Senior of the Year: Nikhil Breaking the Surface

Nikhil Raman is one of the most admired and respected students on campus. He has explored many different facets of activities at Exeter and has taken advantage of every opportunity thrown his way. This determination and love for what he does has stuck with Raman since his prep year.

"Prep and even lower year I was pretty anti-social to be honest. I was the kind of guy who didn't leave the dorm much, head in his books a lot. Not really because I was worried too much about grades, but just because I loved learning,” Raman said. “I soaked it all in, everything I was learning, and the grades sort of came with it as I found myself absorbed in the subject matter of all of my classes."

Although Raman is more concerned with learning than with his grades, he still managed to place in the top 5 percent of his class, earning early cum laude. 

"I'm really proud of getting early cum laude," Raman explained. "I don't think grades mean anything in terms of a person's intelligence or academic achievement, but looking back on it I was surprised by the fact that I did receive the honor and I'm happy that my passion for learning managed to bring that honor as a byproduct."

What's even more impressive about Raman's accomplishment of early cum laude is that he earned it while taking many advanced classes such as AP physics his upper year, which he then followed up by studying physics abroad at a university in Japan. 

And this fall and winter, Raman took a creative writing class, taught by his advisor and English instructor Matthew Miller.

“He is a great student,” Miller said. “He is a wonderful writer and a deep thinker about words and the way they can make and break the world. He is one of the best students I have worked with at any level.”

Miller continued and explained that in every class Raman created an affable and understanding atmosphere around the table.

“Nikhil cares about what his peers write and takes care with helping them with their work,” Miller said. “That care is reciprocated as they also care about him and the work he does. He's also just a terrific writer. He cares about words. He knows they matter.”

Along with academics, athletics is another area in which Raman excels. He is the captain of both the boys’ varsity tennis team and the boys’ varsity squash team. 

Regarding Raman’s guidance and leadership as captain, prep Darius Kahan noted Raman’s enthusiasm that prepared the team for every matches.

“Nikhil was always enthusiastic during the squash season and kept the squash team’s morale up and ready for match play,” Kahan said. “He was a valuable asset to the team and made sure that we were all ready for each game.”

Apart from his leadership, Frederic Brussel, the boy’s varsity squash coach, commented on Raman’s dedication to the sport. 

“Nikhil works very hard to master whatever he is learning and along the way he helps others to appreciate it,” Brussel said. “He is a great squash player, who works hard to improve and help those that are on the team to become better. He understands that the team is as good as the lowest player.”

While it’s already hard for students to excel in both academics and athletics, Raman manages to be actively involved in music as well. He is a member of the Exeteras and his love of guitar is well known. According to senior Joohwan Kim, Raman was not originally a great singer, but quickly began to master this art when he decided to try out for the Exeteras.

“Nikhil learns unbelievably quickly,” Kim explained. “If he wants to be able to do something, he will pursue it endlessly. Last January he was what most would consider a not very good singer. In fact, I'd say he was quite below average. He wasn't really hitting notes and was off pitch. But by spring he sounded above average. By fall, he was good enough to be a unanimous pick as a new member of Exeteras.”

Singing is not the only area where Kim has seen major growth in Raman. Over his time at Exeter, Raman has become much more socially active and willing to share his talents with others.

“Lower year, outside of the dorm and his sports teams, no one really knew who Nikhil was,” Kim said. “He admits it himself. He never came out with his guitar playing, which he was not as diligent about until his upper year. I didn't really know him or even talk to him my lower year.”

“But he's come out of his shell and the school has benefitted as a result,” Kim went on to explain. “I've made a great friend, if the word great even does justice. He's very open now and he plays his guitar in public as much as he can. He told me he was going to go busking during break. Very few people have the audacity and courage to do that. People know him everywhere on campus, hence why he's senior of the year. He's admired for being the guy who did well academically and socially and in athletics without compromising his love for Exeter or his dignity.”

Dorm life has helped spark the growth seen in Raman and has served as a community that he can always look to for help. And this year as a proctor in Main Street, Raman has had the opportunity to return this favor to others.

“I think my most memorable experience in Exeter has been living in a dorm, specifically Main Street of course,” Raman said. “We've been such a tight knit dorm for the past four years, probably one of the most tight knit, if not the most. It's been so much fun spending late nights playing mafia or playing quadball in the spring, and I always know I have someone to talk to in Main Street when I need someone to rant to.”

Raman’s musical performances and joyful personality will surely be missed at Exeter. Raman is certain Exeter will be hard to move away from and is grateful for all the school has given him.

“I don't know what I'm going to do when this spring term comes to an end,” Raman said. “After enjoying my time here in the past four years, I can't imagine moving on from here. There are so many teachers, peers, friends, new parts of family that I can't thank enough and that I will miss so much when graduation comes.”

“This place is truly a place where students can find what they care about,” Raman added. “A good friend, Connor Soltas, Class of 2013, once told me that ‘Exeter is about finding your calling. Know when to say yes and when to say no.’ I think that idea is too often taken for granted and that really Exeter gives a fantastic opportunity to explore and to find both what we love and what we hate.”