Meet Jaswanth who studied BSc Computer Science and AI with a Year in Industry
Tell us about your career path since graduation. How did you end up where you are?
My career path since graduating from Royal Holloway has been driven by curiosity, resilience, and a willingness to step outside my comfort zone. From the beginning of my degree, I actively sought opportunities beyond the classroom completing a placement year, undertaking a research project, and consistently working on building strong professional networks while maintaining good academic results.
Following graduation, I secured a sponsored role at TP ICAP, where I was able to apply both my technical knowledge and the practical, commercial skills I developed during my time at university. Alongside my professional career, entrepreneurship became a significant focus. While still studying at Royal Holloway, I co-founded a startup that has since grown to a valuation of over £2 million. Building a company alongside my studies was challenging but transformative, and it taught me how to manage risk, lead teams, and turn ideas into real-world impact.
My journey hasn’t followed a conventional or linear path, but each experience from placements to student leadership to entrepreneurship has contributed to where I am today.
What was it about your time at Royal Holloway that has most benefitted your career or influenced your path since graduation?
Royal Holloway showed me that classrooms are only one part of the university experience—it’s what you do outside them that truly shapes you. I was highly involved in student life, including running a society, actively participating in the Running Society, and standing as a candidate for Students’ Union President. These roles helped me develop leadership, confidence, and the ability to engage with people from all backgrounds.
As an international student, I made a conscious effort to maximise everything the university had to offer. The placement year was a major turning point and played a crucial role in securing my role after graduation. I also worked closely with the University Enterprise team, receiving invaluable support particularly from Paul Scott which helped us build and scale our startup while still at Royal Holloway.
Perhaps most importantly, Royal Holloway reinforced that success is not just about achievements, but about who you are as a person. Being willing to learn, treating everyone with respect, and appreciating diverse perspectives opens countless possibilities. You never know who might help shape your journey in the future, and those values have stayed with me well beyond university.
What advice would you give to students thinking about a career in your sector?
My biggest piece of advice is simple: network, network, network and genuinely enjoy your time at university.
Attend events, talk to people outside your course, and be proactive about building relationships. Many of the opportunities I’ve had, including securing one of the most competitive and highly compensated graduate offers available to international students at the time, came from consistently showing up, engaging, and building trust with people.
What would you say to potential students considering studying at Royal Holloway?
Royal Holloway hosts an incredible range of careers events, employer talks, and student-led initiatives, and I made it a point to attend as many as possible. In competitive sectors like finance and entrepreneurship, mindset, curiosity, and the strength of your network often matter just as much as technical skills.
Treat everyone with respect, be willing to learn from anyone, and you’ll be surprised how many doors open. Most importantly, make the most of the resources available to you - placements, societies, careers services, and the Enterprise team - because the value of university goes far beyond the classroom.
What did you love most about your time at Royal Holloway?
What I loved most about Royal Holloway was how much life happened outside the classroom. I made it my mission to maximise every part of the university experience academics, societies, events, and meeting people from completely different backgrounds. Some of my best memories come from organising activities, bringing people together, and turning ordinary days on campus into something unforgettable.
What's your favourite memory of Royal Holloway?
One of my favourite memories was a spontaneous late-night fashion show in the library at around 4am, with about 30 people cheering each other on until we were eventually asked to leave! It sounds chaotic, but it captures what I valued most about Royal Holloway: the friendships, the energy, and the sense of community where people were willing to show up for each other and make memories. Beyond that, we booked rooms for late-night movie sessions and meet-ups, discovered hidden corners of campus, and built friendships that still feel like family.
Royal Holloway wasn’t just where I studied, it was where I grew, led, connected, and created memories I’ll carry for life.
