Supported by a passionate community at Gettysburg College, Ratul Pradhan ’25 reflects on the experiences that shaped his path to graduation.
As the Gettysburg College Commencement student speaker, Ratul Pradhan ’25 will stand in front of the campus community one final time on May 17, reflecting on his transformational journey over the last four years and providing inspiration to the Class of 2025.
An international student from Kathmandu, Nepal, and Darjeeling, India, Pradhan invested in a breadth of experiences at Gettysburg that allowed him to explore his many academic and professional interests. Inspired by a supportive and passionate community, he co-founded the music-focused club Listeners & Performers and helped many first-year students find their own connections to the community through his work in the Office of Residential Education and the Office of Student Activities and Greek Life (OSAGL). Pradhan also studied abroad in Berlin, Germany, and impacted governmental initiatives through a summer fellowship at the Eisenhower Institute. He will graduate with a major in computer science and an individualized major in business management & analytics, with minors in data science and music.
Before assuming his spot at the podium on graduation day, Pradhan reflected on his path to Gettysburg and the many moments of intersection he enjoyed with people and places across our campus.
Q: Why did you choose Gettysburg?
RP: Gettysburg gave me the ability to pursue my interests in computer science while having the possibility of continuing my musical endeavors. Before I even applied, I remember scheduling a meeting with Computer Science Prof. Todd Neller, my current advisor, about the College’s computer science program. While we talked about the program for the first 30 minutes, what stuck with me most was speaking about progressive rock music for the next hour. It showed me a snippet of the community I would be joining.
Q: Which experiences on campus made the biggest impact on you?
RP: During my first year, I found my first community through Listeners & Performers with two other people I met then: Jack Joiner ’25 and Nate Kong ’25, who are now my roommates. Listeners & Performers has grown so quickly into a foundational organization at the College in so many ways we’d never expected, and we’re proud to be leaving this as we graduate.
This experience led me to be a residential assistant, as I wanted to help other first-years find their community. Four years later, I now lead the 18 College Houses in that same very mission of honing and creating community as the assistant residential life coordinator. This also led to working with the Office of Student Activities & Greek Life as part of the Social Venue’s Task Force, ideating the renovations in Plank Basement, which we got to see built before we graduate!
I was fortunate to be connected to the Applied Science and Technology Research Organization of America (ASTRO) and the White House AM Forward initiative through Eisenhower Institute Executive Director Tracie Potts and the Eisenhower Institute’s Washington Summer Fellowship. There, I was able to collaborate with senior manufacturing fellows to implement a standardized qualification template for Additive Manufacturing suppliers. I designed the relational database schema and implemented the template into a database management system using Microsoft Access as a front-end to MySQL, using Visual Basic for Applications to connect the two.
Q: What is your favorite campus memory?
RP: Every time I've had a chance to perform, whether that be at the Attic or at Waldo's, and seeing the response we get has been among the happiest memories at Gettysburg for me. My favorite event that we organized for Listeners & Performers was our first-ever community show at Waldo’s back in my first year. We were figuring things out as we went, which had its own sense of particularity and emotions attached to it; of creating something out of nothing and somehow packing over 250 people into a dimly lit space that typically held 150! We had over 20 performers, from bands to solo acts, each with their own unique ways of holding the crowd.
That showcase was essentially what we imagined Listeners & Performers to be—a melting pot for community. That first point of intersection in our community will always hold a special place for me.
Q: Who supported your college experience?
RP: Other than the lifelong friends I've made, the Office of Student Activities and Greek Life and Residential Education Office have played huge impacts on me these last four years, from helping me pursue my endeavors to providing the opportunity to voice my opinions and create change to being the most supportive group of people I've had the chance to get to know.
Q: How would you describe your journey at Gettysburg?
RP: I had the opportunity to gain a breadth of experience in my first two years on campus, taking on different on-campus responsibilities, including employment, academic work, and internships that have significantly impacted who I am today. This also allowed me hone in on important priorities in my latter two years at Gettysburg that would help me after graduation.
This microcosm allowed me to explore widely early on, and later go deep into what mattered most to me—learning to prioritize, delegate, and lead through multiple identities.
Q: What are your plans after graduation?
RP: I want to become a technical project manager in the technology industry, as I would love to work in a people-centric role with a focus on technical knowledge.
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By Katie Lauriello ’25
Photos by Diptiman Das ’27, Sofia Guitierrez ’26, Piper Pokorny '27
Posted: 05/08/25