2020 Donald Edward Bragg & Diane Sims Bragg Scholarship Recipient

 

Biography: Aneri Patel is a third-year Business Economics major with a minor in Entrepreneurship from Sacramento, CA. Inspired at a young age to embrace an entrepreneurial spirit, she knew that she wanted to pursue a career which combined creative business problem-solving and the future of technology. Aneri firmly believes that technological innovation can be used to solve some of the world’s most pressing social issues. At UCLA, Aneri serves as the President of Bruin Ventures, UCLA’s premiere venture capital organization, and as a Board Member on Nova, an organization that builds technical solutions for nonprofits. Previously, she has interned at a VC firm and a digital health innovation center.

Outside of her leadership involvements, Aneri dedicates her time to Bruin Entrepreneurs and 180 Degrees Consulting to inspire UCLA students to pursue their own entrepreneurial ventures and use their professional skill sets to give back to the community.

 

Future Plans: This summer, Aneri will be interning at Adobe as a Solutions Consultant Analyst Intern to help guide digital transformation strategy for Adobe’s clients. After graduation, she hopes to pursue a career in strategy consulting, focusing on international development, healthcare, or technology. In the long-term, she hopes to apply the entrepreneurial knowledge she has gained throughout college to create her own digital health startup or become a partner at an internationally-focused impact investing fund.

 

What does this scholarship mean to me? I am really grateful and humbled to receive the Donald Edward Bragg & Diane Sims Bragg Scholarship. At UCLA, the support for entrepreneurial initiatives and risk-taking mindsets is sometimes overlooked and undervalued. By receiving this scholarship and understanding how appreciative the Bragg family is of entrepreneurship, I have further strengthened my desire to be a voice for the entrepreneurial community at UCLA and use my business knowledge to improve the quality of life for countless individuals. Throughout my life, I will strive to be a thought-leader in the social entrepreneurship sphere and do my best to represent the Bragg family, the Economics Department, and UCLA.