After his first visit to Texas A&M University, Roland Block immediately knew Aggieland was going to be the place for him. The friendly Texas “howdy” matched the same passion he had for life, and to him it felt like home. He was so confident he’d become an Aggie that he even canceled his other scheduled college visits. 

He was right. Roland joined Texas A&M as a mechanical engineering major with a dream to design medical devices and quickly got involved on campus. As an undergraduate, he had several transformative experiences that only deepened his love for Aggieland. He became the president of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, was hired as a research assistant and studied abroad in Germany, to name a few. 

Although he started his college journey as an engineer, when he discovered that product managers were the ones making decisions on how devices should be designed, he knew that’s what he wanted to be. For Roland, his driving force has always been to go where he can make the biggest impact. What he would choose next in pursuit of that would change the trajectory of his career and life. 

Fast-forwarding through 30 years of experience in the medical device industry, Roland’s love for being an Aggie would eventually come full circle. Now, he serves as the associate director of Engineering Career Services, bringing decades of industry experience and an unwavering commitment to helping Aggies reach their potential. 

These days, you might find him on campus giving career presentations to audiences across the university, connecting with employers, advising students one-on-one or volunteering his time with student organizations. 

Meet Roland

Q: Tell us about your journey back to Texas A&M. What brought you home to Aggieland?

My story starts in Atlanta, where I grew up in humble surroundings. When I was looking at colleges, Georgia Tech just wasn't my thing. I came to visit Texas A&M and immediately fell in love, so much so that I canceled my planned visit to Duke! There was something about the spirit here, the friendliness, the sense of community. I'd never said "howdy" in my life before I got here, but it just felt natural. Texas A&M became home in a way that nowhere else ever has, even after living all over the country.

After graduating in '93 with my mechanical engineering degree, I spent over two decades in the medical device industry. I worked everywhere from Alabama to Pennsylvania to Seattle, helping commercialize over 100 new medical devices and managing $250 million product lines. But through it all, Texas A&M remained home.

The turning point came when my oldest son was looking at colleges, and he wanted to come to Texas A&M. We were living in Seattle, enduring nine months of cold, dark rain, and I told my wife, "Pack your bags, the house is going up for sale." We moved back to Texas, and I set up a consulting company.

After arriving back in town, I visited the Career Center in hopes of just volunteering my time to help students with my industry expertise. I met with Paul Pausky and the idea of giving back unexpectedly turned into a job opportunity. This job was perfect because I could help more students this way, and it really brought my dreams of returning to Texas A&M in an official capacity to life. 

Q: You mention Texas A&M feeling like "home." What made it so special during your undergraduate years?

Texas A&M matched my personality perfectly. I've always been spirited, and this place is incredibly spirited. The friendliness, the traditions, the sense of belonging all resonated with me. I’ve always enjoyed going to all of the sports games. 

Even now, having lived all over the country, this is the only place that truly feels like home. When we were living in Pennsylvania with young kids, I brought them to a Texas A&M football game while visiting friends in Texas. They quickly caught the Aggie Spirit, and at the game, my wife Wendy looked at me and said, "Can you get me out of Pennsylvania, please?" We joked, but didn’t know that soon enough we’d end up back here and it would be home for my wife and kids someday, too. 

Q: Your professional background is quite extensive. How does your industry experience inform your work with students?

Nearly 30 years in medical devices taught me about R&D (research and development), product management, marketing and global business operations. I've hired hundreds of people, trained thousands of sales reps and held multiple patents. But more importantly, I learned that there's a difference between efficiency and effectiveness, which is something engineers often struggle with.

In industry, I discovered that building relationships is often more effective than just sending emails. When I work with students now, I help them understand their target audience as well as their own personal brand. Are you talking to an HR person or an engineer at that career fair? What are you trying to accomplish? We tend to jump right to solutions without taking a step back to understand the real objective or how we want to present ourselves.

Q: What's your philosophy when it comes to helping students navigate their careers?

I tell students to think of their career journey like being at the beginning of a forest. You know you want to get to the other side, but you can't see a path through all the trees. Find a part of the forest that looks interesting and climb that first tree. Your perspective changes from up there,  you can see new possibilities, and you can always climb back down and try a different tree.

The key insight I learned early in my career came from General Norman Schwarzkopf, who said, “The only way you can really go wrong with a decision is if you don't make one. You can adjust once you gather more information, but paralysis helps no one.”

I also share something I learned in my own career: there are three phases — learning, earning and returning. I'm in the returning phase now, and it's the most rewarding work I've ever done.

Q: What's one thing you wish every student knew about the Career Center?

Start early and start now! Students often don't realize how beneficial our services are. Students who have their resumes reviewed by us look dramatically better. Students we prepare for interviews perform significantly better.

The advice online is usually terrible for students because it's focused on experienced professionals. Students think they can just Google everything or use AI, but that's not effective. We can even show them how to use AI properly, like asking it to identify the hard and soft skills you developed as a barista and how that relates to engineering roles. But remember, you want your resume to be in your own voice.

Q: Beyond the Career Center, you're involved with several student organizations. Tell us about that.

I'm passionate about helping students in multiple ways. I advise the VROOM Foundation Ambassadors, which supports medical missions in Nigeria and other parts of sub-Saharan Africa. When I started advising them eight years ago, we had five students. Now we're projected to have over 100! They've donated about $70,000 to the foundation — money that directly saves lives. We estimate that's approximately 50 lives that have been saved.

I also work with SLING Health TAMU, judge Aggies Invent competitions and support our sales competition team. These activities keep me connected to what students are doing and help me understand their needs better.

Q: What do you love most about your job?

A: I love that I came back to Texas A&M specifically to help students, and that's exactly what I get to do every day. Whether it's one-on-one coaching, presentations to large groups or working with employers, it's all about helping Aggies succeed. 

This is the most rewarding job in the world, and I do it because I get to watch students transform and reach their potential.

Q: What's a fun fact about you that your colleagues might not know?

A: I come from a family of putters! I was playing golf before I could even stand. As a kid, I was part of Junior Putters of America, and I finished second twice in the 15-and-under division. Eventually, I turned pro and got to travel around competing. I was actually considered one of the best putters in the world at one point.

The talent runs in the family, too. My sister still competes and won the gold medal as world mini golf champion for senior females. I still love golfing today when my back allows it!

Q: Any final advice for current students?

A: Remember that a failure is only a failure if you fail to learn from it. Whether you succeed or not, ask yourself “why” so you can either repeat your success or improve next time. Don't be afraid to take that first step into the forest of possibilities. We're here to help you climb that tree and see new perspectives.

Our mission is helping students reach their potential while becoming the preferred source of talent for employers. When you succeed, don’t forget to pay it forward. Because when you succeed and help others, Texas A&M succeeds, benefiting everyone.