This year, the Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode 21st annual convocation saw a rise of 10 per cent in graduates vis-à-vis last year. Additionally, the number of women graduates rose by 16 per cent over 2018.
A total of 629 students received their MBA degrees while seven were awarded Ph.Ds. The graduates include 376 students of the PGP course, 253 students of the executive PGP course — 94 from EPGP Kochi and 159 from EPGP Kozhikode.
Global orientation
Congratulating the students, A Vellayan, Chairman, Board of Governors, said: “Education is everywhere, with superficial variations, but the quality of education imparted from premier institutes like IIMs redefines and restructures education itself. The rigour in learning makes students better citizens and better leaders.”
He added, “Students who graduate from here are groomed to become entrepreneurs and agents of change in a dynamic business environment, with a customer-centric orientation and a global economic, political and cultural mindset.”
He ended by saying, “Be a leader who not only excels in work but also contributes to the society.”
‘The choices we make define us’
The chief guest D Shivakumar, Group Executive President, Aditya Birla Group, spoke about the choices one makes in his/her life. He said, “The choices we make define us. The genius makes it a point to learn from his mistakes and ensures he never repeats them. One should be self-aware and good at analysing one’s environment.”
He added, “Every day, you make numerous decisions based on the choices before you. So, you’re making big and small decisions; good and bad decisions; all in one day. Most of these decisions may have a long-term impact.”
‘Women get higher pay than men’
Prof Debashis Chatterjee, Director, IIM-K, in his second term at the Institute known for pioneering initiatives to bring in diversity and inclusivity, spoke about women being offered higher pay than their male counterparts in this season’s final placements.
He added, “This year’s data shows that 107 women students sat for the placements, and got the highest CTC of ₹38 lakh and average CTC of around ₹20 lakh. The average CTC for women in consulting, operations, and sales & marketing roles was more than the male candidates.”
Anchal, Priya Agarwal and Akash Sehra received gold medals for scholastic performance. The IIM-K gold medal for all-round performance was awarded to Murali Siva K of PGP. And the gold medal for the scholastic performance for EPGP Kozhikode Campus was awarded to Nithin Kumar TCV. The Chairman’s gold medal for meritorious performance for EPGP Kochi Campus was awarded to Nisha KR.