How Anita Maharaj ’14 Found Her Place at UCF and Beyond

Anita Maharaj’s story doesn’t begin with a single moment — it unfolds like a mosaic, each piece shaped by ambition, resilience and a relentless curiosity about the world and her place in it.

Anita Maharaj ’14, Key Account Manager at Tropicana and the chair-elect of the UCF Chicago Alumni Community, first began navigating in Broward County, Florida, where she enrolled in College Academy, a dual-enrollment program that combined high school and college. At just 17, she graduated with both a high school diploma and an associate degree. 

Her academic path was shaped by both rebellion and reverence. Determined to create her own path, Maharaj chose psychology, drawn to the intricacies of human behavior. But her family’s expectations loomed large. Her parents had dreams of Ivy League schools and post-graduate degrees that would catapult her into a career that was considered successful in that point in time. 

UCF wasn’t even on their radar — until Maharaj stepped onto the campus during a spontaneous trip and felt something she hadn’t felt anywhere else: belonging.

She transferred to UCF in spring 2011, skipping dorm life but having a solid group of friends to lean on. Despite finding a rhythm, she aspired to be a bigger part of the UCF community and what the university had to offer outside of just an education. She joined Alpha Epsilon Phi as a junior, a deliberate choice to pick an organization of women who helped her grow into what will become the best version of herself. The sorority didn’t just teach her how to dress professionally — it taught her how to network, advocate for herself and really be a part of a community she felt passionate about. She also spent Spring 2014 semester studying abroad through UCF’s Student Exchange program which she credits her ability to leave her comfort zone to and added to her lifetime passion of travel. 

After graduating, she earned her MBA from the University of Florida — ironically, the same school she’d been rejected from as an undergrad and the same one her father had attended. Business was her calling, even if it took a winding road to get there. Regardless of the path to get there, she had learned to advocate and make life decisions based on herself and her passions.

“I wish I participated in more internships” is a thought that crossed her mind often as her post MBA career path zigzagged through hospitality, analytics and brand strategy while trying to find her place in the workforce. She started at Hilton’s front desk, then moved into food and beverage administration, working alongside marketing teams and supporting one of the largest convention related hotels in Chicago. COVID forced another pivot — this time to U.S. Bank, where she gained experience in freight payments and supply chain logistics. Later, Maharaj realized she wanted to work with brands that inspired her, those with stories as dynamic as her own.

She joined Tropicana in 2023, just before its separation from PepsiCo. Within months, she was actively participating in enterprise resource planning (ERP) testing, leading the revamp of the nationwide customer pickup program and becoming the go-to expert for systems applications and products (SAP) operations. While she was promoted into Sales earlier this year, that hasn’t stopped her ambitious can-do attitude at work. She has stepped in to help lead the company’s culture committee, actively participates in company initiatives and mentors younger colleagues — always striving to be the person she wished she had known staring off and eagerly taking on the professional growth opportunities she wished she was offered. 

Outside of work, Maharaj is the three-time chair- elect of the UCF Chicago Alumni Community, a group that’s become a chosen family. “They get it,” she says. “They understand what it’s like to be from somewhere else, to balance both worlds: Florida & Chicago.” Whether it’s river tubing, bar crawls, watching eclipses or parading in Trinidad’s Carnival with fellow Knights, she has found home in her UCF Chicago family and their shared experiences. 

She and her husband, Vishal, have a strong love for travel, visiting places all around the world and documenting it (@travelswithneetz). When they’re not jetsetting, they live with their dog, Sadie, and cat, Cleo, who Maharaj jokingly insists must be mentioned. She not-so-jokingly suggested a “Knight Your Pet” initiative to celebrate furry companions in the UCF community. Because for Maharaj, connection is everything — whether it’s through mentorship, marketing or meowing in a Teams “Cat Chat”.

Her story is one of reinvention, of learning to listen to advice (even if you don’t take it) and of seizing opportunities when they appear. Maharaj didn’t follow a straight path — but she carved one that’s uniquely hers. And for her, the mosaic is still being designed, one meaningful moment at a time.