Bramma Sakthi Panneerkai Perumal

Bramma Sakthi Panneerkai Perumal is a management information systems graduate from India

Hometown: India

Year: December 2022 graduate

What did you want to be when you were growing up? Are you pursuing that as a major, or have you taken another path?
After reading a biography of Kalpana Chawla from my school library, I wanted to be an astronaut like her and work for NASA. While growing up, I realized it wasn’t the astronomy that interested me. Despite being born in a small town in India, she was determined to chase her dream against all odds. It was her passion that inspired me. I found my passion in analytics and decided to do my master’s degree in the same. I am so happy to graduate this semester with honors. I am sure I satisfied my 9-year-old self by standing up for my dreams.

What is your major (and/or minor) and why did you decide on this course of study?
I am a graduate management information systems student. Before joining NIU, I worked for Amazon as a senior quality service associate. I really found love and passion for analytics while working on customer review analysis, where I provided SQL-based dashboard solutions to the business. I realized analytics is the right path for me when I found myself enjoying coming to work and get my work done. My intuitive ability to identify defects, eagerness to work with data and passion to handle management activities in my organization has urged me to explore the field of business intelligence and data analytics. This led me to pursue my master's degree in management information systems with a specialization in business analytics.

What has been something you have found pleasantly surprising about your experience at NIU?
I was actively using NIU Career Services. From UNIV 301 and UNIV 302 classes, I understood the power of networking. I started expanding my network by connecting with lots of NIU alumni in my field. It was surprising to see the alumni engagement and how they always find a way to help fellow huskies. Huskies always help each other. I can say happily that they take protecting the pack very seriously!

How have you connected with other students to study for classes, meet new people or form new friendships?
To be honest, my first semester was little challenging! After my first semester, I started seeing familiar people in more of my classes, and that was the first way I started to make friends. Getting together to work on assignments is a great starting point. Along with the knowledge, I am taking some good friends from NIU. 

Are you involved in any student organizations, mentoring programs or extra-curricular activities? If so, which ones? How have they added to your experience as a Huskie?
As a part of the Experiential Learning Center program in the College of Business, I worked as a consultant to TCCI Manufacturing. It has been a great experience to work for a global leader in compressor technology. I enjoyed creating and analyzing a contact database for TCCI! I had an excellent coach, Mr. Scott Rosenfelder, who is a retired managing director from Deloitte as well as an NIU alumnus. His guidance and mentorship in the consulting world made a profound impact on my professional development. I am also an elected member of Phi Beta Delta International Honor Society.

What NIU offices, departments or resources have helped you succeed? And how?
As told earlier, I was actively using NIU Career Services. UNIV 301 and UNIV 302 classes have helped me a lot in building my professional network. 

Who has been one of your favorite instructors/professors and why? What course did they teach?
It's very hard to pick one. My favorite three professors in no order of preference are Prof. Biagio Palese, Prof. Kishen Iyengar and Prof. Brian Bender. Prof. Palese and Prof. Iyengar guided me in exploring the vast field of data analytics with their engaging classes. They always brought out the best in me with their constant motivation and constructive feedback. Prof. Brian Bender's class taught me the nuances of business and the power of communication.

How have you benefited by attending class regularly?
Assignments and case studies focused on business analytics helped me stay updated in my field. Nothing is more satisfying than the real-time application of what you have learned. Right after finishing my business intelligence course, I was creating dashboards to analyze Black Friday deals to buy a new TV! 

Where is your favorite spot on campus or in the community? Why are you drawn to it?
My favorite place is the Holmes Student Center. I worked as a barista in the HSC Starbucks with two lovely managers, Carissa and Ann. I made a lot of friends while working there. I love hanging out with people after work at the HSC. I love Holmes nights and have participated in most of the events. Out of all, my favorite is craft nights. I still have the cute terrarium I made on one of the craft nights. 

What advice would you give to a student who is applying to colleges?
A main factor is to start early. Make sure you begin looking at colleges as early as possible to see what each has to offer. Begin the main parts of your applications as soon as they come out, so you won’t be rushed right before they’re due. In the end, everything happens for a reason, so please don’t stress because everything will be okay. I know it is a hard time for some people, but it’s just a few months, and after the fact, you’ll most likely be happy.

Coming to college, what is something that you have had to learn to do differently?
I returned to school after having five years of work experience. As an international student, I took the first few months to understand the way classes, assignments and exams are conducted here. I learned the art of multi-tasking and time management by managing a campus job and my studies successfully in parallel. 

What do you do to relax or recharge?
I love taking long walks around the NIU lagoon during sunset listening to my favorite podcasts.