Aakanksha Veenapani holds an MBA from the University of Washington and a BA in Economics & English from Whitman College. After graduating from college, Aakanksha began her career as a consultant to Microsoft. She then moved to India to work on a political campaign as a data analyst. Post-campaign victory, she began work in the social impact sector in India. Her past experience involves working with philanthropic foundations to distribute education dollars as well as working with local education non-profits to improve funding and marketing strategies. As a START RA, she worked with the family planning team, the integrated delivery team, and the pandemic team on various projects.
Reflecting on her time with the START Center, Aakanksha shared that, "START was, unequivocally, the best part about my MBA experience. And that is not only because I got to work on some of the most complicated, pressing problems of our times but also because I got to work with some of the brightest minds who have become my closest friends, engage with experts in the public health domain, and walk away feeling like I actually contributed to work that will have lasting impact and a meaningful outcome."
Aakanksha currently works as a Principal for Boston Consulting Group.