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What was my early childhood and upbringing like?
My name is Vishal Shah. I was born and raised in Charlotte, North Carolina. I went to Bain elementary school with all of my cousins. I am the second youngest of my cousins, my little sister being the youngest in our family. I started playing sports in elementary school. During recess, I would play basketball, football, tag, wall ball, kickball, and soccer. I enjoyed playing basketball the most so I started playing it more and eventually, I joined the Mint Hill Athletics Association wreck basketball league. I played in MHAA starting in 3rd grade. I wasn’t the most athletic but I knew if I worked and practiced hard, I could really do some good for the team. In the 4th grade, alongside with playing basketball in the MHAA wreck league, I decided to play soccer. I started playing soccer and the coach needed a little help handling the team and practices. Since my dad stayed and watched all my practices, the coach of the team asked my dad to become the assistant coach for the team. He gladly accepted the offer. Unfortunately, midway through the season, since all of the dust in the air from the constant kicking, I kept coughing and it would not stop so I had to quit the team. I still stuck with basketball and in the 5th grade; my team had won the championship. Elementary school was great, I met a lot of people who later became my friends in middle school, I learned a lot and I was ready to take on the next stage in my academic career.
How did my educational path progress after primary school?
I went to Mint Hill Middle School from 6th to 8th grade. When I started, I had one cousin in the 7th grade and two in the 8th grade. My one cousin in the 8th grade played for the team because he was very athletic and versatile. I decided to try out for the team when I was eligible to do so in the 7th grade. Unfortunately, I did not make the cut for the team so I stuck with playing in MHAA’s wreck league. School was fun at the time, meeting a whole bunch of different people from different places was interesting. For high school, I went to a different establishment than where I was supposed to go because my family moved near the Ballantyne area in Charlotte. I went to providence high school and I hated it when I started there. I only knew two people at the school when I started high school. One kid was from my middle school and the other was zoned to go there and he was my cousin’s best friend’s younger brother who was my age. I ended up becoming very good friends with him and still am.
What are some volunteer programs that I participated in?
In the beginning of high school, I started volunteering at Carolinas Medical Center Main in Uptown Charlotte. I wanted to use my time to help the community and at the same time, I wanted to learn more about how processes in the hospital run on a daily basis. I volunteered at that hospital for two years and I went once a week for a period of three hours every week. The cool part was that I was born at that same hospital way back in August of 1996. I volunteered for more than 300 hours at the hospital and received the Presidential Service Award. Recipients of the award have to complete at least 150 hours of community service (volunteering) in a span of no more than 12 months. Volunteering was a great experience; I learned many new skills and saw how the hospital worked while at the same time I got to help patients with their needs. I also met a lot of great people who have impacted my life positively through volunteering at the hospital. In the 9th grade, since I was not in Mint Hill anymore, I started playing church basketball for one of my friend’s church. It was the Providence Road Church of Christ. The coach, Tim Springer, was my friend’s dad and all of my teammates were some of my good friends. I played at the church until my senior year of high school. At Providence High school, after making some new friends during freshmen year. When sophomore year came around, I decided to join the cross-country team. I ran junior varsity cross country for Providence High school. I wasn’t the fastest but I enjoyed the exercise and the company of my new friends. I became close with the people who ran cross-country. We would have practice everyday at McAlpine Park in Charlotte, NC. After school ended around 2:15, we would go straight to McAlpine and start practice at 3:00 pm. Practiced usually lasted till about 5:30. Some days we would have tempo runs and some days long steady runs. Cross-country was the best decision I made in high school. I made friends that are still close with me. I was also in the National Honor Society which required a 3.5 grade point average and 12 community service hours each semester. Providence high school was one of the best public schools in North Carolina at the time. It was a tough learning institution itself and everyone was very competitive. I knew if I worked hard and persevered, that I would be successful and get into a good university.
What collegiate establishment did you choose to join?
I got admission into North Carolina State University and started there in August of 2014. I started there with intent to study life sciences. After some time and taking some economics courses. I decided to change my major to Business Administration with a finance concentration. Now I am enrolled in NC State’s Poole College of Management. I have also decided to minor in economics. Last year, I founded and became the president of Global Microfinance Brigades. The main function of this group is to mobilize university students and professionals through the skill-based service programs using Microfinance principles to improve quality of life in under resourced communities. Volunteers empower families in rural communities to increase production and foster a culture of savings and growth. Volunteers provide financial literacy and planning, and recommendations for potential loans. Our current focus is in Honduras, Panama, and Nicaragua. Last year, I also re-registered the Hindi-Urdu Club at NC State and became the President. The function of this organization was to create a Hindi-Urdu atmosphere on campus through South Asian gatherings, meetings, and cultural events and to create a bond between the diverse students by giving them a flavor of South Asian culture through the very popular Hindi-Urdu languages. This summer, I am studying abroad in Shanghai. I am taking 3 operations courses while in China and will learn how businesses in Shanghai operate. My current grade point average is 3.951.
Looking for more?
Please stay tuned for more updates. I will be discussing my experience about studying abroad.
