Probably Approximately Correct

Here’s one I’m pretty sure every IIIT student has had to endure at some point. It goes like this:

Non-IIIT person: Hey, do you know how to deal with (random computer problem)?
IIIT student: Uh, no…sorry.
Non-IIIT person: What? You go to IIIT, don’t you? And you can’t fix a COMPUTER?!?

The way I fix a computer is I buy a new one. The perception that all CS students can deal with anything related to a computer is based on ignorance and stereotypes. True, a lot of people at IIIT work a lot in computer science, and a lot of work is done with computers, but just because everyone eats food doesn’t mean they all know how to cook.

And another one:

Non-IIIT person: Do you know what the answer to (random question) is?
IIIT student: Uh, no…sorry.
Non-IIIT Person: Ha, IIIT Boy here doesn’t even know how to solve it!

Ok, Tardtastic. Just because I did well enough in high school to get into IIIT and somehow managed my multiple choice options to get into IIIT; it does NOT mean I can solve every single problem ever conceived. I can barely even solve the problems in my own field of study. If I knew so much, do you think I’d be talking to you? No, I’d be thuggin’ into the likes of Newton, Guass, Hawking.

I think people from schools like IIIT/IIT are automatically put at a disadvantage due to this amazing ability that everyone thinks they have. If people have few expectations of you, it’s easy to surprise and impress them. But if expectations are always high, disappointment is a single mistake away. It’s gotten to the point where I’m reluctant to tell people I go to IIIT/IIT because I’m afraid of what they’ll automatically assume.

On the social front, though, the IIIT reputation can work to our advantage. If you have the ability to converse with other humans and have a good time with minimal awkwardness, people will often say, “You don’t seem like you go to IIIT!” Their expectations were so low that just being able to act somewhat normally impressed them.

[Esc] :wq