SCHOLARS

RAHUL HARPALANI
U.S. Army | Columbia University | Master of Business Administration
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“Strength has less to do with how much one can lift, and more to
do with how one reacts when faced with extreme, discomforting,
and ambiguous challenges.”
Rather than follow in his father’s footsteps as a fourth generation engineer, Rahul -
who monitored daily the reports of soldiers killed in Afghanistan - decided to apply to
West Point during his senior year of high school. In 2010, only two days away from the
end of his first combat deployment to Afghanistan, Rahul’s strength was tested when
he was injured by a roadside bomb.
Told he would be ‘lucky’ to ever walk again, Rahul defied every expectation for
his recovery. He went on to jump with the 173rd Airborne and return to combat
operations in Afghanistan, despite a traumatic amputation.
Rahul’s experiences as a patient have led him to pursue an MBA at Columbia
University, with the goal of working at a healthcare company to implement
sustainable healthcare infrastructure among the poorest, and most ignored,
demographics. Currently working at the Department of Veterans Affairs, he aspires
to lead one of the 153 VA regional medical hospitals nationwide to implement lasting
change for veterans and their families.
Class of 2015