You might be thinking, “Class of 2020 is over with. We’ve moved on to Class of 2021.” But let’s not forget about the elite, underdog class that is winter graduates. Okay, perhaps I am biased because I am a part of said group. But nonetheless, I wanted to take a second to shoutout the underrated Class of Winter 2020, and more specifically the incredible group of QUEST students that will be leaving the University of Maryland after this semester to pursue life outside of undergraduate school, whatever that life may be.

Neil Duggal (Cohort 31)  

Eitan Isser (Cohort 32)

Pranav Kuruba (Cohort 32)

Alec Lahr (Cohort 31)

Arianna Minas (Cohort 32)

Rohan Mishra (Cohort 32)

Lexi Paidas (Cohort 31)

Adam Sarsony (Cohort 29)

James Wang (Cohort 29)

A pretty solid group, right? We as a society have had a lot of time for reflection over the past few months, and us graduates cannot help but reflect on the amazing (and stressful, in a formative way) time we have shared thus far in the QUEST community.

“My favorite QUEST memory is probably the late night 490H working sessions in the QUEST lab. There was a great sense of camaraderie with the people who were also up late working on their projects that semester across all teams in our cohort.” – Adam Sarsony

“I’ll never forget travelling on QUEST study abroad trips, and then meeting up at reunions in College Park with all of the QUESTees from abroad!” – Lexi Paidas

“I also really enjoyed rooming with you at the QUEST2Japan trip, Arianna. And also being your roommate in college.” – Lexi Paidas’ unspoken thoughts

“QUEST gave me a chance to pursue my interests outside of just the business school. In doing so, I also got to meet such a diverse group of incredible people. I’m going to miss getting to connect with a team over a semester-long project. Favorite memory would be tied between our first client presentation in 190h and a Cohort 32 social ~gathering~ pre-COVID.” – Pranav Kuruba

“QUEST helped me realize that career fair recruiters aren’t as scary as I once thought. I am very grateful that the program pushed me to create a LinkedIn profile, encouraged me to maintain a portfolio, and eventually worked me up to speak with a recruiter at the QUEST career fair.” – Alec Lahr

“QUEST was something that really enriched my UMD experience. It helped make a big university a little smaller and gave me a community of peers to connect with. Fondest memory has got to be first poster presentations at 190H!” – Rohan Mishra, 190H Poster Session winner

“Through QUEST, I enjoyed meeting students from different majors at Maryland. Hearing their perspectives on how to approach problems has changed the way I analyze things in the world.” – Neil Duggal

“My favorite QUEST memory is really hard to pick. I’ve thought about this for a while and it’s a three-way tie. 1) When my 190H team AKA future best friends went to QUEST Formal together, 2) when I moved in with two fellow QUEST students and implemented Kaizen (continuous improvement) every day in our living quarters, and 3) after Cohort 32 finished the QUEST Conference and hopped on a Zoom with our instructors to reflect, show some love, and laugh about the past few years together.” – Arianna Minas

“I’ll say my favorite part of QUEST was going to the QUEST Lab at any hour and always seeing someone from my cohort there and being able to unwind, and chat it up.” – James Wang

“I’m extremely grateful for the open and vibrant community that QUEST has fostered inside the classroom, outside the classroom, in person and online. QUEST is truly a network and a family for life.” – Eitan Isser

What lovely words to end this tribute on, as Eitan said it best. QUEST is a family, and regardless of where we are or what we will be doing, we’ll always be a part of family that spans all over the globe. I know I personally am looking forward to QUEST alumni events in the future and being able to be a part of the esteemed groups that attend QUEST alumni happy hours in various cities. Thank you, QUEST – not in a cliché, song-reference way. But in a genuine, “I don’t know what I would have done without you, please don’t let me leave, I love you” way.

PS – Thank you QUESTPress for allowing me to word vomit and pour my soul into articles over the past few years. Can’t wait to keep reading in the future!