Open the Door

As the semester draws to a close, many of us are in different places in our lives. Some of us are finishing up our first year in college, baffled at the fact that we made it through and it is over already. Some of us are sophomores excited and thankful to mark this as the halfway point of our college career. Some of us are juniors, eager and nervous to start our first internship for the summer. Some of us are seniors in awe that four years have come and gone, and that soon enough we will be jumping in Lane Stadium for the last time with our cap and gowns on.

We all may be in different places in our lives, but all of us share this place, a place we like to call home.  As many of us know, at this home we hold the door for each other, it is just what we do. Fortunately, this home has a variety of doors we travel through together each day. Each of us has been through so many doors this year; the door to our residence hall, the door to our classroom, the door to a dining hall, the door to the library, and the list could go on.

Each door has an opportunity that we have the opportunity to grab on to. But there is one door yet that maybe you have not faced or entered yet.

The Smith Career Center is home to Career and Professional Development, which in reality is your home too! As my time as an undergraduate and a Peer Career Advisor draws to a close, I wanted to share an invitation for you to always utilize and feel welcomed by our office.

Career and Professional Development is a resource for all students at Virginia Tech to use as a tool for assistance in their professional development journey. Our mission is to:

“Recognizing that career development is a life-long process, the mission of Career and Professional Development is to educate and support students as they explore and further understand themselves and career options, gain valuable experience, develop as professionals, and launch their post-graduation career plans.”

At Career and Professional Development, we want to see you succeed and we want to help you get there. Each of our journeys and successes are different, not one is the same, and we want to provide you individualized attention in order to help you find your unique path.

Our core values revolve around you, because together in this home we are family. 

We build relationships.

We believe in passion.

We are catalysts.

We are educators.

We are open to all ideas.

We are challengers.

We have valuable connections.

We are a team.

There are so many resources and information that we as students coming out of high school into college were simply not given. I know that coming into college, I had no idea how to write a resume, how to get an internship, or honestly what I wanted to do with my life. A little bird told me I needed to stop by the office, just walk in, and see what was going on. That first walk through the doors of the Smith Career Center changed my life.

I cannot emphasize enough how much this office has impacted my time as an undergraduate, and it can for you. The first step is opening the door and walking in. Even if you don’t know what questions to ask, come in and find out more about the resources available for you.

Virginia Tech students are welcome to visit us during office hours to use our Career Resource Center, to take full advantage of our website, and to seek advising with us. We are excited to meet you, listen, and grow to know what you need most from our office to get you wherever life might take you next.

Thanks for reading, sharing, and listening this year with me. It has been a joy sharing with all of you. Best of luck in all the doors you are invited to and the opportunities they bring.