Neel Patel

I was born and raised in Mumbai, India for the first 20 years of my life. I am currently a Finance Major at Isenberg School of management at University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Growing up in India and then studying here I have had the privilege to experience different cultures and life styles. I would consider myself to be very lucky to be the 1% of Indians who has the opportunity to study in the world's best education system.
My biggest passion is travelling. I want to go to different countries and experience their lifestyles, cuisines and cultures. I want to capture the hidden beauty in every country I visit. Hidden beauty for me is just not what appeals my eye, but something which is very unique about that country. For example, I grew up in Mumbai and the hidden beauty of Mumbai is it really captures the paradox of life. Five minutes east of my house in Mumbai is the world's most expensive house and five minutes on the west is the world's second largest slums. It captures the truth which people often ignore. I have travelled to Australia, Europe and America. And I have found a little unique things about every country. My other passions are sports, fishing, cinema and finance.
I love watching and playing sports which range from football to golf. I have keen interests in cinema, which includes theatre. I love the art of making movies and acting. But the biggest passion after travelling is Finance and that justifies my major. I want to concentrate on the Alternative Investment segment of finance, which includes real estate, foreign exchange, commodities, private equity and hedge funds. And hence after graduation I want to work for a Private Equity firm somewhere around Boston area. But my future goal 10-20 years down the line, is to join politics in India and help the financial conditions of the country. I want to make changes in a way that would help the vast population of India so that they can have a better quality of life.
My plan over the summer is to work in Amherst somewhere. And whatever time and resources I have left, I want to travel in America, especially the west coast. I am looking forward to an adventurous summer and a great semester.