MIIPS Class of 2022 Honored at Graduation Celebration
The MIIPS Class of 2022 was joined by family and friends at a Graduation Celebration in December.
By Jess Ignasky
On Friday, December 16, 2022, the Master of Integrated Innovation in Products and Services program of the Integrated Innovation Institute held a Graduation Celebration for the Class of 2022.
The graduates being recognized in the celebration were part of the MIIPS Advanced program, the 16-month option of our MIIPS degree. In this program, students are required to participate in a summer internship or research opportunity and semester-long Innovation Mindset class in addition to the 9-month MIIPS program courses, including the Integrated Product Design capstone.
After students and families were welcomed by iii Director, Peter Boatwright, class speakers Shixian Xie and Rishi Bhargava took to the stage to speak to their peers.
Shixian spoke about the challenges the cohort had overcome, reminding her peers to look back upon them and find strength in those moments when faced with new challenges in their professional careers.
“In the future, if there are moments when you feel inferior, I wish you the best of luck that you are able to maintain confidence and courage and believe in yourself that you can change the game.”
Student speaker Rishi Bhargava then took to the stage, sharing fond memories from the program with his classmates: particularly working together on teams to deconstruct a toaster, “without deconstructing our friendships.”
Rishi also spoke about his appreciation for his classmates, and how much he learned from them. He looked forward to the future, speaking about what’s next for the MIIPSters of 2022.
“With all our differences in experiences and talents, there’s a lot that unites us. The unshakeable belief that we can make it to the Starbucks and back in our five-minute break, and the common purpose of finding out what’s next.”
“16 months of hard work later, we are here on the precipice of what’s next. I’d be lying to you all if I said I wasn’t a little bit nervous, but looking [out] on this class and reflecting on our experiences together, I can’t help but also feel an unbridled ray of optimism.”
After the student speeches were over, MIIPS Program Director, Ellen Ayoob, presented the student award to Rishi Bhargava. Voted on by iii faculty, this award goes to the student in the cohort who best represents the qualities of the iii and shows leadership skills both inside and outside of the classroom.
When the recognition of graduates had finished, the new group was welcomed by Alumni Relations Manager, Mary Kilcoyne, into the Carnegie Mellon University network of alumni.
“I hope you continue to look to us for support. For when you have potential roles open at your companies or when you are searching for a role yourself, we will always be here to help you in your career.”
The MIIPS Class of 2022 will be formally recognized at Carnegie Mellon University’s commencement weekend in May 2023.
