/ST (only)
Applying for 1 Programme Rs. 1030 Rs. 260 / 510 Rs. 1030 Rs. 260 / 510 Rs. 1000 + Bank Charges Rs. 250 + Bank Charges / 500
Applying for 2 Programmes Rs. 2060 Rs. 520 / 1020 Rs. 2060 Rs. 520 / 1020 Rs. 2000 + Bank Charges Rs. 500 + Bank Charges / 1000
Applying for 3 Programmes Rs. 3090 Rs. 780 / 1530 Rs. 3090 Rs. 780 / 1530 Rs. 3000 + Bank Charges Rs. 750 + Bank Charges / 1500

Required documents:

Following documents are needed to be uploaded at the time of admission

  • Photograph
  • Signature
  • TISS copy of challan (if paid by cash)
  • Caste certificate (if needed)
  • Income certificate (if needed)
  • Any other certificates if needed (PWD certificate, KM certificate, Armed force certificate, etc).

Check TISS Admission 2024

TISS MA Selection Procedure

The selection of MA programs at TISS Mumbai is based on marks obtained by the candidates in CUET PG.

  • The shortlisted candidates will appear for the next round which includes the TISS program Aptitude test (TISS-PAT) along with an online personal interview.
  • TISS-PAT is a 45 mins test conducted for individual programs. The duration of the PAT is 45 minutes if candidates selected only one program.
  • Candidates applying for MA (MA Human Resource Management & Labour Relations (HRM)) and MA Organisation Development, Change and Leadership (ODCL) have to appear for the TISS management aptitude test (TISS-MAT).
  • The TISS MAT will be a computer-based MCQ-type test with a duration of 45 minutes and 50 Marks.

TISS MA Weight Criteria

Following is the marks weightage for different components in the selection process:

Programs TISS-MAT TISS-PAT TISS-OPI
All MA courses except HRM and ODCL - 50 marks (40%) 100 marks (30% )
MA in HRM and ODCL 50 marks (40%) - 100 marks (30% )
  • Open Merit List (OML) is prepared based on the aggregate mark obtained by the candidates for a specific program without considering any reservation category. After considering candidates in OML, a separate Category wise Merit List (CML) will be prepared for the number of seats reserved for each category as per the UGC.

TISS MA Course Details

  • The 2 year MA program curriculum offers the choice-based credit system for the students to choose inter-disciplinary, intra-disciplinary, and skill-based courses (across disciplines) according to their learning needs, interests and aptitude.
  • The curriculum includes 5 components namely Foundation courses, core courses, electives, internships/field works, and a research dissertation.
  • A total of 8 credits across all 5 components should be elective courses.
  • A minimum of 2 credits of elective foundation and open electives are mandatory for each program.
  • The total credits of the course vary with specialization for MA courses.

Check: TISS Mumbai Placements

TISS MA Syllabus

The course wise syllabus is as follows for MA disciplines offered at TISS Mumbai.

School Discipline
School of development studies Development studies
Women studies
International Electoral Management and Practices
School of habitat studies Environment, Climate Change and Sustainability Studies
Regulatory Policy and Governance
Urban Policy and Governance
Water Policy and Governance
Human ecology Applied Psychology (Clinical and Counseling Practice)
Animal Assisted Therapy in Counseling
Global Mental Health
School of management and labour studies Human Resource Management & Labour Relations
Labour Studies and Practices
Analytics (Self Financed)
Organisation Development, Change, and Leadership) (Self Financed)
Social Entrepreneurship
Analytics
School of media and cultural studies Media and Cultural Studies
School of social work Children & Families
Community Organisation & Development Practice
Criminology & Justice
Dalit & Tribal Studies and Action)
Disability Studies & Action
Livelihoods and Social Entrepreneurship
Mental Health
Public Health
Women-centred Practice
Jamsetji Tata school of disaster studies Disaster Management
Disaster Informatics and Geospatial Technologies
School of education Education (Elementary)

TISS MA Program structure:

The MA course curriculum at TISS Mumbai consists of 5 components.

  • Foundation Courses: This includes compulsory foundation courses and elective foundation courses.
  • Core Courses: These courses are compulsorily studied by a student as a core requirement to complete the requirement of a program.
  • Electives: This includes two types of electives namely disciplinary and open electives. Disciplinary courses are related to the discipline of study. Open electives are from other disciplines of study.
  • Internship / Fieldwork: As per the program requirement
  • Research Dissertation: They are carried out in phases and are accessed on 2 counts: process and product evaluation

TISS MA Reservation Criteria

The category wise vertical reservation at TISS is provided as follows:

Category Percentage
SC 15
ST 7.5
OBC 27
EWS 10

Horizontal reservations for PWD, Armed forces, and Kashmiri migrants are provided at 5% each as supernumerary seats.

TISS MA Scholarships

  • A limited number of scholarships and endowments have been created by various individuals, foundations, and corporate sectors and are available to needy students based on merit-cum-need
  • The students have to apply under the students' Aid committee for their purpose.

TISS MA Placement 2022

TISS conducts two types of placement processes for the MA batch. The summer placement process is conducted during September and October. The final placement process is conducted during January. The placement process has an excellent track record. The previous year, 100% of the students got placed in top companies. Students also got placed for paid Internship offers.

The top recruiting companies are Accenture, Aditya Birla Group, TAS, Nestle, HUL, ITC, Flipkart, Amazon, etc.

TISS 2022 placement witnessed the Highest CTC of INR 42.09 LPA. 

Below tabulated is the placement data for the MA HRM batch: 

Particulars CTC (INR)
Highest Salary INR 42.09 LPA
Average Salary INR 23.97 LPA
Median Salary INR 22.50 LPA
Average Salary - Top 10% INR 37.22 LPA
Average Salary - Top 25% INR 32.21 LPA

Check TISS Placements

TISS MA FAQS

Ques. What are the TISS MA attendance requirements the student should have for the award of a degree?

Ans. Every student is expected to maintain regularity for all program requirements:

  • All classes for the courses
  • Field practicum
  • Field trips
  • Internships etc. 

A minimum of 75% attendance is needed in all these components. 

Ques. What is the sectional cutoff for the general awareness section asked in the TISS-NET exam for the candidates applying to TISS MA program?

Ans. The sectional cutoff for TISS MA program is as follows:

Category Cutoff
GN, EWS, KM, AF 35% (14 marks)
PWD, OBC 30% (12 marks)
SC, ST Not applicable

Ques. What is the minimum GMAT score required for the international students to apply for the TISS MA HRM and labour studies program and MA Organisation Development, Change, and Leadership?

Ans. The international students will require an additional GMAT score of 650 and above to apply for MA in HRM and labour studies program and MA in Organisation Development, Change, and Leadership.

Ques. What are the prerequisites for completion of the TISS MA course?

Ans. Following are the prerequisites for completion of the TISS MA course:

  • The program requirements include credit and non-credited activities.
  • A student must receive a CGPA of 4 points in each semester to be considered to have completed the semester.
  • The grade earned will be considered only if the student has required attendance.
  • Non-completion of fieldwork or internship amounts to a failure to fulfil the requirement of a pass in a semester or year. 
  • One has to complete the research project/dissertation to get the degree.
  • The assignments must be completed and submitted as per the predefined schedule.

Ques. Are there placement opportunities for TISS MA students?

Ans. Yes, the TISS has a placement cell that aims at a 100% placement record. Amazon, HDFC, Flipkart, TCS are some of the top recruiters of TISS Mumbai.

Ques. Can a final year graduate student apply for TISS MA Programme?

Ans. Yes, Final year students awaiting their results are eligible to apply for TISS MA Programme. Such students need to furnish all the necessary documents on or before the stipulated time as prescribed by the institute.

Ques. How can I get into TISS MA Programme?

Ans. Admission to master's programmes at TISS is comprised of two stages including TISS National Entrance Test (TISS-NET) and TISS Online Assessments (OA). TISS-NET is a computer-based common screening test for all Masters Programmes across all the campuses of TISS.

Ques. How many MA programme can I apply at a time at TISS Mumbai?

Ans. Candidates can apply for a maximum of three programmes at a time across any two of the TISS Campuses. Candidates seeking admission to TISS MA Programmes need to apply through the online application form only.

Ques. Where is the National Written Test conducted for TISS MA Programmes?

Ans. TISS has more than 100 centres in 39 cities all acroos India. As such, you can opt for any one of these centres as prescribed in the official TISS website.

Ques. Is there Pre-admission Medical check-up also before being enrolled for TISS MA Programme?

Ans. YEs, all the provisionally selected applicants are required to undergo for the Medical check-up conducted by the Medical Officers of TISS after verification of original documents on the same day .