Pari Sharma Supports Student Success Through Mentorship

When she was in high school, Pari Sharma, '26 Computer Science, was determined to start earning her college credits early. She got involved in a dual enrollment program and started taking two to three college courses at San Joaquin Delta College every semester.

"Dual enrollment was challenging to balance with high school," she says. "But it really prepared me for college."

That hard work paid off. When Sharma arrived at San José State in 2023, she had already completed all of her general education requirements, putting her on track to graduate this May.

During her time at SJSU, Sharma says that her involvement with the Center for Asian and Pacific Islander Student Involvement (CAPISE) gave her a strong sense of belonging.

"There's a long history of South Asians being left out of the Asian conversation, and I felt that growing up. CAPISE changed that for me. I was welcomed in and told I was part of it, and I hadn't realized how much I needed to hear that," says Sharma.

She joined CAPISE's Empower Mentorship program during her first year and was assigned a mentor.

"When I applied for college, I had to explore and navigate unfamiliar territory. I think the mentorship program is amazing because mentors help you formulate goals and provide you with the resources and support you need," says Sharma.

She went on to become a mentor over the next two years, supporting other students who were just beginning their own college journeys.

"I wanted to give back and help future incoming students. Once I became a mentor, I realized just how fulfilling it can be to support students and to be there for others," she says. "It's rewarding to support other API students. I see myself in a lot of them."

Sharma always encourages her mentees to join one of the many student clubs and organizations on campus, as she feels that it can really help them to find community and understand more about who they are.

Sharma has been part of the student-run Society of Women Engineers (SWE) since her first semester at SJSU. In her first year, she served as chair for the outreach committee. During her second year, she was on the executive board as treasurer, and for her final year, she has been serving as the director of the newly-created Alumni Relations Committee, which she spearheaded.

"I noticed that we had a lot of passionate club members who graduated and wanted to give back and stay involved, but they didn't often have the opportunity to. So I wanted to form the committee as a way to connect with our alumni," she says.

This year, the committee launched the Alumni Mentorship program under Sharma's leadership.

"I took inspiration from my role as a [CAPISE] mentor to design the program," she says.

In the program, 21 students were matched with mentors, and over the course of the spring semester, they had one-on-one sessions to discuss everything from academics to goal-setting.

One of Sharma's favorite experiences during her time at SJSU was her trip to Finland the summer after her freshman year. As part of the College of Engineering's Global Technology Institute program , she attended a science university overseas, where she took classes and did robotics-related research.

"It was such a rewarding experience," says Sharma. "I recommend it to anyone in the College of Engineering."

After graduation, Sharma already has a job lined up - she'll be working as a software engineer at Lam Research, where she has worked as an intern for the past year.

"My advice to everyone would be to say yes to things, even when they scare you a little," says Sharma. "Whether it's studying abroad, taking on a leadership role, or mentoring others, every opportunity I took on pushed me further than I expected. I knew I wanted to lead and to explore, and San José State gave me every chance to do both."