Virginia Tech's - University Relations - Virginia Tech

2 INSIDE VIRGINIA TECHLEARNING
Virginia Tech develops and uses
instructional technologies as the
university transforms and improves the
way students learn. While we continue
to provide instruction in the classroom
and laboratory, we have also moved
beyond those traditional knowledgeacquisition
sites to meet the needs of
a technologically advanced age. With more than 90 percent of our academic departments
offering distance education over the Internet, many of our students enroll in e-learning
courses. Our courses, both traditional and electronic, are filled with top-notch students whose
quality, potential, and commitment continue to grow. For example, students who were offered
admission to the Class of 2016 boasted an impressive grade point average (GPA) of 3.98 on
a 4.0 scale and average Scholastic Achievement Test (SAT) scores of 1250 for the combined
critical reading and math sections.
Motivated students and a world-class faculty:
A winning combination for acquiring knowledge
Learning from diversity
More goes into learning than academic credentials
alone. To provide an education that will prepare our
graduates for the global environment in which they
will live and compete, Virginia Tech works diligently
to create a diverse environment on campus—
diverse, certainly, in terms of program offerings and
research initiatives, but diverse in the culture and
ethnicity of students, faculty, and staff as well. The
university supports scholarly and social pursuits
that provide a true multicultural learning experience
and continues to take decisive steps to attract more
underrepresented segments of the population to our
campus.
Pathways to learning
We focus on educating the whole person through
an integrated core/general education program of
broadbased knowledge and education skills—the
foundation needed to effectively function, reason,
and interact in a broader intellectual community—
that complements each student’s more focused
area of expertise. All undergraduates participate in
this program of first-year experiences, e-portfolios,
integrated course sequences, and capstone
challenges that include undergraduate research.
Virginia Tech also now offers residential colleges
that increase interactions with faculty preceptors
and peers from all academic disciplines and provide
a thriving sense of community that supports
academic and civic engagement.
Beyond the core/general education courses that
provide students with critical-thinking skills,
Virginia Tech also operates with a set of core values.
These core values, which define the institution
and its community, include a commitment to the
freedom of inquiry, personal integrity, mutual
respect, promoting personal and professional
growth, fostering a lifelong commitment to learning
and innovation, and contributing to society.