Hannah with Hokie Bird

With Virginia Tech’s Program in Real Estate growing and becoming exceedingly competitive, it has turned its focus to spreading the word of its success and increasing its presence on social media and on the web. The first step of this new marketing campaign was to hire Hannah Polan, the Program’s new Marketing and Industry Engagement Coordinator.

“Working for a large entity like Virginia Tech is challenging yet exciting—my day is never the same….I love representing a relatively new department that is exponentially growing,” Polan said. 

Polan, a Clemson University alumna, recently received her Master of Science in business administration and a certificate in hospitality and tourism management from Virginia Tech, making her a proud Hokie. She has previous experience working as a public relations coordinator

“I enjoy marketing because I get to provide people with the knowledge they need to succeed—or even just because of smile when I provide positive information! These days the information overload can be quite a bit so being able to get through to people is key and I find it stimulating,” Polan said.

Although a lot of Polan’s responsibilities are focused on marketing for the Program, she also works closely with the Program’s Industry Advisory Board. The board, comprised of 49 members, help to facilitate the professional success of students and the Program as a whole. For some members this includes speaking in classes or participating in student events and even mentoring individual students. Polan envisions expanding the board and making it more inclusive in the future:

“One of my long-term goals is to help further diversify our advisory board. I think it’s important to have a diverse board in terms of gender, ethnicity, age, social background, and ableness because it provides an opportunity to widen the influence of the board,” Polan said. “It allows for change of perspectives. It is exceptionally important for students to recognize that no matter their background, they can be a successful in the industry.”

Polan began working for the Program in August 2019 and has been busy since. With her most recent project, the Fall 2019 Industry Advisory Board meeting, complete she is turning her focus to organizing and advertising other events, such as the REAL Career event. This biannual job far is hosted entirely by the Program in Real Estate with more than 25 companies in attendance.

“Currently, I am still getting acclimated to the everyday life in a big entity like Virginia Tech but the Program and our director, Dr. Kevin Boyle, does a phenomenal job in making it seem small and family-like. Even though some events are months ahead, I am currently working on getting those together now so we make sure they are executed appropriately,” Polan said.

Although working for a large entity like Virginia Tech is challenging and exciting, its clear that, for Polan, working for the Program in Real Estate makes the transition easier:

“The program in real estate already feels like a home within a home,” Polan said, reflecting on her time with the Program so far.

Writen by Samantha Sproviero