The Zanzibar campus of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) which is set to become the first offshore campus of the prestigious institution will also be the first IIT campus to be led by a woman director. With the first academic session scheduled to begin in October, Preeti Aghalayam has been appointed as the director-in-charge of the IIT Zanzibar campus. Preeti Aghalayam is an alumnus of IIT Madras where she completed her BTech in Chemical Engineering.
The Zanzibar campus of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) which is set to become the first offshore campus of the prestigious institution will also be the first IIT campus to be led by a woman director. With the first academic session scheduled to begin in October, Preeti Aghalayam has been appointed as the director-in-charge of the IIT Zanzibar campus. Preeti Aghalayam is an alumnus of IIT Madras where she completed her BTech in Chemical Engineering.
“I am an alumnus of IIT Madras and doing something of this magnitude for the institute and for the country is such a big honor. Every time we visited Zanzibar as part of the IIT Madras contingent, we noticed that the representation of women on their side is quite significant. So, it was important that we do this mindfully,” Aghalayam said.
“I am an alumnus of IIT Madras and doing something of this magnitude for the institute and for the country is such a big honor. Every time we visited Zanzibar as part of the IIT Madras contingent, we noticed that the representation of women on their side is quite significant. So, it was important that we do this mindfully,” Aghalayam said.
India-Tanzania inked MoU
India and Tanzania recently inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) which facilitated IIT Madras to launch its first international campus in Tanzania’s Zanzibar. The institute is offering two full-time academic programs and the applications for admission are already open.
India-Tanzania inked MoU
India and Tanzania recently inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) which facilitated IIT Madras to launch its first international campus in Tanzania’s Zanzibar. The institute is offering two full-time academic programs and the applications for admission are already open.
“Aghalayam is the first woman to be an IIT director. We will see many more encouraging things. We are following sustainable development goals and one of the important goals suggests that we need to bring in gender balance,” IIT Madras director V Kamakoti said at a press conference.
“Aghalayam is the first woman to be an IIT director. We will see many more encouraging things. We are following sustainable development goals and one of the important goals suggests that we need to bring in gender balance,” IIT Madras director V Kamakoti said at a press conference.
In 1995, Aghalayam obtained her BTech degree in Chemical Engineering from IIT Madras. Subsequently, she pursued her Ph.D. at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, completing it in 2000. Following her doctoral studies, she served as a postdoctoral researcher at MIT, Cambridge and later as a faculty member at IIT Bombay.
In 1995, Aghalayam obtained her BTech degree in Chemical Engineering from IIT Madras. Subsequently, she pursued her Ph.D. at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, completing it in 2000. Following her doctoral studies, she served as a postdoctoral researcher at MIT, Cambridge and later as a faculty member at IIT Bombay.
Since 2010, Aghalayam has been associated with IIT Madras, where she currently holds the position of Professor in the Chemical Engineering department. Recently, she received recognition as one of the 75 Women in STEM from the Principal Scientific Advisor’s office.
Since 2010, Aghalayam has been associated with IIT Madras, where she currently holds the position of Professor in the Chemical Engineering department. Recently, she received recognition as one of the 75 Women in STEM from the Principal Scientific Advisor’s office.