Four juniors and one graduate are behind Penpal, the first digital business card created by students for students.
Ameenul (Gem) Haque 鈥�26 was amazed by the frenzied networking that took place at the Society of Asian Scientists and Engineers conference in Boston last fall.
鈥淚t was really fast-paced, and the recruiters just wanted to know if you were a perfect fit for their companies or not,鈥� he says. 鈥淭hey collected a pile of r茅sum茅s, put all those papers on a table, and moved on.鈥�
Haque had a different plan. The computer science and digital media studies double major tapped his digital business card on the smartphones of about 30 recruiters. In an instant, his r茅sum茅, LinkedIn profile, research projects, and portfolio were transferred.
鈥淭he recruiters were super impressed,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t was convenient and quick, and it made me stand out.鈥�
Haque is one of four students and one alumnus who developed Penpal, joining Tamuda Chimhanda 鈥�26, Lizmairi聽Vargas Santa 鈥�26, Alessio Simoya 鈥�22, and Meghna Tetambe 鈥�25S (MBA). Haque, Chimhanda, and Vargas Santa met as recipients of the , the premier scholarship award at the University.
While digital business cards are not new, Penpal鈥檚 founders say their product is unique. 鈥淚t鈥檚 created by students for students, and we鈥檝e developed features that allow students to show their most important information,鈥� Vargas Santa says. 鈥淥ur passion is helping students just like us.鈥�
Making the networking experience ever better
Penpal was formed in September 2022, when its founders saw a need for a better way to network.
鈥淢ost of us had been attending conferences recruiting for internships, and all we saw at each station was a large deck of business cards,鈥� says Chimhanda, a computer science major from Zimbabwe. 鈥淲e figured a digital business card would be a quick way of exchanging information and making us stand out.鈥�
The Handler Scholarship
The Alan and Jane Handler Scholarship offers complete financial support to academically qualified students who have overcome significant obstacles in their lives. Scholars are selected on the basis of academic excellence, outstanding potential to be future leaders, and demonstrated mastery of complex challenges.
Penpal is powered by near field communication (NFC), a short-range wireless technology that allows devices to exchange data using radio waves. The cards, which retail online for $19.99, are manufactured in China, with the embedded NFC chips using the same technology that exists for tap-to-pay credit cards and Apple Pay.
Each cardholder sets up a profile on their smartphone and then can share information with any other smartphone鈥攁ll with a simple tap. There鈥檚 also a QR code for those who prefer that method. At any point, Penpal users can modify the information they want others to receive. (.)
In addition to allowing users to share their r茅sum茅, portfolio, and other important items, Penpal comes with tools such as r茅sum茅 tailoring to help improve a person鈥檚 r茅sum茅.
Establishing a business鈥攐ne tap at a time
Penpal鈥檚 value as a student networking tool hasn鈥檛 gone unnoticed. The start-up captured first place at the 2023 Mark Ain Business Model Competition, sponsored by the University鈥檚 Ain Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. In 2024, Penpal won the Global Student Entrepreneur Award for Western New York.
The company鈥檚 first taste of success came in March 2024 at the National Society of Black Engineers convention in Atlanta, with more than 100 cards sold in one day. But its largest clients have been two career centers on the University鈥檚 River Campus.
LaTanya Johns, assistant dean at 鈥檚 , ordered 350 cards to aid Simon students in their job-seeking efforts. She says traditional business cards have lost favor due to COVID-19, which made people less inclined to pass paper back and forth. Penpal is a quicker, safer, and eco-friendly alternative.
鈥淨R codes have become a more acceptable means of sharing and transferring information, and Penpal has expanded on that by allowing the cardholder to transfer their contact information and other pertinent information,鈥� Johns says. 鈥淲e鈥檙e excited to offer the cards to our students.鈥�
The also purchased 100 Penpal cards to give away as prizes at signature events. Executive director Jodyi Wren says networking is a 鈥渃rucial part鈥� of career education, helping students navigate internship and job searches.
鈥淲e鈥檙e committed to supporting our students and their entrepreneurial pursuits while making networking more approachable and less intimidating,鈥� she says. 鈥淧enpal聽gives students a practical tool to build and maintain their professional connections.鈥�
Caleb Jakes 鈥�26, a business and English double major from Newark, New Jersey, received a Penpal card at a recent Greene Center event and says it鈥檚 a game changer.
鈥淚t鈥檚 an effective tool for networking because it provides a sense of efficiency and reliability to the user,鈥� says Jakes, who finds the card allows him to stand out at conferences. 鈥淚 connect with highly successful entrepreneurs and business owners. I tap their phone, and they are in love with the efficient and unique way we exchange information.鈥�
Building for the future, in Rochester and beyond
Because digital business cards are a competitive market, the Penpal team is constantly working to differentiate their product. This year, they created a feature that allows a user鈥檚 contact information to go directly to a recruiter鈥檚 inbox for later viewing.
鈥淪ay you鈥檙e networking in a fast-paced environment, and you鈥檝e only got two minutes,鈥� Chimhanda says. 鈥淚 tap my card, and the recruiter can have it sent to their email, with a photo of the student and a summary of their profile. After meeting more than 100 students, you鈥檝e probably forgotten who someone is.鈥�
The Penpal team also regularly discusses the company鈥檚 future, including the immediate goal of reaching out to career centers at local and national colleges.
鈥淯ltimately, Penpal has to become a household tool across universities,鈥� Tetambe says. 鈥淲e hope to eventually grow into a full-suite software company that supports students across different parts of their transition from academics into professional careers鈥攖hings like interview prep tools and r茅sum茅 building.鈥�
While it may take some convincing to get students to ditch the old-fashioned way of networking鈥攁n emailed or printed r茅sum茅鈥攊n favor of the newest technology, Tetambe and her cofounders are up for the challenge.
鈥淚t鈥檚 never easy stepping out of your comfort zone,鈥� she says. 鈥淏ut tools like the Penpal card allow job candidates to showcase their skills in a more dynamic and engaging way. And it鈥檚 certainly a great conversation starter!鈥�
