Nikhil Sadaranganey, School of Arts and Sciences ’22, is Political Science major with minors in Economics and Philosophy. Nikhil was first introduced to policy through competing on his high school’s Model United Nations team. That experience sparked his interest in politics and led him to participate in programs such as American Legion Boy’s State and the Center for Civic Education’s We the People program. Since coming to Rutgers, Nikhil has gotten involved with a number of student organizations, including serving as the Vice President of Events for Phi Chi Theta (a business fraternity), representing students in the Rutgers University Student Assembly, serving as the Director of Staff for Philadelphia Model United Nations 2021 through the Institute for Domestic and International Affairs, and co-founding Rutgers Tamasha, the university’s only non-competitive, co-educational Bollywood dance team. Following his freshman year, Nikhil served as a research assistant for Professor Mason Ameri, who investigates discriminatory hiring practices in corporate America, and worked for the Rutgers University Foundation, where he helped the foundation tailor its outreach to Millennial and Gen Z students and alumni. This summer, Nikhil has spent his time volunteering on the Congressional campaigns of Rep. Andy Kim and Dr. Arati Kreibich, interning with Assemblywoman Nancy Pinkin, and advocating for increased higher education funding in the inaugural cohort of the Rutgers Advocacy Corps. Nikhil is excited to be a part of the Gardner Fellowship Program and hopes to use his experience from the program and at Rutgers to one day work in government and eventually serve in public office.
