Alumni Spotlight: Aidan Basloe

Arlington Tech Alumni Series

Welcome to the Arlington Tech, Governor’s STEM Academy Alumni Series, where we celebrate the remarkable journeys of our graduates and the lasting impact of the Arlington Tech experience.Through this ongoing series, you’ll meet alumni who are thriving in college and launching careers. Each Q&A highlights how Arlington Tech’s project-based learning, collaborative environment, and supportive community prepared them for success, and what advice they have for students following in their footsteps. At Arlington Tech, our commitment to students doesn’t end at graduation—it’s a lifelong connection. We’re proud to showcase the diverse paths our alumni have taken and the incredible things they’re accomplishing. Their stories reflect the innovation, resilience, and leadership that define the Arlington Tech community.

Aidan Basloe, Arlington Tech, Governor’s STEM Academy Class of 2023

What have you been up to since graduating from Arlington Tech? 

Since graduating from AT I have been attending the College of Willliam and Mary down in Williamsburg. Thanks to the Associates Degree I earned while at Arlington Tech, I am currently a Senior who is planning to graduate a year early this coming May. I’ll have my Bachelors in Computer Science and am planning to return for a fourth year to earn my Master’s Degree in Computer Science with a concentration in Machine Learning. I have already begun those graduate level courses in AI and LLM’s (Large Language Models). I am also member of multiple clubs, playing basketball, and competing on the collegiate esports team.

What was a class or project that was most impactful during your time at Arlington Tech?

By far, both the largest and most impactful project I did was the Capstone Experience during my senior year. I was able to be the Business Operations Intern for MITRE Engenuity working directly with the Chief of Staff and Operations. I did a lot of substantive work while there, assisting multiple different teams with projects across departments. However, looking back the exposure to high level real-world skills were absolutely the most important thing I gained while there.

What did you enjoy most about your experience at Arlington Tech? 

While one of my initial worries which I am sure are one of yours too, was the social experience with class size much smaller than the home schools. What I enjoyed most at Arlington Tech though, was the group of friends I made while there. I still to this day talk daily with every single one of them and see them every time I am back home. We are still a tight knit group of 8 and I feel confident saying they will remain my good friends for a long time to come. Those guys have also all gone on to do really cool things and they definitely motivate me to be better.

What advice do you have for current high school students? 

If you are academically able to do so, you should do whatever you can to take as much advantage of the Dual Enrollment Courses as possible. These are college classes taught by college professors that give you college credit, and best of all there free. The ability to save up the time and money of one to four semesters of college by participating in DE is invaluable. The ripple effect of my effort put into to participating in DE is monumental in terms of the preparation I got in expectations of college courses and self sufficiency.

How would you describe Arlington Tech in three words?

Challenging, Visionary, and Diverse.

How have you used the skills and experiences from Arlington Tech in college or work?

Project-based learning will objectively give you numerous skills that you will use in the future. Personally, for me in Computer Science, all of the major coursework and workload I receive is project-based. One of the classes I took this semester was Software Engineering where a majority of the time was dedicated to a single large scale real-world based group project. I am actually currently still working on this project and figuring out between finals how to work with my team on best completing it. Team leadership, iterative work experience, and quality communication were all skills I picked up through project-based learning.