Student from India travels to Colorado university for the first time to accept his diploma


A student from India has finally made it to his campus at Regis University in Denver for the first time — and it’s so he can accept his diploma.

Sarvesh Karkhanis, who made the 30-hour trip from Mumbai just to walk at his graduation on Friday, said his computer science degree and being able to visit the school’s campus are the perfect gift for his 27th birthday.

“My parents were really happy with my graduation and insisted that I have to be there [to get my] diploma,” Karkhanis told Denver news station KCNC-TV.

Karkhanis spent six years obtaining his degree without setting foot in a classroom at Regis. Instead of spending hours on campus, he worked on projects from afar. “The thing is, I wanted to make a project that could really help people,” he explained to the outlet.

His final project will certainly help others. The soon-to-be graduate built a device that helps premature babies develop their mouth muscles, which will prevent malnourishment. Even one day of missed nutrients can starve an infant. To put it into perspective, an adult would need to gain three pounds a day to match the growth rate of a micro preemie, according to Jae Kim, MD.

“It has the potential to save lives of premature infants. [They] have really bad control of their mouth muscles, which can lead to severe problems with malnourishment, and sometimes death,” Karkhanis told KCNC-TV. His project not only earned him an A in the class, but it has earned him the attention of researchers in India as well.

“I’m really excited … because to think I’m graduating after completing a project that has the potential to save lives of people,” he said.

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