'IITs' Role Will Only Grow': Google CEO Sundar Pichai On Receiving Honorary Doctorate From Alma Mater

Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google, was recently awarded the Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) Award by his alma mater IIT Kharagpur. The honorary degree acknowledges the ones who made significant contributions to the field of science, academia, or the professional world.

Sundar Pichai’s wife Anjali Pichai, also an IIT Kharagpur alumna, received the award. The degree and award were given at a special programme in San Francisco, US. Sundar Pichai shared photos of the ceremony on Instagram and expressed pride towards getting these awards.

He wrote, “Last week I was grateful to receive an honorary doctorate from my alma mater IIT Kharagpur. My parents always hoped I would get my doctorate, I think an honorary one still counts:) The access to education and technology at IIT put me on a path to Google and help more people access technology. IIT’s role in technology will only grow in importance with the AI revolution, and I will always be thankful for my time there.”

This post has gathered over 3.6 lakh likes so far. Commenting on it, an Instagram user wrote, “You made IIT proud across the world. We all are grateful.” Similarly, another person remarked, “Dr. Sundar you are an inspiration to the generations to come.” Someone else urged him to return to India and wrote, “Come back to India and create Something revolutionary. We are waiting.” Another person commented, “Now you have to update your I’d name Subdarpuhai to Dr. Sundar Pichai. Nice gesture by Indian Institute Of Technology Kharagpur.”

Sundar Pichai has an educational background in engineering and business from prestigious colleges in India and the US. His impressive academic performance propelled him on a path of professional success. He has a Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech) degree in Metallurgical Engineering from IIT Kharagpur.

He then earned a scholarship and pursued an M.S. degree in Materials Science and Engineering at the prestigious Stanford University. Sundar Pichai went on to obtain an MBA from the esteemed Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. At Wharton, he was honoured as a Siebel Scholar and a Palmer Scholar.

Sundar Pichai joined Google in 2004 and slowly climbed the ranks. In August 2015, he was selected to become the next CEO of Google, after previously working as the Product Chief.