“Congratulations, you’ve been accepted!” were the words that I had been working towards ever since 5th grade. Now here it was, my acceptance into the vocational high school that would change everything for me: Blackstone Valley Regional Vocational Technical High School (BVT). Little did I know at that moment what these next four years would hold for me. Now in my senior year, through laughter, tears, and a lot of hard work, I have learned more about myself and my path in these years than I ever imagined.
Blackstone Valley Tech (BVT) is a vocational high school in Upton, MA, where students from 13 surrounding towns are given the amazing opportunity to explore and grow within a vocational trade of their choosing. These vocations, or shops as we call them, are some of the best state-of-the-art environments for our trades, with new equipment and highly qualified and trained instructors. These shops range from our Engineering program, where students use state-of-the-art equipment to build and innovate the next great invention, to Automotive Technology, where students learn everything there is to know about cars and how they work.
After exploring and trying out seven shops in my freshmen year, I learned a lot. From how to weld a T-joint or build a shed to photography and how to be a waitress. I learned many skills that even my parents were surprised to hear about. I ended up choosing the Information Technology (IT) shop at the end of my first trimester, where I was met with support and many opportunities from the school, my instructors, and my peers. This support and welcoming attitude from BVT were just the start of how invaluable this school would be for me.
BVT focuses on many core values for their vocational students, including safety, professionalism, and problem-solving. These values have shaped me into being a skilled IT Technician and leader within my school and trade area. Throughout my time in the IT trade, I have learned many skills: programming, troubleshooting, networking, robotics, and cyber security, to name a few. I have loved every second of learning as much as I can about this field and the opportunities that it has. But deep below the surface, the value of these skills and achievements is something even more valuable to me: my soft skills.
I first heard of soft skills in my Career Enrichment class at BVT. For those who are wondering what soft skills are, you aren’t alone. I wondered the same thing, and I was skeptical about how it could affect me and my trade. I soon learned that soft skills are defined as the skills that you learn that have nothing to do with your trade. They are skills that can serve you well in any aspect of your life, no matter what your career is. Instead of focusing on the certifications that I earned in hardware, software, networking, and cyber security, I was instructed to look deeper into what those skills have taught me. Skills in customer service, communication, public speaking, and leadership are just among the few that I have learned to utilize.
The vocational aspects of BVT, as well as the rigorous academic courses that I invested myself in have given me many opportunities outside of the classroom to excel. Since choosing my trade in my freshman year, I have been able to showcase my IT skills and the soft skills that it has taught me. I advocated at a national level for vocational education as a delegate of Massachusetts. I co-created a website for the regional student council that I am an officer of. I even won a silver medal in a state-wide competition against all vocational schools in the state for technical applications. These experiences, among many others that I’ve been able to participate in, have led the way for me to realize just how much I have grown since freshman year.
All of this has prepared me for a cooperative education job in the field. Every other week of my senior year, instead of going to school for my shop, I get to go to work for an IT company and learn more about IT, but in a professional and real-life environment. This experience at my workplace, Worldband, was something that I had been working towards since I first walked into my shop freshman year. I not only learn valuable skills beyond my school’s curriculum, but here I can incorporate my soft skills into a real-world environment, while also earning money, and who wouldn’t like the sound of that?
In my time at BVT, I learned not only vocational skills but also how to become a responsible and accountable person, skills that seem to be lost in my generation. As I have prepared to be a leader, a professional in the workplace, a public speaker, and a powerful networking figure, I have confidence in my abilities that far surpass others my age.
That’s what makes BVT and vocational education so special, it doesn’t just show you the value of being in a trade at such a young age, but it shows you the value of being able to form soft skills from such a young age that most adults are never able to fully develop.
Although we are just high schoolers, and sometimes we find those TikTok and Instagram reels funnier than they should be, we have grown into intuitive and forward-thinking individuals who are ready for the world of work.
Now here I am, waiting for those same four words of acceptance from my colleges that would start another 4-year journey of discovery, fun, learning, and preparedness. The difference though is that this time, I am more prepared than ever to face anything that comes at me with the full support of my network and the skills that I have formed throughout my time at Blackstone Valley Tech. ❦

About the Author

Zabel Derkosrofian is a senior at Blackstone Valley Regional Vocational Technical High School (BVT), where she is in the Information Technology program. When she is not fully immersed in a vocational project or her academics, Zabel can be found spending time with her family and friends, leading the way on the soccer field, or volunteering at her church.
She serves as the Vice President of the Central District Massachusetts Association of Student Councils (CDMASC), where she helps to lead the region and bring community service opportunities into schools. Zabel currently works as a Tier I Technician at Worldband, where she applies the knowledge that she has learned at BVT to real-world situations in the field.

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