“American people are welcoming, but loud,” Emmanuel Arkoh, better known as Manny, says while laughing. Yet, he has also noticed that the American people tend to be honest and straightforward.  

Manny is a graduate student pursuing his master’s in business analytics with a major in data analytics. Before enrolling at Anderson, he had never visited the United States.  

Manny grew up in Accra, which is the capital city of Ghana. He would often travel to Mankessim in order to visit his grandparents, but the first time he traveled outside of the central region of Ghana was when he enrolled at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST).  

“For university, I moved from Accra all the way to Kumasi. So, it was about a 5-hour drive,” he explains.  

While at KNUST, Manny acquired a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering. Before choosing chemical engineering, however, Manny had plans to become a doctor.   

“I wanted to become a medical doctor, but in my country, you have to get all Excellents (A+) for 8 exams. Unfortunately, I got 6 As and 2 Bs, so I wasn’t able to do medicine. So, my dad suggested I should choose Chemical Engineering, but I didn’t know anything about it. I wanted to do pharmacy, and he told me that Chemical Engineering could lead me to that,” he says.  

 Ultimately, he’s never regretted the decision. “I really like calculations, I like figures,” he says. “I was part of the National Science and Maths Quiz team in high school. So, I competed for my school, and I really liked mathematics, so doing engineering was good. Later, I realized that if I had done Medicine, I wouldn’t have loved it.”  

After graduating from KNUST, Manny went to Manlleu, Barcelona in order to play for a professional soccer club. Although he had traveled to Nigeria prior to moving to Barcelona at 18, when he departed for Spain, he went completely alone.    

“My mom was scared, she thought I was going to get lost,” he remembers.  

While he did not get lost, he did unfortunately sustain an injury that prevented him from playing for a while. At that point, he knew he wanted to continue his education, so he started considering a few universities. After learning he could get academic and sports scholarships at Anderson, he reached out to the coaches and eventually he received a full ride to Anderson.   

“The unfortunate thing is Anderson doesn’t have a master’s in chemical engineering, so I had to do Data Analytics. But I was like, you know what? I’m gonna go for it.”  

The major is linked to his undergraduate degree, however. Manny explained that when an engineering student completes their calculations and produces their product, they need to send their materials to a data analyst in order to get feedback and tweak the product.  

“So, I realized, if I am a chemical engineer and I get feedback, if I can’t tweak it myself, I have to give it to a data analyst, but if I do data analytics, I will be able to tweak it myself and won’t need to pay them to do it for me,” he says.  

In addition to his major, Manny is employed at the Office of Institutional Research as a data scientist where he is able to put what he learns into practice.   

“I do common data sets, and then we do mostly enrollment and graduation data sets. We consult with financial aid to know how much funding they got, like scholarships and loans, and we need to report that to the Federal level. Then, they are able to rank Anderson based on these performances,” he explains. 

Manny stays very busy—he is also employed at the culinary center and works as a sports management athletic intern. “I work from Tuesday to Friday at the Office of Institutional Research and at the culinary center, I work on Monday and Tuesday, and then I skip Wednesday, and work Thursday and Friday. Then I work with the athletic department on weekends or various basketball or volleyball games during the week.”  

And his work ethic does not go unnoticed. The provost, his supervisor, and his coach have recognized and commended his diligence and positive attitude in the many roles he has. 

“When I came here, in about a month’s time, my coach called me to his office and he spoke to me about being one of the best players he’s ever had, and that if I continue to practice and play very well, I could make it in a professional league,” Manny says. “He told me he’s been working here for a decade, and he’s called only five people into his office to tell them that.”  

Despite his busy schedule that led him to feel he wasn’t able to give his best to the sport and an injury he sustained during the season, Manny played in the last game and scored the last goal of the season. Afterwards, he got two contract offers, one professional and one semi-professional.  

“But because I was getting back on my feet, I told my coach I was going to decline those offers because I don’t want to go in and mess it up.” Also, since he would be paid as a professional player, it would make him ineligible to play soccer at Anderson. “I didn’t want to compromise that; I wanted to finish my degree because you may never know. You could get injured at any time, so you have to get the degree alongside.” 

Anderson has been not only academically and professionally fulfilling, but personally as well. Manny has found support and community with his teammates and coaches, and the International House.  

“When you have issues, you talk to your coach and they are always available to help and provide support, because they know we are international students, far away from home.”  

 One of his teammates, Amos Uber, has a community within the soccer team where they have Bible studies every Thursday that Manny attends. He appreciates the ability to discuss the Bible and faith with trusted friends.  

Dr. Ann Themistocleous has also been a source of support and kindness for Manny. “I always go to her office when I have time, just to talk to her.” In fact, he says that everyone at the Center for Global Engagement is cool and supportive.  

“My birthday was last month, and Heidi called me to come for my birthday cake, and I was like, really? They are very sweet, and they make you feel like this is home.”   

His roommate, Johnny Coleman, has been very hospitable and helpful towards Manny, and he understands how it feels to be far away from home too. “Before I even came, he texted, ‘Hey, if you need me to get you at the airport, just let me know, I’ll get you.’ And every now and then, he’ll say, ‘If you need anything from the mall, just let me know, I’ll pick you up and take you there.’”   

When he told his roommate he needed to get a driver’s license, Coleman said, “Don’t worry, I’ll help you.” 

Manny and another international student, Joshua, even spent a week with Johnny’s family in November, where they went on a boat ride and just spent time together. “It was nice of him and his family to provide a space for us to feel welcome,” he says.  

“It’s been a great experience at Anderson so far. I like the people here, my coaches are great, and my teammates are cordial,” Manny asserted.  

There are still aspects of American culture that are unfamiliar or surprising for Manny after being in the US for several months now. “There are many cultural differences, like the food and dress,” he says.  

“The turnout for the football games was crazy, really crazy. I’ve never seen that in my life. In Spain, when we played soccer, it wasn’t the same compared to the way people came to support the football game,” he said. “So, I noticed American football is really popular in America.”  

He was also pleasantly surprised at the skills of the women’s volleyball team here at AU when he first attended a game. “I was really surprised. They were really, really good. So, I love going to the volleyball games.” 

Another place he loves to go on campus is the culinary center. He loves that he can hang out with his teammates in a more relaxed, casual environment than practice.  

Manny plans to get a master’s or PhD in Chemical Engineering, and perhaps a degree in statistics after his time at AU. Another option Manny is weighing is playing soccer professionally. Whatever he ends up doing, he is sure to be successful.  

“I try to do my best, wherever I find myself,” he says, and it shows.

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*Featured testimonials and student success stories reflect the experiences of individual students. These stories may not be indicative of the experience for all students. Employment outcomes and job titles are not guaranteed, and results may vary based on individual circumstances, job market conditions, and other factors. 

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**If you would like to support Emmanuel and other students in the College of Business, consider giving during A Day on April 3, 2025. You can learn more about their A Day cause here.