York College Alum establishes The Sanjay Parekh International Scholarship Fund

After diligently evaluating categories such as ratio of students-to-faculty, diversity of courses offered, size of the student population, and sporting facilities offered, Sanjay Parekh ‘96 chose to attend York College in 1992 upon graduation from his high school in India.

“I chose YCP after careful consideration and I am extremely glad to have chosen YCP,” he says. Along with great learning in the classrooms, I enjoyed my experience in the dorm and made some fantastic friendships over the years at the College.”

Parekh has forged a highly successful career and says, “Currently I am working with a multinational oil and gas company based out of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. I have been with the group since 2004. I started my role as an HR manager, and over the years I was given various opportunities in different roles from government liaising to client relations and vendor management.” The organization operates in the Middle East and North Africa building infrastructure projects for major government oil and gas companies.

At one point, Parekh states, “We had 25,000 employees on one of our projects, and this was a challenging but rewarding experience for me.”

Parekh wants other international students to experience the benefits of a YCP educational experience, and to that end has established The Sanjay Parekh International Scholarship Fund to financially support international students attending YCP.

“The main objective,” he explains, “is to allow these students to gain access to a world-class American college education.” As a proud alumnus of YCP he believes that it is a moral duty rather than a choice for him to give back to the institution that has played an influential role in shaping his career.

Along with financial support, “My intention for the recipient of this scholarship is to gain an all-round education experience, fully engaging with the staff and students from other cultures,” he says. “This is an important aspect for them to build character and leadership in their future goals.”

YCP played a critical role in Parekh’s career, providing him with the foundation and tools that have helped him in his career path. “The faculty-to-student ratio allowed students to engage in meaningful discussions,” he says, “allowing one to absorb different ideas and implement the same outside the classroom.”

He considers YCP his family and asserts, “It is important to stay in touch with family. I feel proud to know about the great developments in the College over the years. My support will continue in every way.”