Hi Kevin,

Looks like you’ve really settled into your role as the editor of the alumni publications, I know that I have continued to enjoy your e-mails and stories.

It’s one of my favorite ways to keep in touch with my MTU and Upper Peninsula Roots now that I’ve moved away to Texas for work.

In your “Only You Can Save The Day” article you asked Alumni to share what they would say at a commencement address, Here is what I would say:

As many of my peers from Tech have gone on to do, I started a career, and got married to an equally smart and career driven woman. In my case my wife is a very driven Veterinarian who has always had aspirations of becoming a renowned researcher/specialist in her field.

Early in our Relationship/Marriage my job forced me to move from Michigan, to Connecticut, Texas, Scotland (UK), and then back to Texas. My wife, girlfriend at the time, was forced to decide if our relationship was worth pursuing even if it meant giving up the possibility of doing post-doctoral work. She said that she made the choice to follow my career partly because of a talk she heard where a renowned Veterinarian said, “no one’s career path makes sense except in hind sight.”

This renowned Vet had said that early in her career she wondered what she was doing working with the military in a low paying position to assist military bomb sniffing dogs. It wasn’t the position she had dreamed about. But fast forward 30 years, and the experiences and connections made working with the army give her an “in” to a prestigious research appointment at the National Institutes of Health where she became a leading authority on animal/human communicable diseases.

My wife and I like to laugh about this story from time to time. Especially as we face economic down turns or major career decisions. While the decisions we make today don’t always seem to make sense, or lead where we think they ought to go, It always rings true that in hind sight the path we took was what made us who we are, and has made us qualified to fill the positions we accept in the future.

If I were giving this speech I would remind my fellow alumni, that their futures are bright, and while they are undoubtedly facing uncertainty about their futures, their MTU roots will have prepared them well, and will always be one of the great steps they took on their very own career paths.

Tim Kurdziel 07’ BS MSE

Thanks for this, Tim. That’s an excellent point about our lives and careers making more sense in hindsight. I’ve got a few things to share about my odd path as a professional when we get closer to Career Fair. –Kevin