It’s easy to be excited by the numbers at NC State. In August — for the fifth consecutive year — we welcomed our largest class of students to our campus in Raleigh and our online programs. But what’s more exciting are the people behind those numbers. The 10,647 new members of our Wolfpack are diverse, distinguished and determined to thrive. Now, they’re here — finding their paths and taking charge of their futures.
Here are three of them, each of whom has benefitted from the life-changing power of private support.
Robert Garbarz: Starting a New Chapter
- Major: Master of Accounting (MAC) program, public accounting track
- Hometown: Apex, North Carolina
- Fun Fact: He has worked as a professional musician for more than 10 years — performing nationally and internationally — including with the Wichita Falls Symphony, Louisville Orchestra and Carolina Philharmonic.
This fall, a professional musician is roaming Nelson Hall. Robert Garbarz is a student in the Poole College of Management’s Jenkins Master of Accounting (MAC) program. He’s also a violinist who earned his bachelor’s and master’s degree in violin performance.
Garbarz was two years into a doctorate when he realized becoming a violin professor was no longer the career path he wanted. His most recent job showed him a previously undiscovered love for managing and organizing people and he soon found himself applying to different accounting programs.
Within a day of submitting his application to the Jenkins MAC program, Garbarz got a call from a real person at NC State who expressed genuine interest in him. As a husband and father to three children, time and money were top priorities. Garbarz worked with MAC staff to secure a fellowship sponsored by local accounting firm BDO USA. Not only does the fellowship cover nearly all of the MAC program’s expenses, but it also includes a job offer which Garbarz has accepted.
“I just hope to get an experience that makes me feel like, on day one at my job, I’m prepared and I know what’s expected of me,” said Garbarz. “[Think and Do] made a lot of sense to me. And I will say, that’s not the case everywhere. And it seems so simple. It seems so obvious.”
Dakota Coburn: Scholars Building Community
- Major: Textile engineering, product engineering concentration
- Hometown: Winterville, North Carolina
- NC State Tip for New Students: “Always carry a water bottle — it’s a big campus, and my water bottle has saved me during the hot weather.”
It’s a big deal for students to get into programs like the Goodnight Scholars or Textile Pioneer Scholars. So, you can imagine that when Dakota Coburn was accepted into both, it was a very big deal. She worked hard to get these scholarships, even going so far as to jet out during a midday break at a First Robotics competition in Durham for one of her interviews.
As a textile engineering major and double-scholar, Coburn has her hands full. But she couldn’t be more excited about it. She knew textile engineering was the path for her when a representative from Wilson College of Textiles came to her high school the fall of her senior year — she was immediately hooked, and her scholarships sealed her Wolfpack fate.
These programs don’t only help Coburn financially — they also provide a reliable community for her as she settles into a new routine here at NC State. Meeting new people has been one of Coburn’s favorite parts of the university so far, and she’s looking forward to getting involved in more student activities like intramural soccer.
“I’m just happy to be here,” Coburn said. “I love everyone I’ve met, and I can already tell that my time here is going to go by fast.”
Muhammad Ikbal Putera: Learning and Leading By Example
- Major: Ph.D. in parks, recreation and tourism management
- Home: Indonesia
- NC State Tip for New Students: Don’t be scared to reach out to your advisors and others if you have questions, especially if you’re an international student. And make your mental health a priority.
Park ranger, future Ph.D., international student and, now, member of the Wolfpack: Muhammad Ikbal Putera is all of these things and much more. The Fulbright Indonesia Scholar and International Fellow came to NC State this fall from his home in the Republic of Indonesia, where he works — still, thanks to his incredible dedication and some 3 a.m. EST Zoom calls — for Komodo National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Centre.
Putera’s duties in the park included managing visitors as well as catching, measuring and weighing komodo dragons, the latter of which can be as boring as it is exciting. Many lonely hours can fall between each potentially dangerous encounter, so Putera loves to sing to pass the time. He hopes to find ways to connect with other NC State students through music during his time on campus.
Putera is also part of the community outreach program Ranger Goes to School, which enables him and his fellow park rangers to teach more than 500 high school students in Labuan Bajo, Indonesia, for one semester each year. His efforts to educate and empower the next generation of Indonesian park rangers recently earned him a special acknowledgment of appreciation from the Minister of Environment and Forestry. While he’s deeply grateful for the award, Putera is quick to point out that his successes were actually team efforts — a fitting Wolfpack mentality.
Through his academic career, his professional work and everything else in his life, Putera hopes to show people, especially other Indonesians, that anything is possible.
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