Geeking Out With...Vedanshi Shah
February 3, 2026
Abigail Arnold | Office of Graduate Affairs
Geeking Out With…is a feature in which we talk to graduate students about their passions. You can check out past installments here.
Vedanshi Shah, MS’26, just completed the master’s program in Computer Science. During her time at Brandeis, she worked on research projects involving career preparation using Large Language Models and a collaboration with Google on their Tunix platform. She joined Geeking Out With… to talk about her passion for all kinds of adventure sports.
This interview has been edited for clarity.
How did you become interested in adventure sports, and what kinds of sports have you tried?
I got interested in adventure sports in the eighth grade. My dad and I were trying to figure out what to do for vacation, came across scuba diving, and decided to do an open water course. Later I tried white water rafting and kayaking, and in high school I did more scuba diving and got my advanced open water certification. In high school, I also learned to ski and ended up winning first prize in an international slalom competition. On a different vacation, I tried paragliding. I started with a three-day basic course and then went back for a pilot course, during which I stayed in the mountains for thirty days and learned many skills.
Later, I hiked to the Mount Everest base camp, which was a very mentally challenging experience with serious rigor. Like a lot of my experiences, it allowed me to learn a lot of skills and meet interesting, athletic people from all over the world. I have a bad fear of flying and heights, and I also used to fear the ocean, especially at night. Adventure sports were a way for me to conquer my fears, and I now love the ocean and have done over twenty night dives. It’s the most peaceful place for me.
Which sports do you currently participate in, and which is your favorite?
I still go scuba diving a lot. My brother lives in California, so I try to go there since Boston is cold! I also scuba dive when I go home to India, mainly in the Andamans and the Maldives. In Boston, I do climbing and skiing.
Scuba diving is my favorite because I’ve done it the most and it’s the most accessible around the world, in terms of the gear and information. I also really like skiing and paragliding.
Do you have a most memorable experience?
In 2018, my family did a night scuba dive in the Maldives on New Year’s day. We were in the middle of the Indian ocean, with no islands or land, and there were hundreds of sharks all around us. We turned off our flashlights but turned them back on for a second to see, and there were sharks all around us: one touching my leg, one by my face. It was so cool to experience the night in the ocean with them.
Can you tell me more about your Everest experience?
At Everest, I had not done any mountaineering before. I think it’s in the mindset – once you’re there, there’s no going back. Having the motivation and taking the fifteen day trek day by day helped a lot. I tried to focus on the particular day, although some days were very hard. We got training in oxygen supply and altitude, but that was difficult for me, and there was not any way to talk to my family. But I am also a yoga instructor, so I talked to myself and meditated every morning to balance myself and keep going. It was a great experience, but looking back, I’m impressed that I was able to do it. Taking it piece by piece and breaking it down really helped.
How do you manage the risk that comes with these sports?
For every sport, there are lots of rules you need to keep in mind. In scuba diving, once I went down too quickly, which was very scary – you can lose your life in a matter of seconds that way. It’s important to think back to the theory, use your tools, and look to your dive buddies. You need to keep cool and continue the dive. It’s important to get out of the scared feeling when something happens.
There are also drills – for example, in paragliding, you practice getting out of a spiral by yourself, since that’s one of the most difficult things to do. I also like learning more. I did a rescue diving course to learn how to rescue someone and how to stay calm and ascend safely if the oxygen goes out. Those skills are extremely valuable. Staying updated on the safety rules is important so that the risks are calculated.
How do you feel that your experience with adventure sports has changed over time?
It’s been very interesting because there’s so much theory that goes into these sports. I just got my master scuba diving license – it’s more physical but also more risky when you get more advanced licenses. Earlier on, there was less responsibility, and I felt more carefree. As I’ve matured and grown older, I understand the gravity of the activities and the actual adventure they involve. At the same time, I am able to absorb the landscape more in the water and take it all in and identify the fish; I don’t have to worry too much about my buoyancy. In the air, I don’t have to worry about the basics, and with more practice, I am able to enjoy the experience more. After every adventure sport experience, I write logs and write in detail what I saw and experienced. So it’s fun to look back on the first ones every now and then and see where I went – a cool walk down memory lane!
Who else do you participate in these sports with?
My family all got into adventure sports at the same time, starting with scuba diving. I’m the most interested so I go more often, but we try to go as a family to most places. I think my dad and I are the most passionate, but it’s great to share the experiences with my mom and my brother as well. We all do both paragliding and scuba diving.
Adventure sports are also very good for bonding. While I don’t participate in them with a set group of people, I do meet very interesting people. I go to the same place for paragliding regularly and am in touch with the instructors, and I’ve kept in touch with everyone I went to Everest with. In Boston, I go skiing with a couple of friends from Northeastern and my roommate who goes to Brandeis as well.
When you’re not doing research or adventure sports, what else do you like to do?
I play normal sports as well. I played soccer for Brandeis club soccer and have played all my life. I also have played baseball and softball. I also do robotics and participated in the First Robotics competition and world championships. I was the second girl from India to represent my country in robotics and was the only girl at the national robo-soccer competition.
What advice do you have for other students exploring their passions?
Don’t be afraid of trying something just because the idea seems daunting. Everything takes a lot of steps, so taking it one step at a time is a good mindset. You’ll never know until you fail, and you learn so much by failing. In adventure sports, there is so much you can learn and apply to different parts of life. For example, in paragliding, you shouldn’t look at the place you don’t want to go, because you’ll get fixated on it and subconsciously end up there; instead, you should look at the place you do want to go. And that’s just one analogy.