“Jaipuria Institute of Management, Lucknow has been a great experience and the best thing to have happened to me till date. Hence, I wanted to take the moment to thank each one of my faculty team and friends who have supported me on every step of the way.” These are the words of Nikita Mehra, student of Finance and Marketing, who won the student of the year award along with the prestigious Gold Medal. For her, the moment was made truly special because she made her teachers and father, who was present for the Convocation Day, proud of her achievements.

Nikita admits that she had taken a year’s break after her BBA before coming to Jaipuria Institute of Management, Lucknow. So, she had to put her head down to get back into study mode and learn from the best. “The institute helped me realize talents that I didn’t know existed in me,” she says. “Who would have thought I would be performing in street plays? I thoroughly enjoyed that and learned from every experience. I would also like to thank my mentors and faculty members who were always accessible to me and guided me through the journey.

For Nikita, the journey with the renowned B School culminated with a placement with Capital IQ, a financial research company. She is filled with excitement about her future role and is raring to go. “The main factor that differentiates Capital IQ from other research firms is the manner in which it presents the data. I am proud to be a part of this company,” she says before adding that she would like to be working with the same company five years from now. But Nikita wants to be respected for her work – for her, esteem is more important than money.

Nikita came to Jaipuria Institute of Management, Lucknow because her friends who had studied at the institute told her about it. On her Convocation Day, she had a new set of friends that she met at the institute hooting for her. Meanwhile, she had realized her dream of making a strong entry into the world of finance. “The institute has state of the art facilities and offers you opportunities to explore real corporate life. You are told how things work and I can see its advantage now that I have started working because I can relate things to every class of mine,” she ends excitedly. This connection between the classroom and corporate life is what the institute strives to impart to students. It is quite obvious that this approach can prepare students for the many demands of a professional career. Nikita, with her student of the year award and prestigious Gold Medal, is a perfect example of the success of this approach to education.