Hardik J. Bhate and Arjun R., students of the Amrita School of Arts and Sciences, Amritapuri campus are currently studying at the University of New Mexico (UNM) in Albuquerque, United States as exchange students.

The two students are enrolled in the Bachelor of Business Management course at Amrita.

The duo just completed one semester of their final year of studies at the public university considered to be New Mexico’s flagship research institution.

Hardik and Arjun were recently in India for the holidays. They shared their perspectives on studying at the international university.

“This is the best opportunity a student at the undergraduate level can have. The university, its professors and the students are very good. I have made very good friends,” stated Hardik.

Added Arjun, “Going to UNM has changed my outlook altogether. Our professors are experienced professionals and their teaching methods are great. In many of the classes, videos are shown to help us understand the concepts better.”

The students described some of their classes and project work in detail.

“We took some electives such as Leadership Development. We had classes for Entrepreneurship, Finance, Human Resources Management, Operations Management and Promotional Management wherein we learned practical business applications.”

“For one of our projects, we did a recruiting campaign for the US Public Health Services Commission. For this, we met customers, organized events, did campaign briefings, research and marketing; overall it was great.”

“We learned to think and write creatively about various things, to manage our time more effectively. We have now become more punctual, because punctuality is imbibed into the Western culture.”

The students also shared some of their experiences outside the classroom.

“When we arrived, the professors and students were really friendly and helpful. They were curious to know more about India, its culture and traditions. We even asked to give a presentation on India.”

“At UNM, we have befriended students from China and Pakistan. We go out for dinner together. One day, we couldn’t go for dinner, since there was some homework pending for our 7:00 pm finance class. By the time class ended, it was 8:30 pm and we were very hungry. Since dinner is usually served at 6:00 pm, university restaurants were closed. But when we reached the dorm, we found a Pakistani friend had brought take-away food for us from the mess. This immediately reminded us of Amma saying Vasudeva Kudumbakam, the whole world is one family.”

January 19, 2012
School of Arts and Sciences, Amritapuri