Alumni Profile: Melissa Vandermark

Using her education and experiences, Alfred State Construction Management graduate Melissa Vandermark is now working on multi-million-dollar projects across the country.

Melissa’s path to working on themed environments around the country started in the classrooms at Alfred State. “In high school I studied carpentry. Through carpentry, I really decided that I loved the idea of managing the construction. I wanted to be proactive and have my feet in the job site and be part of the construction. I wanted to go to a SUNY program and found Alfred State had a four-year program, which was not really something that a lot of other programs had in New York.”

“One of the best things that set me up for success was the recommendation and the assistance I received in setting up internships through the entire four years I was at college. Each year I did something different.”

Getting in the field during the summer was key to Melissa’s development. After her first year of school, she garnered experience on a construction site by concrete testing. An internship with a general contractor in the Adirondack region followed the next summer. Her final summer before graduation was spent working for Turner Construction in New York City, which led to her first job after graduation.

“I did not struggle with getting a job out of college. I had several offers from alum teams that always come back to campus to hire new people. It was a huge benefit that we had a big selection of employers come to us to see if we were interested in them.”

After starting in NYC, Melissa moved back to the Adirondacks to work as an estimator for the general contractor that she had interned after her sophomore year. After working there for five years and gaining more experience her career path led her to Adirondack Studios, a custom fabrication company that builds immersive and entertainment themed environments.

“My degree taught me how to break things into tangible chunks, how to build a schedule, and how to build parts and pieces out of wood and metals. All of that has prepared me for now. I am building 16-foot lemon trees and a 6-foot-tall lemon that just arrived on site in Manhattan.”

“Stepping back, the program itself really did teach me how to be a successful employee and figure things out. Now I am estimating multi-million-dollar themed environments and I am estimating $140 million a year.”

Reflecting on her classes at Alfred State she recalls lessons learned in her law contracts and estimation classes. “I may have underestimated the benefit of my law contracts class. It is the essence of all construction. I also really loved getting on the computer and breaking things apart in my estimation classes.”

“Find what you love. Find the industry or the thing that gets you excited to learn. Learn enough about everything. Enough to ask questions because the asking of questions is where you really learn.”

Melissa, a mother of two is married to fellow Alfred State graduate Alex. The pair were both active in Greek life during their time on campus and Melissa currently sits on the advisory board for the Civil Engineering Technology department.

“I have been blessed to find what I love, and I love building these experiences for other people to see and love.”