°µÍø½ûÇø

Hello, everyone! A warm welcome to the cold, snowy Spring semester. It does feel good to be back and to start writing again! I am Anchal Bhatia, and I am in my final semester pursuing my MBA in Marketing & Digital Marketing. It feels unreal to say that my time at the University is nearing its end! Nonetheless, we’ve got to make the most of what we have remaining, don’t we?!

Apart from being a passionate marketing and business student, I spend my free time being creative too. Well, not professionally, but therapeutically. Apart from school, I try to fit my time into things such as painting, reading, binge-watching Netflix, and traveling. I have a huge travel bug, and all I keep looking for is the right time and opportunity to go out and explore!

My favorite pastime, however, is writing to let my heart out, be it – journaling or for my profession. I love interviewing people, which is proof that my journalistic attributes fail to leave me! In fact, I have been interviewing people for the °µÍø½ûÇø Blog, and every single piece I have done makes me want to do better. Occasionally, I write reflection pieces about events and activities and write my thoughts and feelings.

My favorite topics to write and talk about are business, marketing, and women’s empowerment! I can probably go on reading, learning, and wanting to share my thoughts on these topics forever. I remember working on a piece for the °µÍø½ûÇø Blog last March. I feel that piece is one of my best and most appreciated so far. Read all about the CEO of the , who was present at the University for an encouraging and uplifting conversation. Find your way here, ‘Our Conversation with Cindi Bigelow was Highly Impactful!’

You can also go through some of my other favorite stories so far:

• Pompea College of Business Hosts Inaugural Holiday Business Bash
• Fall Semester Was About Empowerment and Confidence for the Women In Business Club
• University’s Smerd Pitch Competition Inspires Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Well, there are so many others! Make sure to go through the °µÍø½ûÇø Blog 2023, haha!

‘It is exceptional to love what you do’

It hit me that despite writing regularly for the University since August, I have yet to take the opportunity to introduce myself, so here I am. Raw. Unfiltered. Candid. And me being me!

In case you are wondering who I am and where I am coming from, I’d like to go one step at a time. I am an international student from India who, like many of my fellow Indian students, set foot in the United States to learn and get better at what we wish to do next. Prior to coming to the States, I was working as a journalist for The Times of India, a leading newspaper company in India while pursuing my Bachelor of Arts in English literature and psychology. Remember I mentioned that my journalistic attributes fail to leave me? This is where it stemmed from. And I have always been proud of it because it is exceptional to love what you do and make a living out of it.

Along with managing my time as a journalist, I started working as a freelance content writer and marketer, which added to my areas of interest and eventually became a career path. This became my driving force to start my journey as a marketer, and nothing could have been better for my career than pursuing an MBA!

‘The amazing stuff we have going on’

August 2022 was when my time in the USA commenced, and I had mixed feelings of happiness and sadness for this new beginning. Leaving what I left behind wasn’t easy, for sure, but the power of new beginnings allowed me to take this change positively.

As soon as my time at the University of New Haven began, I was happy to be among my peers who felt the same, understood the pain of feeling homesick, yet happy to be making a living – all on our own! Within a week of settling into the University, I was happy to join the Department of Communication, Film, and Media Studies as their graduate assistant, which gave me a whole new exposure and work, life, and study balance. Since then, life has not stopped offering me new opportunities and surprising experiences! Of course, it did require external grinding and intense effort, but it now feels all worth it.

                       

Reflecting on my journey so far, I can only say that it has been a rollercoaster filled with supreme learning, way too many adventures, surprising challenges, and a number of wholesome memories! My goal for the remaining few months here at the University is to do my best to showcase the amazing stuff we have going on here! In fact, consider me your go-to person if you want something to be promoted (Marketing 101, LOL!).

If you are someone who’d love to talk about marketing, social media, digital marketing, or if you are someone or know someone looking for an avid marketer who loves to turn leads into numbers and results, send them my way! Is this a way to say that I am open to work? Maybe. But is my graduation fast approaching? Yes, it is! (Again, Marketing 101, LOL). Hit me up for a coffee break or a quick chat, and we’ll find our way.

Feel free to catch up with me anytime you’d like! I can be reached via email at abhat13@unh.newhaven.edu or my personal email at bhatiaanchal11@gmail.com! Until then, I hope you don’t stop reading my °µÍø½ûÇø Blog pieces.

Sending love, laughter, happiness, and best wishes for the start of the cold, snowy Spring Semester! Cheers.

Anchal Bhatia ’24 MBA is a candidate in the University’s MBA program.