Minakshi Pokharel CLASS OF '11

Graduate Student

Hometown: Kathmandu, Nepal

Major: M.S. in Engineering with an emphasis in Computer Science

We always say, “You can go anywhere from here,” but Minakshi Pokharel proves that you can also come here from anywhere. Hailing from the metropolitan city of Kathmandu—the capital of Nepal—Minakshi learned about SDSU while searching for graduate schools on the internet. She had heard positive things about SDSU from other Nepalese students, but it was the treatment Minakshi received before she ever set foot on campus that made the decision for her.

“The faculty, who I contacted back from my country, were warm and cordial,” she says.

Friendliness like that helped Minakshi start to feel at home at SDSU soon after she arrived.

“My first impression of SDSU was that it was a big university…and I thought I would be lost. Now, my first days are over, my agenda is set, and everything seems to be working out just perfectly.”

When not in class, Minakshi spends most of her time in the Office of Information Technology and the computer science lab. She hopes to join a software company after graduation as a professional system analyst. Eventually, Minakshi hopes to have her own software company. So it’s no wonder why all of her favorite courses involve programming.

“I find all the classes where I have to do programming intriguing. It is a real test of creativity, knowledge, and endurance,” she says.