An IIT alumnus has sparked a discussion online after arguing that graduates from top institutions should not hide their educational backgrounds in the name of humility.
He shared that he spent 14 hours a day studying for 2 years and sacrificed much of his teenage life for a JEE rank. The techie further recalled his IIT journey, saying that getting into the institute was not something that was simply handed to him. One user wrote, “Agree. Saying ‘Mumbai’ when asked where you went to school is borderline disrespectful for two reasons: Doesn’t answer the question and implies that you expect the asker to be blown away by the true answer.”
Taking to X, Akash Sampurnanand Pandey, a New York-based software engineer and IIT BHU alumnus, shared his view, saying that he had seen IIT Bombay graduates introduce themselves as having studied at “an engineering school in Mumbai ” instead of naming the institute. He argued that such behaviour could stem from “downplaying to fit in”, managing expectations or even a “stealth flex” intended to prompt others to ask which college they attended. “If you went to a top college, own your privilege and use it to your advantage,” he said, extending the argument to people with qualifications such as MBBS/MD, CA and IIM degrees.
