Go Broad Before You Go Deep

Former U.S. Ambassador and NC State Alum, Gentry Smith, made an appearance on campus last week. 

Gentry Smith (Political Science ‘83) met with students and faculty to discuss his successes and how he got there. Smith started his college career in electrical engineering, but changed his major to political science after being exposed to classes in the School of Public and International Affairs. Some people may ask, why political science? He enjoyed it. The more courses he took in political science, the more exposure he had with the professors: it was a match. He was thankful for his engineering background because later in his career, he worked with a majority of engineers and he understood the basics of their work. 

“Take advantage of all the opportunities given to you through NC State: resources, instructors, coursework, level of study. Soak it all in. Go broad before you go deep. The broader you go, the more it’s all going to come back and be of good use for you,” says Smith. “Students come in with a four year plan but sometimes it may take longer. That’s perfectly fine, the reward is still going to be there. There’s too much work put into it for you to give it all up.”

Previous NC State article on Smith.