Category Archives: Student Profiles

Junior Jeffrey Li Working to Make Positive Changes to Medical Research

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JeffLiJeff Li was drawn to UT by the roaring school spirit, high-caliber academics and top-notch funding for research. When he started at UT he found a land of opportunity as he made the transformation from Biochemistry major in his freshman year to a double major in BHP and the Dean’s Scholar Honor’s Program in natural sciences. He also received the Unrestricted Endowed Presidential Scholarship, which is one of the most prestigious continuing student scholarships offered by UT and has also become heavily involved in research, “I’m so thankful that I chose UT because there are a lot of opportunities here that I don’t think I would’ve found elsewhere,” said Li.

Jeff LiLi has always known that he wanted to go into healthcare and research, interning at the Texas Medical Center immediately after graduating high school. Now as a junior in the BHP, Li has found a new interest in examining how healthcare and business intersect, “I want to learn more about how to take the business principles from my BHP courses and cross-apply them to make healthcare more efficient. I want to make a big contribution in this area,” said Li.

He is specifically concerned with how research funds are allocated and the extended time gap between when a medical breakthrough begins at the laboratory bench to ten plus years when it reaches the patient’s bedside. “It’s interesting to me how someone puts a quantitative value on someone’s potential research. I think business concepts and risk management can play a big part in improving this decision-making process by decreasing possible risk and subjectivity,” said Li. “Something McCombs is really good at is teaching us how to make the best choices with a limited amount of information and that’s something I want to continue to learn here and apply to interdisciplinary healthcare and science fields.”

As for the time gap in the research process, Li would like to find improvements to promote efficiency. “What I want to do is leverage education and sustainable business models to develop new therapies for things like Alzheimer’s and cancer, and create new technologies,” said Li. “And I’d like to accelerate that development – get the necessary approval, get it to the patient’s bedside and then bring the information you collect from the patient’s bedside back to the lab bench creating bi-directional communication.”

Jeff Li (front) with Learn To Be

Jeff Li (front) with Learn To Be

Shortly after beginning in the BHP, Li discovered another passion for education through Learn To Be, a non-profit organization that offers free online tutoring services to underprivileged children across the country. Li became involved with the UT chapter, started by a group of BHP students, after learning about the group’s mission. “A lot of times tutoring doesn’t make it to the areas that need it most,” said Li. “What most schools in the nation do have is a computer and internet access, which is really all we need.” Learn To Be has over 600 tutors across the nation made available to students in grades 5–12 via different pre-existing technologies.

Ultimately, Li is working towards creating a better world for generations to come, “I believe that people should not be a victim of their DNA. People should not be a victim of the zip code from where they grew up. Everyone should have the right to aspire to something,” said Li.

Jeff LiLi’s outstanding contributions on campus have not gone unnoticed. He was recently chosen as a recipient of the Texas Exes Presidential Leadership Award, which recognizes undergraduate students who have demonstrated outstanding leadership within the student community at UT Austin. “It means the world to me,” said Li. “I really love that the UT community rewards students for taking a blind leap of faith to make real changes in this world, holding true to the motto, ‘What starts here changes the world,’” said Li. He also encourages his peers to find their passion and take action, “A lot of people think they’ll wait to create change until they get a job or finish graduate school, but you can make a difference right here, right now.”

Li will graduate next year and plans to continue on to medical school. His hope for the future is to work as an intermediary improving the health of others by further opening the valve between research and healthcare.

 

 

 

 

 

BHP Sophomore Recognized For Outstanding Leadership Across Campus

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BHP Sophomore Recognized For Outstanding Leadership Across Campus

CharlieAComing to UT was an easy decision for sophomore Charlie Adkins. Bleeding orange since birth, Adkins grew up watching Vince Young take the national title and cheered on the Longhorns in every sport possible. When asked why he came to McCombs Adkins replied, “McCombs is the best business school in the Southwest. BHP offers me smaller classes and I’m around the brightest individuals I’ll ever meet. Being around driven people pushes you to take on things you initially wouldn’t have.”

Adkins was most recently chosen as the only sophomore recipient of the Texas Exes Presidential Leadership Award, an award that recognizes undergraduate students who have demonstrated outstanding leadership within the student community at The University of Texas. “I am incredibly honored and humbled to receive the Texas Exes Presidential Leadership Award,” said Adkins. Six students are chosen annually from the UT student body to receive the award.

Adkins has been an outstanding student and shown stellar leadership across campus, especially in McCombs. He has been heavily involved with the Undergraduate Business Council (UBC) as chair for the VIP Distinguished Speaker Series, which hosts interviews with CEOs of Fortune 500 companies. “UBC represents students and it’s something I really enjoy doing,” said Adkins. “The Speaker Series allows CEOs to see how high caliber our students are, and encourages them to come back to donate and recruit.”

Along with UBC, Adkins is also part of Student Government and has been appointed director of the 2014 Longhorn Run, a 10K race that raises over $25,000 for the Student Government Excellence Fund, which benefits student organizations. “This year, I am looking to grow Longhorn Run and cement its place on campus as a UT tradition,” said Adkins. “Longhorn Run is a unique way for students to give back to other students.”

Adkins is interested in the sports industry and was a marketing intern with the Round Rock Express last summer. After earning his degree in accounting, Adkins hopes to go into baseball operations and manage an organization. When asked where he sees himself in his future career, he replied “Texas forever.”

BHP Finance Major Creates A Mobile Application To Increase Productivity

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If you’ve ever wished for an easier way to organize and manage everything you need to get done then you are in luck because there’s an app for that; Cluster. CEO of Mobylsoft LLC and BHP student, Ram Anantharaman, created this iOS application. “Cluster is a productivity tool and visual planner,” said Ram. “It provides information that a simple to-do list cannot. It tells you what you should be working on right now, which is a question I was always asking myself as a student.”

Ram came up with the idea for Cluster as he attempted to juggle the chaotic schedule of a college student. “I came up with the concept out of pure need,” said Ram. “I turned to the App Store for help and as I went through the productivity options, I realized that most of them took a lot of time to enter tasks and then didn’t offer a good picture of how to complete those tasks.”

Since high school Ram has taken an interest in writing code and taught himself to do so, “I used online resources, like the Stanford lecture series and would spend eight hours at a time reading books and doing as much as I could to get my feet wet,” said Ram. “Writing code for apps is tangible. It’s a way that I can hold my creation in my own hand. I wanted to dive into the tech world and create something I myself could use. It’s a simple and beautiful way to have a startup and not spend a lot of time and money on it.”

Ram holds a high amount of confidence in his product and offers his consumers a personal money back guarantee, “I absolutely will give the customer their money back,” said Ram. “If the consumer feels that I’ve done an inadequate job making them more productive then I think that’s a problem and I’ll do anything to fix it whether it’s adding a new feature or giving their money back.” Cluster has been in the App Store for about six weeks and has over 150 downloads. Although only available for iOS (iPhone and iPad) currently, Windows phone, Windows 8 and Mac are in the future plans.

In the future, Ram would like to shift from selling straight to the consumer to working with businesses, “I would like to create a project management app for businesses with some of the interface from Cluster,” said Ram. “I think it’s a much more sustainable way to sell and make money. Also, I’m currently taking Operations Management right now and learning about supply chain management and I think I’m well equipped to create a project management application.”

Ram is projected to graduate next year and hopes to go into consulting, “I want to work for a consulting firm to build a better client network and leverage those skills to become a better entrepreneur,” said Ram.

BHP senior, Helen Tau, joins Texas Women’s Basketball as a walk-on

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BHP senior, Helen Tau, joins Texas Women’s Basketball as a walk-on

It is a rare occurrence to experience a dream come true, which is exactly how BHP senior Helen Tau describes becoming part of the Texas Women’s Basketball roster as a walk-on this year. Helen played basketball in high school and hoped to continue the sport into her college career. She tried out for the team as a freshman, but did not make the cut. Determined to keep basketball in her life, she applied to be a basketball manager for the women’s team every year until she filled the position last year as a junior. Helen was also the only female on the men’s practice squad, a team of players that did not make the team, but still come together to enjoy the sport and scrimmage against the university teams for practice.

It was during a scrimmage that Helen’s abilities were noticed. “The first thing that we noticed right off the bat was Helen’s commitment to our program,” said Karen Aston, head coach of the women’s basketball team “When she said she was going to do something, she followed through with it. Last year she served on a volunteer basis. Her commitment level was phenomenal based on the fact that she wasn’t receiving any benefits from the volunteer work.” (as quoted on texassports.com).

Helen could not be more thrilled to have the opportunity, “It’s completely a dream come true, and I never would have expected this to happen.” To some it may seem that making a drastic change during senior year may throw a student off kilter, but Helen is happy to adjust, “I plan my day around eating and sleeping at the right time so that I’m ready for practice. This is a once in a lifetime chance for me so I want to make the most of it. The physical exhaustion after practice makes doing homework challenging, it’s been a complete lifestyle change, but I’m learning how to find that balance.”

As a senior BHP and Finance major, Helen is grateful for the timing of this opportunity, “I think it’s a good thing it didn’t happen earlier because it would have conflicted with recruiting. It probably would have taken over my college career and I’m happy that I had time to do other things like my internships.”

Helen will suit up for the Texas Women’s Basketball team’s first game against UTSA this Sunday, November 10 at 2pm.

 

Student Profile: Elise Loney – HBA President

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BHP junior, Elise Loney, found her niche in the Honors Business Association (HBA) during her first year at UT. She has taken on numerous leadership roles within the organization, all leading up to her current title as President.

Why did you choose to come to UT?

Growing up in Lawrence, Kansas, I had always imagined I’d leave home for college. I applied to UT because of McCombs and its reputation as one of the best undergraduate business programs in the nation, and I was accepted into the BHP. I actually never thought I’d end up in Texas, but when my mom and I came down for Discover BHP, it only took five minutes of walking around campus before I turned to her and said, “This is where I belong.” I knew I had to be a Longhorn. I joke that it broke my dad’s heart I wasn’t going to be a KU Jayhawk, but in all actuality, my entire family has been incredibly supportive of my leaving the Sunflower State for the Lone Star State.

What is HBA?

The Honors Business Association is a student organization to which all BHP students belong. It provides opportunities for students to get together in a more social atmosphere and builds a real community base for the BHP. In addition to social events, students are given the chance to interact with professors in a setting that isn’t the classroom, and meet with a variety of company sponsors. McCombs students are told to join one professional group, one social group and one academic group during their time at UT; HBA is really all three in one.

How did you become involved in HBA?

I fell for HBA hard and fast. I heard a lot about it at Leadership Kickoff my freshman year, and all it took was one General Meeting for me to become hooked. I applied and was accepted onto the Communications Committee early in the semester, and completely threw myself into the responsibilities. It wasn’t long before I was known as the girl who stuck a camera in your face at every HBA event, and I couldn’t have been happier with the experiences I was having as an active member of the organization.

How have you continued to stay active in HBA?

My sophomore year, I became Vice President of the Communications Committee. I wanted to make Communications a more prominent part of HBA and to provide ways for members to learn the less obvious facts about each other. The results were fun activities, such as polls in the newsletter asking questions like “What is your most irrational fear?” and a game we call “HBAby,” where we collected baby photos from members and challenged others to guess the BHPerson.

I noticed there wasn’t much BHP apparel available to students. The only thing most students had was the BHP t-shirt that everyone gets after entering the program. I wanted to offer students another way to display their pride in BHP, so I designed a BHP sweatshirt to be sold to anyone in the program. They were a huge success, and all proceeds went right back into HBA.

Now, as a junior, I’m President of HBA. I eat, breathe, and live HBA all of the time, and I love it. As President, I attend a lot of meetings and take on responsibilities required to maintain HBA’s status of a McCombs affiliated organization. I also work with HBA’s Exec VPs, helping where they need it and doing what I can to delegate and make sure things run smoothly. HBA has given me so much during my time here at UT, and all I want is to give back in the best way I can.

What types of events does HBA put on?

For Academics, we have DWAPs (Dinner With a Professor) and PHITs (Professors Have Interests, Too), allowing students and faculty to get to know each other more personally. Financial and Corporate Relations work tirelessly to organize our annual Company Field Trip to an exciting location every year, giving students the opportunity to network with companies and alumni in the area. Philanthropy provides HBA members with ways to give back to the community through things such as Junior Achievement and Urban Roots, and Alumni works to host events that feature BHP alumni who can offer guidance and share real-life experiences with our members. Communications works endlessly to support the sense of community amongst HBAers, and Social is always finding ways for us to simply have fun, whether it be through playing broomball or hosting a formal at the end of each semester.

With no dues involved, everything is free to our member. Students are able to be involved to whatever extent they choose. HBA handles all the logistics, and the only things they have to do is sign up for the event, show up, and have fun.

What have you gained by being part of HBA?

There’s never a dull moment when you’re completely invested in something like HBA. Everything is always exciting and every week there are a variety of opportunities to get involved and have a great time. I definitely can’t imagine what my time would have been like at UT if I weren’t part of HBA.

During the Company Field Trip to Atlanta last year, we visited Coca-Cola and I had the chance to submit my application directly to their University Talent Program. Thanks to that, I got an interview, which lead to an internship, which resulted in a return offer that I accepted for this next summer.

HBA has given me so much. Through this organization, I’ve met some of my closest friends, I get a free meal every other Tuesday night, and I even found a job. I truly don’t know what more I could ask for.

What advice would you offer BHP students?

As HBA President, I can’t help but urge everyone to be as involved as they possibly can with the organization. On a more general note, though, I can only say this: if you try your hardest, it’s all going to work out. Trust me. You may be stressing about a million things, but if you care and your passion is there, just be patient and keep moving forward. In time you’re going to realize that it’s all turned out just fine.