RIT/NTID alum Dhruvesh Patel ’22 (business management) and ’24 (business administration) approached his academic work with a customer-focused mindset, which has helped him find his career success at the PNC Financial Services Group.
During his junior year of high school in Georgia, Patel learned about RIT/NTID during the STEM camp at Georgia State University and then decided to attend NTID’s Explore Your Future, a summer program designed for deaf and hard-of-hearing college-bound students. Inspired by his family business background and his passion for business, he chose RIT to pursue his undergraduate and graduate studies.
He credits his education at RIT for providing him with hands-on learning opportunities through coursework, simulation games, and capstone projects that reflected workplace experiences. He gained real-world business work experience through cooperative education (co-op) assignments with companies, including the Simone Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and PNC.
After graduating with a bachelor’s and master’s degree in business administration, Patel landed a job at PNC as a product innovation development analyst in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he conducted data analysis to research and identify client needs for product improvements. He recently was promoted to a new role as a senior business analyst on the SMB Product Delivery Team.
Congratulations on your promotion to a new role as a senior business analyst at PNC. What is your role there?
Thank you so much! My role as a senior business analyst serves as a bridge between stakeholders and the tech team. I work with stakeholders to understand their wants and needs, gather requirements, and review current and future states to identify opportunities to improve business processes and meet client needs. I translate stakeholders’ requirements into formal documentation that the tech team uses to develop and deliver initiatives.
My current focus is on small business lending products. I help small business owners access the financial solutions they need. I work closely with my team to improve the experience for both bankers and clients through our online platform, making processes more efficient and user-friendly.
It’s an amazing role because I get to learn from different perspectives and bring stakeholders and the tech team together as we work toward the same big goal: delivering the best possible experience and outcomes for our clients.
Why did you choose RIT to major in business?
During my junior year of high school, I attended STEM Hands Camp at Georgia State University in Atlanta. I remember two people who worked at RIT visiting our camp and presenting the list of majors offered at RIT/NTID. They also mentioned an amazing camp called Explore Your Future (EYF). I decided to attend EYF, where I learned a lot through different activities.
That was the moment I started seeing my future at RIT. When I was on the RIT campus, I could envision myself succeeding there, and I knew it was where I wanted to study. I’ve always been a huge fan of Shark Tank and have had a passion for business. Coming from a business family, I decided to pursue a business major at RIT. Studying at RIT was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
You graduated with a bachelor’s and master’s degree in business administration. How did your education at RIT help prepare you for a career and the work you do as an analyst?
All the professors in my bachelor’s and master’s classes were amazing! They brought real-life experiences from their workplaces into the classroom, and their experiences and perspectives helped us imagine what it would be like to work in a professional environment.
I learned how to improve my project management skills, analyze data, and work on various capstone projects and simulation games with my teams. I’m also grateful for RIT’s strong foundation in its co-op program. The college fairs were incredibly helpful and opened doors to opportunities that eventually led me to my dream job.
RIT prepared me to connect business strategy with technology and work collaboratively toward a common goal. I’m grateful for the education and experiences I gained at RIT because they helped shape the professional I am today.
What are the most challenging and rewarding part of your job?
The most challenging part of my job is working in a fast-paced environment. However, it’s also a good thing because there is always something new to learn, and I get to see so many things happening at once. One important lesson I’ve learned is that documentation and note-taking are essential in every meeting. It’s helpful to have everything documented in one place because when you meet with the same people again, sometimes we forget what we discussed previously.
Having good notes and documentation helps everyone stay on the same page, saves time, and makes future discussions go smoothly. No matter how small or big the detail is, taking good notes can make an impact, and the team really appreciates it. For me, it’s a simple but important habit that helps everyone work together more effectively.
In the past, you worked for Center for Residence Life as a resident advisor. How did your experience in Residence Life at RIT contribute to your successful career?
During my three years as an undergraduate Resident Advisor, it became my favorite role on campus. I felt blessed to meet great people from different backgrounds, states, and countries. I loved serving my community, helping new students feel welcome, and sharing my experiences to support their academic and personal growth.
When I started my master’s degree, I decided to continue my journey as a Graduate Resident Advisor for another two years. These experiences contributed to my successful career, especially through working with amazing residence coordinators who taught me the importance of academic and personal growth. I also had the opportunity to work with students from different backgrounds and cultures, which helped me understand different perspectives. In the workplace, I collaborate with colleagues from diverse backgrounds, and these experiences have helped me communicate and work together with others more effectively.
What accomplishments are you most proud of?
I am most proud of my involvement in the organizations I participated in during college. Those experiences helped me grow as a leader and gave me the opportunity to work with students who shared similar passions and goals.
Growing up in a small town where there wasn’t much of a Deaf community and attending mainstream schools my whole life, I didn’t have many opportunities to connect with other Deaf people until I went to RIT and became part of the community. I’m especially proud of how I contributed to the Deaf community at RIT. Being part of such a strong Deaf community helped me discover my identity, build meaningful connections, and grow as a person. It’s an experience I’ll always carry with me and never forget.
What is your favorite memory of your college experience when you were a student at RIT?
Some of my favorite memories are playing in the Deaf Basketball Association and Deaf Volleyball Association. I also played basketball and flag football in an intramural league where our all-Deaf team competed against hearing teams. Playing sports with my friends on the weekends is one of my favorite things to do because it’s a great way to socialize and compete together.
What advice do you have for current or prospective students who want to pursue a career in business or aspire to become a business analyst?
First, get involved in organizations and clubs that match your passions. They help you build leadership skills, contribute to campus life, and learn from students with different perspectives, which can help you collaborate better in the workplace.
Second, build good relationships with your professors. They want to see you succeed and can help guide you toward the right career path and opportunities.
Finally, don't be afraid to ask questions. I'm someone who asks a lot of questions because it's one of the best ways I learn. I still apply this mindset at work to keep learning and contribute more effectively to my team.
