Mukund Padmanabhan M.S. ’89, Ph.D. ‘92 came to the United States in 1987 to study engineering, and has been an incredible representative for UCLA Samueli ever since. In addition to a career spanning engineering research at IBM, and quantitative investment management on Wall Street, he founded the Guru Krupa Foundation, an organization using a holistic approach to give back to groups in both the U.S. and India. The Foundation looks at projects within the categories of social welfare, higher education, spirituality, arts and culture, and the environment.

Padmanabhan has supported UCLA Samueli extensively over the years, creating multiple scholarships for undergraduate students and fellowships for graduate students. Having been a recipient of multiple scholarships himself, Padmanabhan recognizes the importance of helping all Bruin engineers achieve success and reach their full potential no matter their financial background. His recent $250,000 contribution to his previously established undergraduate scholarship, when combined with UCLA Chancellor’s Centennial Scholars Match, amounts to more than $1 million in scholarship support for undergrads. This critical support helps remove the financial barriers to an engineering degree and gives UCLA Samueli students the opportunity to experience all that the school has to offer. Padmanabhan took some time to share his experience at UCLA and his passion for giving back.

“I believe that UCLA is one of the best schools around, and I can personally attest to the quality of education I got there. I am grateful for the chance to have attended it, and I want to give something back to the school.”

Q: Why did you choose to pursue your M.S. and Ph.D. at UCLA Samueli? What drew you to the school?
A: I joined UCLA as an M.S. student in 1987 after finishing my bachelor’s degree at IIT Kharagpur in India. Coming as I did, from a middle-class family in India, financial aid was essential to enable me to attend any graduate school in the U.S. Of all the schools which offered me financial aid, UCLA was the best known and highest ranked, and my graduate advisor, Professor Ken Martin, was very supportive, hence the decision to join UCLA. Once I was here, I took many classes in and outside my area of graduate study, and was so impressed with the professors at UCLA that I decided to extend my studies and get a Ph.D.

Q: What work do you do now, and how did UCLA Samueli prepare you for your career?
A: Though I started out as an electrical engineer and spent almost a decade after my Ph.D. traversing the conventional path of an engineer at IBM Research, I pivoted to finance after that, and for the past two decades, have been working in quantitative statistical research at a hedge fund on Wall Street. This transition was feasible, in part, due to the breadth of knowledge that I acquired at UCLA. UCLA Samueli had some of the best professors I’ve ever taken lessons from, and I maximized my utility function by taking way more courses than I needed to, ultimately getting a deep introduction to a wide cross section of electrical engineering. This breadth of knowledge continues to serve me very well in my career.

Q: What compelled you to start directing your philanthropy to UCLA Samueli, and what has made you continue to reinvest in the school?
A: Initially, my philanthropic investment in UCLA was motivated by my personal journey. As a foreign student entirely dependent on financial aid to survive, when money got tight, things sometimes got a little tense. I wanted to do something for students in a similar position, so I started by setting up fellowships for international graduate students. This subsequently expanded to scholarships for undergraduate students as well. When the school expanded by building Engineering VI, based on the need at that time, I contributed to the capital campaign. Since then, the school has also been recruiting faculty and, on the advice of the dean and staff, I have contributed to term chair endowments in the [Electrical and Computer Engineering] Department.

I believe that UCLA is one of the best schools around, and I can personally attest to the quality of education I got there. I am grateful for the chance to have attended it, and I want to give something back to the school. As an alumnus, practically speaking, it is also good for me if the school continues to thrive and forge ahead. However, for that to happen, both the quality of teaching and resources at the school, and the quality of students, has to be maintained. Hence my philanthropy is directed toward improving the infrastructure and attracting exceptional faculty and students.

Q: What do you think receiving scholarship support means to our undergraduate students?
A: I think UCLA attracts some of the brightest high school students. Unfortunately, not all of them can afford to attend. For a young person who has the capability and motivation to learn, being constrained by finances must be extremely discouraging. Consequently, receiving a scholarship that cracks open the door to a college education must seem like an amazing opportunity.  I know that the undergraduate scholarship recipients are very grateful for this opportunity. It is equally satisfying to me as a donor, as I’m sure it is to other donors, that I am able to help someone in need, and open a path to their future.

Q: As the school continues to progress, what excites you most about the future of UCLA Samueli?
A: As the school continues to grow strategically, I look forward to it taking a leading position in multi-disciplinary areas, hiring and developing world class faculty, and improving its ranking among all schools. There is exciting progress underway, and I look forward to doing my part to bring it to fruition.