Elevate Student Spotlight
Meet Delwin Manjali: The Student Shaping Elevate From the Inside
SGA Vice President of Academic Affairs. Business analytics intern. Rising sophomore — and an architect of new Elevate activities.
Delwin Manjali packed his first year at Illinois Tech with a dual degree in Business Administration and ITM, an SGA vice presidency, a treasurer role with the Machine Learning club, a Campus Life Ambassador job, more than ten career workshops, and a summer business analytics internship leading a team across three continents — with an induction into the Upsilon Pi Epsilon computing honor society on deck. And he didn’t just complete Elevate’s first year: he’s now helping design its next activities. We sat down with Delwin to talk versatility, accountability, and why Elevate is worth every student’s time.
“Elevate is the extra staircase that leads you to your career. It makes the steps longer, so you have less of a chance to fall — it makes you more stable as a person entering the professional workforce.”
Delwin Manjali · Sophomore, Business Administration & ITM
Q. Introduce yourself to the Illinois Tech community.
“I’m moving into my second year, studying a dual degree in business admin and ITM. My main goal is being versatile — I’m not just focusing on the technical and business aspects of my degree. I’m VP of Academic Affairs for SGA, treasurer for Machine Learning, and a Campus Life Ambassador. It’s a holistic package, and that’s how I want to be seen.”
Q. What drives your work as SGA VP of Academic Affairs?
“I made it my goal to dive in on policy that actually impacts student learning outcomes. Last year I submitted a resolution to extend the add/drop deadline and make the curriculum catalogs more consistent. I’m just trying to make it easier for students to reach their academic successes here.”
Q. You’re helping design new Elevate activities. Why get involved rather than just participate?
“I can see the value in something like Elevate — it’s rare to find something like it for free in the outside world. I want to make sure the mission of Elevate is heard by the students of IIT and pursued by them to further enhance their career profiles.”
Q. Tell us about your summer internship.
“I was a business analytics intern and team coordinator on a consulting project for an ed-tech firm expanding into new markets. I aligned a team spread across China, the U.S., and Hungary, we built out the market analysis, and the CEO reviewed our final presentation. Putting together a team that’s aligned across time zones and cultures — that meant a lot to me.”
“If you put in any effort toward your career development, it’s already applying to Elevate. You’re already paying for the university — you might as well make the most of it.”
Q. What skill from Illinois Tech did you use most on the job?
“Accountability. I was doing a lot and could risk burning out, but there’s not much to say if you’re not accountable for your responsibilities — classwork, the internship, the roles at school. Find opportunities, maintain a workload you can sustain, pursue what means the most to you, and show up.”
Q. What would you say to a first-year who isn’t sure Elevate is worth their time?
“If you put in any effort toward your career development, it’s already applying to Elevate — it’s not the dedication-heavy thing people make it out to be. It starts with the basics and ramps up to the specific things that make you a viable candidate.”
Q. What’s next for sophomore year?
“Long-term, stable growth — maintaining my classes, my leadership positions, and my job, plus the second-year Elevate requirements and certifications like the CAPM. My goal is business analytics in the public sector, so I’m adding a public policy minor.”
Why Elevate
Delwin’s first year shows what Elevate looks like when a student runs with it: leadership roles, workshops, and an international internship — all counting toward his verified Elevate progression while he helps design the activities the next cohort will use. That’s the model: students don’t just complete Elevate, they build it. With his Success Coach behind him and the second-year requirements ahead, Delwin’s staircase keeps climbing.
Elevate, Your Future.
Take the first step on your own staircase — Elevate comes at no additional cost, and it starts with what you’re already doing.
Interview conducted by Illinois Tech Career Services; answers edited and condensed for clarity.
