She chose UK from India without ever visiting campus. Now she’s continuing family ‘legacy’
Pallavi Raichur’s road to the University of Kentucky began 30 years ago.
Raichur is originally from Bengaluru, India, and will graduate from UK with a degree in business administration this weekend. Her path to Lexington, however, begins with her father.
Ashok Raichur came to UK from India to get his master’s degree in the 1990s. Pallavi said her father loved the “holistic experience” at UK, and how it offered social experiences as well as academic.
“He made his way here and he fell in love with it,” Raichur said.
Raichur and her sister grew up hearing about UK, and how much their father enjoyed his time at the school. When it came time for her older sister to choose a college, UK was her first choice. She was accepted, and “she loved it,” too, Raichur said.
By the time Raichur was deciding where she wanted to go, UK was her first choice. Her older sister would send pictures and videos of her time at the university, and Raichur decided to apply without ever stepping foot on campus.
UK was the only school she completed an application for. Within 24 hours, she found out she had been accepted.
“I didn’t bother completing any of my other applications because I had gotten into UK,” Raichur said. “I made my way here and I have absolutely loved it.”
Raichur quickly got involved on campus, and in her four years has been an international student ambassador, which connected her with other students coming to UK. She also was on the international orientation team, helping new international students adjust to life at UK.
Although it was scary when she first got to Lexington, Raichur said she wouldn’t have grown over the past four years without moving across the world. She found a family among other international students and the Gatton College of Business and Economics. Coming to UK helped her to come out of her shell, she said.
“I also loved the freedom I got,” Raichur said. “That definitely helped me become way more responsible. I think that’s the key thing I’ve seen that’s changed in myself. It definitely was scary, but it was less scary because I had at least 70 other international students with me that were going through the same thing.”
Having the family connection helped, too. Her sister was a senior when she was a freshman, and helped guide her through her first year, Raichur said.
Some families in Kentucky may have gone to UK for generations, Raichur said. While her family is not there yet, she is “proud to be a Wildcat,” and to have gone to the same school has her father and sister, she said.
“It feels good that we’re starting to create this legacy at UK,” Raichur said.
Raishur isn’t leaving Lexington yet. She’ll be at UK for one more year as she pursues a master’s degree in finance.
“I’ve just made this family here that I’m not ready to let go of yet,” she said. “UK made it so comfortable for me that it’s hard to leave.”