Graduate Division welcomes new International Peer Advisor

The Graduate Division is excited to welcome our new International Peer Advisor, Athith Krishna. Athith will work to create representative spaces for the international graduate student population and provide specific resources for International student success at UCSB. Read on to find out more about Athith!

	HIS STORY I was born in Mysore and grew up in Bangalore, India and lived there until I turned 18. I then moved to upstate NY for my undergraduate studies at Cornell University. I finished my BS in Electrical & Computer Engineering with a Minor in International Relations. I moved to Santa Barbara for my MS/PhD in 2017. As an international student myself, I love learning about other cultures (especially cuisine), and traveling whenever my schedule permits.
	HIS RESEARCH My research involves working on advanced semiconductor materials with applications in next-generation electronic devices for IoT, Communications, and high-power systems. I'm also interested in understanding how innovation and technology is managed in a real-world setting, and I'm pursuing the Graduate Certificate in Technology Management, on the side. With a life-long interest in eco-friendly technologies, I also co-founded a clean-energy fuel cell start-up called Tesserol, locally last year.
	FUN FACTS I've travelled to 46 out of the 50 states in the US - I hope to get to all 50 before I defend my thesis. Most weekends you'll either find me cooking an elaborate dish, or hiking one of the multiple trails in the SB area. I was a dog-person all my life until I rescued and adopted a cat during the start of COVID - now I'd say I'm a 50% dog- and a 50% cat-person. My favorite foods are Ethiopian & Eritrean dishes, and that is my first search on Yelp whenever I travel to a new city.
	HIS ROLE AS A PEER As an International Graduate Peer, I work with the Graduate Division, OISS and the Division of Student Affairs to develop and implement programs and resources of interest to UCSB's international graduate student community. I will also be organizing workshops, presentations, articles, and providing one-on-one meetings for faculty, students, and staff on the best practices for international student success. I have a specific interest to help connect cultural and international interest student clubs/orgs on campus with graduate students, and help them get involved in various on-campus events outside the research lab setting. I will also be planning various international student specific career & professional development and funding workshops in collaboration with various on- and off-campus resources, and advising the international graduate students at UCSB to the resources they need the most. Please do not hesitate to contact me, I am happy to help in the ways that I can or to just chat!

Welcome, Athith!