Harun ’20 Receives Governor’s Innovation Fellowship

On July 20, recent alumnus Eunes Harun ’20 was chosen to join the first cohort of the Governor’s Innovation Fellowship (CTGIF) team.

CTGIF offers ambitious, high-achieving recent college graduates the opportunity to work at top, innovative companies developing their career while working together as a community of fellows, growing together professionally and personally to create a cohort of talent, camaraderie, and growth in the State of Connecticut. The fellowship comes with a $5,000 award.

Harun, a government and economics double major, will be joining McKinsey & Company in Stamford, Conn., as a business analyst and will be participating in the CTGIF program simultaneously. As a fellow, he will gain access to mentorship, curated professional development, and a community of similarly-driven peers.

“I’m most looking forward to the opportunity to dive right into the greater Stamford community and build connections with business leaders,” Harun said.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Harun’s start date with McKinsey has been pushed back to December, though the CTGIF programming will begin in August.

For Harun, staying in the State of Connecticut following college was a top priority.

“I’ve grown up all my life in Hamden, Conn., and after going through the Hamden public school system, I was on the college search and it was a priority of mine to study in a state that would open the door to many career opportunities. I realized that Connecticut and Wesleyan would provide exactly that,” he said. “Over the last few years, I’ve come to love Connecticut and the community, opportunities, and climate it affords its residents.”

While a student at Wesleyan, Harun racked up a plethora of experience and accolades. He co-founded and organized two sold-out TEDxWesleyanU conferences; participated as a partner in the Global Leadership Summit in New York City; served as the president of Wesleyan’s Muslim Students’ Association; co-founded the student club Consulting Pathways; and received the Wesleyan Memorial Prize and the Rich Prize for excellence in oration. Recently, Harun and his team won the Entrepreneurship Foundation’s Business Pitch Competition for creating a mobile platform that brings needed innovation to financial literacy.

Harun also completed internships in consulting and strategy at RSM in New York City, NBCUniversal in Los Angeles, and on Wall Street at Guardian Life, as well as completed a stint with Google’s Cloud team. And in between these experiences and college classes, the self-described “serial-entrepreneur” also leads Harun Media LLC, where he has launched four subsidiary businesses.

Prior to starting his fellowship and job at McKinsey, Harun is keeping connected to Wesleyan. He’s currently a Patricelli Center fellow and the business career advising fellow at the Gordon Career Center where he helps current students prepare for business careers and interviews including management consulting.

“While New York City is attractive to young college students, I believe that there is a ton of value and excitement in Connecticut,” he said. “I’m excited to be able to work here and to be able to give back to the state and community that has raised me my whole life while having the opportunity to travel around the world as a business analyst at McKinsey.”