Elyas Khalid

Meet Elyas Khalid, a fourth-year business-accounting student who transferred from Fullerton College to Cal State Fullerton.

When business-accounting student Elyas Khalid first moved from Afghanistan to the United States in 2021, he did not expect to start his senior year of high school during a global pandemic.

He graduated from Savanna High School fully online and was looking forward to starting his first semester at Fullerton College. Growing up in an scholarly family, Elyas was inspired by his parents to become a lawyer and obtain a Ph.D one day.

However, his academic plans were put on hold when his world turned upside down once again. The Afghan government collapsed, and his family was evacuated to Liverpool, where he found himself stepping into his first professional role as a senior liaison officer to help fellow refugees adjust to life in the United Kingdom.

Despite these obstacles, Elyas was determined to return to Fullerton College to pursue his education one day. Fast forward to now, as a transfer student in his fourth year at Cal State Fullerton, he is gearing up to enter the business world at full force.

From Afghanistan to California

Elyas came to Fullerton College with a clear objective: to obtain his associate’s degree in paralegal studies and transfer to a four-year university to pursue law.

However, his academic path soon shifted. After exploring paralegal studies and biology majors, he realized that these disciplines did not align with his academic goals anymore. It wasn’t until he took a business course that Elyas found his true calling.

To improve his English working proficiency, Elyas decided to enroll in ESL courses. He excelled in the classroom, advancing to more rigorous ESL classes with the encouragement of his professors. Despite his success, he noticed that his peers lacked engagement with each other in the classroom.

“I’m doing great, but I see that these people are shy,” he recalled. “I was talking with my professor about how we can engage them.”

Two young people wearing school apparel smile for the camera outdoors in front of a modern building.

Elyas Khalid with fellow classmates and faculty at a ESL ceremony in 2025. (Courtesy of Elyas Khalid)

During class breaks, Elyas decided to break the ice, hoping to help his peers warm up with each other. Through building rapport with classmates and connecting them back to the course material, he succeeded in bringing the class closer together as a community. To Elyas, the success of others is his own as well.

The EOPS Program was also instrumental in Elyas’s success at Fullerton College. Through dedicated counseling and financial assistance for textbooks, the program provided the support he needed to thrive. He credits his EOPS counselor, JP Gonzalez, with helping him recognize opportunities he otherwise would have missed.

“I’ll never forget JP because he helped me earn all of my associate degrees,” Elyas says. “I wouldn’t have known I was eligible for six associate degrees and a certificate without his guidance.”

When it came time to transfer, his business professor, Ketan Shah, encouraged him to apply to Cal State Fullerton’s prestigious accounting program. He also reflects on the words of his ESL professor, Elizabeth Gaitatjis, who once said, “I’m just planting the seeds; someone else will water them.”

His professors’ encouragement, along with the community and foundation he built at Fullerton College, prepared him for his next chapter at Cal State Fullerton.

Hello Neighbor

When Elyas arrived at Cal State Fullerton in the fall of 2025, he immediately felt at home. From making new friends at orientation to getting directions from a professor on his first day, he instantly fell in love with the campus’ welcoming environment and how helpful people were to each other.

“I feel my experience was easy – it’s the people. Just talk with them, you guys will help each other together,” he said.

After adjusting to university life, Elyas applied a hands-on approach to his education through building faculty relationships, attending office hours and asking for help. His hard work would pay off, as he earned recognition on the dean’s list during his first semester–an honor awarded to only a small percentage of CSUF students.

From left to right: Dr. Tam Nguyen, Director of CSUF Center for Family Business, Elyas Khalid, Dr. Sridhar Sundaram, CSUF Dean of the College of Business and Economics. (Courtesy of Elyas Khalid)

He also now works at the Career Center as an employer relations student assistant, helping connect CSUF students with employers and career opportunities. Outside of work and class, he is an active member of Beta Alpha Psi, Accounting Society and Afghan Student Association.

Last year, he received an invitation to attend Dinner with 12 Titans, a signature CSUF event bringing together students and alumni for an evening of networking. “You get chosen among 43,000 students,” he said. “It is very competitive.” It was at this dinner that he met his future mentor, Tam Nguyen, who connected him to a network of driven business professionals and opportunities.

It Takes A Titan

Throughout each step of the journey, Elyas has been able to create his own opportunity.

Elyas will graduate from Cal State Fullerton this spring with a bachelor’s degree in business-accounting. With an internship already lined up after graduation, he dreams of becoming a business owner one day, applying the knowledge and skills he gained from his time at Fullerton College and Cal State Fullerton.

For incoming transfer students, Elyas’ advice is simple: “Believe in what you want to do. Sometimes, what you want to believe, you’re capable of.”

Transfer Success Starts Here

These students successfully transferred from Fullerton College to CSUF. With the Future Titan Center, so can you!