KARACHI: The 2016 convocation of the Institute of Business Administration (IBA) saw some 695 graduates receiving their degrees, certificates and medals on their main campus in the University Enclave here on Saturday.

Speaking on the occasion, Chief Minister of Sindh Syed Murad Ali Shah congratulated the students on making their parents and teachers proud. He reminded them that receiving degrees was just a formality, and it was how they put what they learned through their academic journey at the institute into practice which was what really mattered.

“For in this new phase of life you will be on your own. So chase your dreams, burst your seams to do your best in life. Each degree is a match and you are the fuse. Go out and have a blast,” he said.

Earlier, in his welcome address, IBA Dean and Director Dr Farrukh Iqbal said each student at IBA was expected to take 46 courses in four years and each course had two mid-term and one final exam making it a total of 138 exams for an average graduate of the institute. “It is pure hard work. So you have every right to stand a little taller today,” he said, lauding the efforts of the class of 2016.

About IBA, which has a 1,200 alumnae base including a president and prime minister of Pakistan, he said their goal was to become the top education institute of Pakistan. “We now have the buildings, technology and facilities, which happen to be at par with the best institutions anywhere in the country. And these things have given way to good intellect, too,” he said.

IBA has also made this possible by providing financial aid to students from different socio-economic backgrounds. “The number of students receiving financial aid has jumped from 277 to 766 in the last few years. The amount allocated for financial aid now stands at Rs167 million compared to Rs28m in 2008/09. In addition, we have actively sought to diversify enrolment across Pakistan’s different regions through a range of outreach programmes called the Talent Hunt Programmes. We have such programmes for Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan and one for the entire country. In 2016, we enrolled 66 students from such programmes, as compared to 23 students in 2009,” said Dr Farrukh.

Praising their faculty, which includes highly qualified regular teachers as well as visiting faculty, he said some 63 of them happened to have PhDs while more doctorates were in the pipeline. “A good faculty adds value to our students. Former IBA students are doing very well in the job market, getting good salaries,” he said. Finally, he congratulated the parents and thanked them for entrusting their children to IBA.

The 2016 batch is the first one passing out under the new dean and director of the institute. It includes the first batch of BS Economics and Mathematics, BS Accounting and Finance and MS Mathematics programmes. The convocation was also attended by Sindh Minister for Education and Literacy Jam Mehtab Hussain Dahar.

Published in Dawn December 4th, 2016