Underlining its aim of ensuring gender diversity in the institute, the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Kozhikode, has admitted close to 200 women, making up a little more than half its intake for the post-graduate programme in 2013-15.
IIM-K’s 17th PGP batch of 361 students comprises 165 men and 196 women; the latter making up 54.29 per cent of the total, an IIM-K press release said.
The women admitted to the programme present a diverse talent profile. Priya Chandak has represented India in the World Skating Championships, Prakriti Sharma is a national level swimmer and basketball player and V. Lekshmi is the all-India CBSE topper of 2007.
Eighty-five per cent of the students in the batch have a Bachelors degree in engineering and technology, 11 per cent have a commerce and economics background and four per cent are from the fields of medicine, pharmacy, science and agriculture.
Debashis Chatterjee, Director, IIM-K, said the aim was to create a unique academic space that would challenge convention. “This year we have not only led in ensuring gender diversity but also admitted national talent from the fields of sports, music, martial arts and the social sector,” he said.
He said, “Our goal is to churn out not just a competent manager but a well-rounded, compassionate human being. In this endeavour, the current batch of students will be our pathfinders.”
IIM-K’s intake of women started in 2010 with 100 students of a batch of 371, rising to 121 women in a batch of 341 in 2011.
Students in the current PGP batch have up to 24 months of work experience and are drawn from across the country — about 27 per cent from South India, 26 per cent from the West, 19 per cent from North India and 12 per cent from Eastern India.
Priya Nair of IIM-K said: “IIM-K is leading the way by creating classrooms with equal representation of young women and men, thereby enriching their learning through multiple and diverse points of view that will help them shape a balanced society. Organisations that thrive on diversity of thought will certainly see value in our offering.”
IIM-K in 2011 slashed tuition fee by Rs 30,000 for its PGP — among the older IIMs, IIM-K charges the lowest fees of Rs 9.7 lakh for two years PGP.
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