At the 2024 commencement ceremonies for A. Gary Anderson Graduate School of Management (AGSM), Pious Khemka ’24 MSBA carried the Master of Science in Business Analytics (MSBA) processional banner representing her cohort and classmates.

“This honor came as a surprise to me and signifies that my efforts, even though they weren’t aimed at gaining recognition, have indeed been acknowledged by the school,” says Khemka of being selected to carry the banner. “Being part of the graduation ceremony in this capacity was a great honor and a meaningful culmination of my journey at UCR.”
 

Gaining Experience with Intensive Involvement

Khemka’s selection to carry the MSBA ceremonial banner was much less of a surprise to faculty and her academic colleagues due to her wholehearted engagement in AGSM student life. But the transition to a new community was daunting.

“Stepping outside my comfort zone fostered immense personal growth,” she says. “I used to avoid doing things alone, but now I embrace independence and have developed time management skills. Balancing coursework, a teaching assistant job, a capstone project, and social activities has taught me discipline.”

Khemka’s involvement in the Women in Business student organization was just one of the many projects she undertook while studying for her master’s at AGSM. “Women in Business has been a cornerstone of my UCR experience,” says Khemka, who served as the group’s partnership director and helped organize their UC Collab event with UCR, UC San Diego, and UC Irvine.

“The club has provided a platform to champion women’s empowerment, a cause close to my heart. I aspire to support and mentor women in business, creating networks and opportunities for them.”

While also competing in a number of case competitions, including her team’s second place win at the UC Davis Food and Agriculture Business Competition, the intensive preparation and presentations were “exhilarating,” she says, “and challenged me to apply classroom knowledge to real-world scenarios, sharpening my skills and broadening my perspective.”

Khemka is a member of the Beta Gamma Sigma International Business Honor Society, which welcomes graduate students in the top 20% academically. In the classroom, Khemka compliments Finance Professor Jean Helwege, who also holds the Anderson Chair in Finance. “She may not know this, but she is one of the professors I hold in the highest regard at UCR,” says Khemka. “Her lectures are so insightful and engaging that I was torn between taking notes and absorbing her every word.”

Off campus, Khemka interned as a startup business consultant with the INNOVAR project (part of the National Science Foundation I-Corps program offering introductory training workshops to entrepreneurs) at UCR and was a teaching assistant in the Economics Department within the university’s College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences. “Both experiences underscored the importance of networking and professional relationships,” she says. “The INNOVAR internship required extensive outreach, and the teaching assistant position highlighted the need for both qualifications and connections.

“I’ve built a diverse network of peers, learning from their unique experiences and backgrounds. Being among the youngest in some classes has been a blessing, because I’ve gained insights from seasoned professionals that I could not have elsewhere.”
 

Education is Essential for Long-Term Growth

“Initially, pursuing a master’s wasn’t part of my plan because the job I had as a business analyst at Goldman Sachs was fulfilling,” says Khemka, who joined the global financial services firm upon earning a bachelor’s degree in business administration in 2021 from Christ University in Bangalore, India. “However, I realized that continuing my education was essential for long-term growth, and UCR stood out because it offered an excellent analytics program and the opportunity to live in California.”

Her hometown is Indore in Madhya Pradesh, India, and she says she is naturally inclined toward business studies: “My parents’ dedication to our family business instilled in me a strong work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit. My interest in analytics was sparked during my first job, where I realized the transformative power of data.

“My MSBA degree is the pathway to mastering these skills and making a significant impact on the business world.”