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IIIT-Hyderabad Celebrates E-Convocation 2020459 students graduate 11 PhDs and 86 masters with thesis Convocation speaker Prof Gagandeep Kang HYDERABAD, India, July 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad (IIITH) conducted its 19th convocation online this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic and live-streamed the eConvocation. It graduated 459 students and a record number of 11 PhDs and 86 Masters with thesis. The past academic year was unique due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The institute embarked on online classes and vowed to support those with difficulty in multiple ways to ensure they weren't further disadvantaged. IIIT Hyderabad is probably the first institute to plan and close the Spring semester on time for all students; this convocation ceremony being held on the originally planned date is a testament to the resilience displayed by the institute. Sadaria Aanshul Ashwin Kumar, B.Tech Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) was awarded the IIIT gold medal in recognition of his outstanding academic performance. The B.Tech Best All-rounder award was presented to Kanay Gupta in CSE. Thirteen students received programme gold medals. A total of 130 companies registered for conducting placements and made job offers to these graduating students. The COVID-19 has not affected placements this year. A total of 130 companies registered; 58 visited and 50 made offers to graduating students. The institute has achieved 97% placements as of today. In her eConvocation address, Dr. Gagandeep Kang, Professor, Department of Gastrointestinal Sciences, Christian Medical College, Vellore & Director, Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI), told graduating students, "This is a special year, and you are a very special class. This is not a time that any of you will forget. Whether or not you know it now, it has changed you and it has shaped you and the coming years will determine how you will look back on the impact that this defining time has had on your lives. And while the celebration is not what you imagined, it does not change the fact that you are an achiever, that your investment of time, effort and struggle has resulted in your success. While we wait for the immediate crisis to settle and the world to evolve its way into a new way of functioning, I want to leave you with three actions for these times, using words from an inspirational leader. Seek out new perspectives, listen to what other voices are saying, reflect on them and define for yourself what your core values are and what matters to you. And as Mahatma Gandhi said 'Understand and embrace your values, because they become your destiny'." Congratulating the graduating students and their parents, Prof. P J Narayanan, Director, IIITH said, "I congratulate the students graduating with different degrees in 2020, a year like none other in recent memory. You are all graduating to an altered world. We can either let the difficulties keep us down physically and emotionally or soar over the troubles and see new opportunities everywhere. I want each graduate - and each student, faculty, and others - to not let the external events dampen our spirits. Let us end the sea of troubles by opposing them using the arms that we have: ourcreativity and talent. I wish the graduates a long journey of lasting success in their lives! You will be in our thoughts forever. And, we will be with every step of your journey forward." Turing award winner Prof. Raj Reddy, Chairman, Governing Council of IIIT-Hyderabad also dialled in to the eConvocation from the US to admit students to their degrees and congratulated the graduating students. The eConvocation is viewable at https://www.iiit.ac.in/notice/19thConvocation/ Link to images - https://bit.ly/3hgGJ9J HIGHLIGHTS OF THE ACADEMIC YEAR - The graduating batch consists of 459 students (127 UG, 244 PG and 88 MSIT) apart from 11 Ph.Ds and 86 Masters with thesis. IIITH's 100th PhD degree and 1000th thesis-based degree were awarded in the past year. - IIIT Hyderabad was awarded the Technology Innovation Hub on Data Driven Technologies by the National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems by the Department of Science and Technology. IIIT-H is the only institution outside of the IITs and IISc in the initial list of 17 selected TIHs. The institute has the opportunity to play a pivotal role in developing and promoting data-driven technologies and machine learning across the country. - A dual-degree program with a BTech in Computer Science and Master of Science in Computational & Human Sciences was launched with 10 highly enthusiastic students last year. - A diversity pool for JEE mode of admissions has been introduced this year for talented young women who are passionate about technology. - The team of faculty, research students, research staff, and undergraduate students have produced about 350 papers in top rated conferences and peer-reviewed journals. About 50 of our students including undergraduates travelled to conferences held outside India to present their papers and to be part of the academic discussions. They received best paper awards at Hydro 2019; International Conference on Brain Informatics; Affective Content Analysis Workshop of AAAI; IEEE Conference on Information and Communication Technology, besides a few special mentions and best poster awards in the past year. - During the lockdown a community kitchen was run from the campus, in collaboration with the Telangana Social Impact Group. It served about 17000 food packets to migrant labourers and other needy people. This was a completely volunteer driven effort with students in the hostels and employees on campus and their families contributing time and the extended IIIT-H community provided the funds. - The Executive Education program on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning has produced over 3000 professionals in about 30 months, with classes happening in Hyderabad and Bangalore. A similar course on Blockchain Technologies is also finding good traction. - The Institute and its faculty played a major role in conducting several conferences and workshops. These include workshop on Demystifying Artificial Intelligence for Journalists conducted in Bangalore and Mumbai. And a 3-day workshop on Teaching the Learning Brain for schoolteachers in December 2019, apart from the usual academic conferences and workshops. - IIITH has introduced a novel scheme for students whose higher education abroad was disrupted by the pandemic. Students with PhD admissions to top universities can get a provisional admission to our PhD program for one year, where they can start their research to be continued at IIIT-H on its own or in collaboration with the other institution. - IIIT Hyderabad researchers released the first Indian Brain Atlas that can be the basis for diagnosing neurological impairments for Indian population. - The Virtual labs in science and engineering-related areas that we coordinate exceeded 4 million views, with more than 17% international users. - IIITH as 4,888 members in its alumni database of which 2,882 are in regular touch and are contributing to national development in various capacities. Alumni have contributed a total of Rs. 1.1 crore to a scholarship program for deserving students. Last year alone, Rs. 25 lakhs were added to the existing fund. A separate fundraising initiative through the Alumni Foundation USA has also raised funds that are being transferred. - The Centre for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (CIE) at IIIT Hyderabad has been home to early stage startups from across the country. With 81 incubated companies and about 330 employees working with them, CIE holds its position as the largest academic incubator in the country. Research-led education with a special focus on undergraduate research at IIIT-Hyderabad has resulted in the institute contributing immensely to the society through technology solutions as well as individuals who are equipped to solve unstructured problems. The institute lays emphasis on an education that produces competent, creative, and caring individuals with a mature world-view. About IIIT-Hyderabad: The International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad (IIIT-H) is an autonomous research university founded in 1998 that focuses on the core areas of Information Technology, such as Computer Science, Electronics and Communications, and their applications in other domains through inter-disciplinary research that has a greater social impact. Some of its research domains include Visual Information Technologies, Human Language Technologies, Data Engineering, VLSI and Embedded Systems, Computer Architecture, Wireless Communications, Algorithms and Information Security, Robotics, Building Science, Earthquake Engineering, Computational Natural Sciences and Bioinformatics, Education Technologies, Power Systems, IT in Agriculture and e-Governance. Website: www.iiit.ac.in Contact: Sunory Dutt, Head of Communications, IIIT-Hyderabad. E-mail: [email protected]
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