In this episode, MBM’s host Mariyam Haider is in conversation with Ramseena Rasheed from Kasargod, Kerala, who along with her twin sister, Risana, became the first women in their community to clear Joint Entrance Examination (JEE)-advanced, considered one of the toughest entrance exams, to enter the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT).
This episode contains personal views of the guest regarding the said academic institution.
Ramseena offers a window into her upbringing in a working-class family, the unconditional support from her parents, and wading through patriarchal attitudes of relatives and sexist or Islamophobic notions of teachers over the course of her schooling and engineering coaching.Â
For Ramseena, her five years at IIT were filled with cultural exposure, tireless competition and a drive to find a job to financially support her family. Currently working in the corporate sector in Bengaluru, she shares many instances of her professional life through social media, and despite experiencing online trolling over her visible Muslim identity or views, Ramseena continues to offer advice and learnings to young career aspirants from her hometown and across the country. We discuss this and many more things that make Ramseena’s journey truly an inspiration for many young women in the country. Do give this episode a listen, this International Women’s Day.
About Ramseena Rasheed
Ramseena Rasheed holds a BTech and MTech degree in Aerospace Engineering from IIT Kharagpur (2017-2022 batch). Currently, she is working as a backend developer for Aerospace software at AIRBUS, Bangalore, and is passionate about AI, ML related topics and their applications in the aerospace industry.
*Bio and image published with guest’s permission.
Episode notes:
Inspiring Journey Of Twin Muslim IITian Sisters From Kasargod Draws Unwarranted Criticism On Social Media (Shahzeen Khan, The Observer Post, January ‘24)
MBM visual identity design by Shazia Salam || Music by Jupneet Singh
EP27 - Realising the IIT dream and expanding one's horizons