‘Proud to be at FSU’: Far from their homeland, mother and two sons achieve together on campus 

Ibrahim Gillani appreciates the “tight knit” community. 

His younger brother, Shahmeer Mustafa Gillani, beholds the “very beautiful” campus. 

And their mother, Amber Noor Mustafa, embraces the “very welcoming” hospitality. 

All three speak from the perspective of a current student at Florida State University.  

“How impressive is that?” said Lawrence Joseph “LJ” Mahon, a senior lecturer in the Department of Finance in FSU’s College of Business. “When I was young, most students saw college as a way to get away from home and live the college experience. And here we have a mother and her two sons at FSU.” 

The three arrived at FSU one at a time by way of Pakistan, their homeland. 

Ibrahim, a student of Mahon’s, graduates Friday, May 3 with a Master of Science degree in finance, while Shahmeer pursues a bachelor’s in computer science and Amber, their mother, works toward a Ph.D. in international and multicultural education through the Fulbright Foreign Student Program. 

They personify FSU’s global reach and illustrate the university’s celebrated family atmosphere.  

“We are proud to be at FSU,” Amber said. 

Amber began a five-year Fulbright program at FSU in August 2020, one year after Ibrahim began pursuit of a bachelor’s degree in economics at New York University. Amber did her first semester online in Pakistan, then moved to Tallahassee with her husband, Noor Mustafa Gillani, in January 2021.  

Amber calls her husband the family’s “scaffolding.” 

“He left his work in Pakistan and made all of this possible,” she said. 

Shahmeer came with his parents to Tallahassee but soon returned to the family’s hometown of Lahore, considered Pakistan’s cultural capital, to finish high school. He graduated in summer 2023 and applied to numerous U.S. universities, with a preference for acceptance to FSU so that he could join his mother and father in Tallahassee. He got his wish and started at FSU in fall 2023. 

Meanwhile, Ibrahim completed his bachelor’s degree at NYU in May 2023. He considered starting work as a strategy consultant but decided to apply to FSU’s Master of Science in finance program, which would reunite him with his family and give him time to prepare for the Chartered Financial Analyst level 1 exam as he worked toward a prestigious job in finance. 

He liked the professional-development emphasis of FSU’s program, which would allow him to help manage the college’s Student Investment Fund, a student-run vehicle now valued at more than $6 million. He also considered FSU’s Top 25 ranking among public schools and especially its value compared with the cost of tuition at many other schools. 

He has since discovered even more to like about it. 

“Even though it’s a big school, there’s a tight-knit community here,” Ibrahim said. “I’ve noticed that the faculty members, even the ones with the highest credentials, are very caring toward their students. They look out for us, and they’re there for us when we need help. That is a big difference at FSU.” 

He has brought a big difference to FSU: a moustache that turns heads, amazes professors and inspires comparisons to William Howard Taft, Rollie Fingers and the guy on the Pringles can.

“That is the best mustache in the competition and possibly the best mustache I have ever seen,” Darren Brooks, assistant dean and MBA director in the College of Business, said in March during the FSU/SouthState Bank Small Business Case Competition. He referred to the whiskers of Ibrahim, who participated on a team that took first place in the event. 

Ibrahim noted that moustaches are culturally big in Pakistan, where they’re sometimes just plain big. He’s had his since 2022, and he plans to keep it, at least for now. 

“It’s been useful in the job-searching process,” he said. “When you do an interview or you’re at a networking event, they remember you. They remember your face.” 

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