Anaiy Somalwar at Berkeley Haas after being admitted to the UC Berkeley Management, Entrepreneurship, & Technology (M.E.T.) Program. Courtesy photo
UC Berkeley has long been a powerhouse for aspiring founders. Year after year, the school is ranked among the best globally for entrepreneurship programs, at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.
Last year, the school took first place for the most startups created at any school in the country in the Pitchbook rankings. Haas grads launched a whopping 1,650 companies, with a total of 1,804 alumni going on to found companies.
STARTING OUT IN THE M.E.T. PROGRAM
Among these founders, some student stories really stand out. One of them is that of Anaiy Somalwar, a senior in Berkeley’s renowned elite Management, Entrepreneurship & Technology (M.E.T.) program.
Somalwar is doing something that most would struggle to successfully balance. He’s built a company while simultaneously getting his degree.
Born in India and raised in San Jose, Somalwar grew up surrounded by the gravitational pull of Silicon Valley.
“I was always really interested in technology,” he says. Despite the proximity to startups, entrepreneurship wasn’t something he imagined for himself.
“I grew up in a really traditional family – entrepreneurship wasn’t necessarily something I was considering as an option when I started at university,” he adds.
That changed quickly, and during his freshman year, Somalwar began brainstorming what would eventually become his education company.
“Initially, I started this company as a way to make income while in college,” he says. Then, it grew into something more.”
Somalwar guest lecturing at the UC Berkeley’s Sutardja Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology (SCET). Courtesy photo
CREATING A BUSINESS & STUDYING IS A BALANCING ACT
What makes Somalwar’s story so captivating is the way he’s managed to scale his company while in school. It’s not the path that one might expect of a young entrepreneur today. “I built a fully bootstrapped education company to roughly $10M in annual revenue and over $7M in EBITDA, all while remaining enrolled,” he says.
In a culture where dropping out to chase a startup is something to be expected, Somalwar says staying in college and finishing his degree was a top priority. In high school, he worked really hard to get accepted into the M.E.T. program, which was part of his decision to stay – to see his efforts through.
“If you look at Berkeley and Stanford, students are very engrossed in the idea of raising outside capital from venture capitalists,” Somalwar says. “On this path, students often are expected to drop out of university – and that’s something I really didn’t want to do.”
That ties directly into one of the most unique aspects of his journey, which was the decision to bootstrap. For anyone who doesn’t know, this means he built and grew the company using his own resources instead of relying on outside funding.
With only about 45 students per cohort and a few dropouts each year, the program is notoriously selective.
He also mentioned that he’s fortunate to have a full‑tuition scholarship, which made the decision easier. “After graduating, I’ll have the rest of my life to do entrepreneurship and build companies. The opportunity won’t go away.”
Professional shot of Anaiy Somalwar. Courtesy photo
‘IMPACT IN REALTIME’
Building a company while in school is an incredible way to turn what you learn in the classroom into something immediate.
“I get to see the impact that the decisions I make have on the outside world in real time.”
Everything he’s working on is supported by the Berkeley ecosystem as well.
Realistically, balancing both comes with tradeoffs. “I only have a limited amount of time I can spend on academics,” he says, noting that he’s not a 4.0 student. “I’ve learned to be okay with this,” he says.
Despite the intensity of his schedule, Somalwar says balance is possible. He makes time every day to see friends, usually over a meal.
For others who are considering pursuing entrepreneurship without sacrificing their college experience, he says the key is to work on developing your business in your free time. “Even if you have to work on the weekends,” says Somalwar. “Find the time. Build something that you’re passionate about.”
Somalwar at Cambridge with a friend playing hockey. Courtesy photo
WORDS FOR THOSE WHO MAY WALK A SIMILAR PATH
Somalwar says that a good one in three people he’s met at Berkeley have created a product or service.
“Many people are building businesses here, but very few are generating income,” he shares. “Even if creating a company doesn’t go where you want it to go, the education opportunity is wonderful,” Somalwar says. “You learn certain things by actually doing business in practice that you just can’t learn in the classroom.”
Somalwar says that developing this company has been life changing. “It’s changed my life financially of course, but more importantly, it’s changed the way I view the world and business,” he shares.
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