A future nurse adjusts their cap, preparing to enter a hospital where the need for care continues to grow.

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Opportunity, Provided at Scale

At UCF, scale has always meant more than size.

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More than 10,000 Knights make up the Spring Class of 2026.

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Where Talent Meets Demand

UCF graduates move directly into high-demand fields 麻豆精品 S� from hospitals and schools to tech firms, startups and public agencies.

This is a workforce built not just in classrooms, but for real-world impact.

Each year, the university awards nearly 19,000 degrees 麻豆精品 S� more than any other institution in Florida 麻豆精品 S� including leading the state in bachelor 麻豆精品 S檚 degrees in engineering and nursing. These two fields are essential to sustaining Florida 麻豆精品 S檚 economic growth and meeting the needs of an expanding population.

Turning Studies Into Real Skills

Before they graduate, Knights are already building career-ready experience.

That same hands-on approach extends into high-impact research across fields from computer vision to biotechnology to pediatric prosthetics.

Career Prep From the Start

Support starts early, and it 麻豆精品 S檚 designed to carry students all the way through.

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Retaining Talent Across Florida

The impact of a UCF education doesn 麻豆精品 S檛 leave with its graduates. In many cases, it stays 麻豆精品 S� and grows.

But where graduates go next tells an even bigger story.In and around聽Orlando聽 麻豆精品 S� the No. 2 Best City to Start a Career in America (WalletHub) and one of the fastest-growing hubs for innovation 麻豆精品 S� that talent doesn 麻豆精品 S檛 just fill jobs.

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More Than a Milestone

Commencement is what everyone sees.

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Each commencement adds thousands more to that momentum. Each graduate strengthens the pipeline.

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With its numerous industries to sustain a career and vibrant culture to build a life, Orlando isn 麻豆精品 S檛 a hard sell. Still, when it comes to promoting all this city has to offer, you 麻豆精品 S檇 be hard pressed to find someone who loves it more than Andrea (Rodrigues) Sage 麻豆精品 S�12.

The advertising-public relations grad spent the last decade in various sales-related positions with the Tampa Bay Rays, Orlando Magic and insulated beverageware company Corkcicle (headquartered in Orlando).

That experience along with the leadership and life skills she developed at UCF and her beloved hobby as the mastermind behind 麻豆精品 S� an immensely popular social media account that explores new activities, restaurants and happenings in Central Florida 麻豆精品 S� gave her what she needed to land her dream gig as marketing manager for Visit Orlando.

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Tourism Shapes Orlando

Sage 麻豆精品 S檚 mission in her role at Visit Orlando as a marketing manager, specializing in domestic tourism, is to bring visitation to the destination, period.

Orlando is the most visited destination in the U.S. bringing more than 75 million visitors. According to Visit Orlando, tourism supports 37% of all jobs in the region.

Central Florida 麻豆精品 S檚 tourism industry generated an economic impact of $94.5 billion in 2024, a 2.2% increase over the previous year, according to a study by Tourism Economics, a division of Oxford Economics and a leader in industry research.

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Advertising All of Orlando

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麻豆精品 S淐ulinary, arts, theme parks, nature, cultural experiences, whatever your travel bug is, this destination brings it all. 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S� Andrea (Rodrigues) Sage 麻豆精品 S�12

麻豆精品 S淎dults with kids, adults without kids, this vacation has all your needs 麻豆精品 S� culinary, arts, theme parks, nature, cultural experiences, whatever your travel bug is, this destination brings it all, 麻豆精品 S� Sage says.

Competing on the Global Stage

Orlando 麻豆精品 S檚 prime competitors in the tourism market depends on who you 麻豆精品 S檙e talking to.

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麻豆精品 S淥ur destination is amazing, but every Jan. 1 the visitor tally resets, and there is a lot of work happening behind the scenes to make sure we remain top of mind, 麻豆精品 S� Sage says.

Success Fueled by UCF

A St. Petersburg, Florida, native, Rodrigues was recruited to UCF to play for the women 麻豆精品 S檚 soccer team. From 2008-12, she helped lead the Knights to five NCAA postseason appearances, including the 2011 Elite 8, three conference championships and one of the program 麻豆精品 S檚 highest national rankings (No. 6) in school history.

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麻豆精品 S淏eing a UCF student-athlete has made who I am. 麻豆精品 S�

麻豆精品 S淏eing a UCF student-athlete has made who I am, 麻豆精品 S� Sage says. 麻豆精品 S淚 take interviews today as a 36-year-old and still talk about how it has positively shaped me. I would go from a 6 a.m. strength training to study hall to three classes to practice to a night class, still have homework and study and then travel to a road game the next day.

麻豆精品 S淭he controlled chaos I lived in then, it is innate in me and still my normal today. I have two little kids, I 麻豆精品 S檓 married, I have a full-time job, I work out every day, I have a hobby. It just feels right. It is a controlled chaotic environment that I love. 麻豆精品 S�

Living Where the World Vacations

Rodrigues says what she appreciates most about living in Orlando is getting to explore new places in her own backyard. She started @cheatdayorlando in 2021 after becoming a mother. Since then, she has grown the account to nearly 100,000 followers and landed a regular gig on the 106.7 FM morning show Johnny 麻豆精品 S檚 House spreading the word about new experiences in the area.

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Spring Break Scene

Whether you 麻豆精品 S檙e a local enjoying a staycation or coming to Orlando for your Spring Break, Rodrigues shares her pro tips on some new experiences worth checking out:

• ICON Park will soon feature Ripley 麻豆精品 S檚 Crazy Golf, a glow-in-the-dark immersive indoor miniature golf course with many unconventional ways to putt.
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• Maitland 麻豆精品 S檚 Enzian Theater is a single-screen independent cinema cafe that offers cozy, vintage decor and seating, with a full kitchen menu. For the parents out there with little Spring Breakers, consider the theater 麻豆精品 S檚 Peanut Butter Matinee Family Film Series, which offers free admission to kids 12 and under. Cars 2 will be featured at noon on March 22.

麻豆精品 S淧oetry gives us permission to feel without judgment, 麻豆精品 S� she says. 麻豆精品 S淎nd when we share those feelings out loud, we remember that we 麻豆精品 S檙e not alone. 麻豆精品 S�

As a mental health therapist at Heart Bonds Counseling, working toward becoming a licensed social worker, Gaither has built her life around helping people find their voice. Whether she 麻豆精品 S檚 guiding veterans through trauma, leading poetry workshops for youth or performing for packed audiences, her message is the same: words can transform pain into power.

麻豆精品 S淧oetry gives us a place to put pain, 麻豆精品 S� says Gaither, who earned a master’s in social work from UCF. 麻豆精品 S淚t 麻豆精品 S檚 an accessible way to approach emotions that feel too threatening to face directly. 麻豆精品 S�

A Call for Change

Before she ever found the courage to share her poetry publicly, Gaither was navigating a season of change. Seven years ago, she and her husband moved to Orlando with their infant daughter, drawn by opportunity and the promise of new beginnings. Gaither had worked in the nonprofit sector for several years but felt called to something deeper 麻豆精品 S� something that could merge advocacy, creativity and care.

When the pandemic arrived, that call grew louder.

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She applied to UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 social work program in the College of Health Professions and Sciences, drawn by its emphasis on evidence-based practice and serving others. The program offered her flexibility to balance graduate studies with motherhood and work, and it challenged her to explore the intersections between mental health, identity and storytelling.

A Transformative Journey

During her field placement at the Orlando Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Gaither worked closely with veterans processing trauma and loss. There, she saw the power of creative expression in action.

麻豆精品 S淲hen we create a metaphor for something painful, we give ourselves a little space from it 麻豆精品 S� enough to begin understanding, 麻豆精品 S� she says. 麻豆精品 S淎 veteran once described grief as 麻豆精品 S榤y neighbor. 麻豆精品 S� That line stuck with me. It gave him language for something that felt impossible to name. 麻豆精品 S�

Camara Gaither 麻豆精品 S�23MSW now uses her training to lead workshops that help trauma survivors, caregivers and young people reclaim their narratives.

That moment became a turning point. Gaither began studying poetry therapy, a clinical practice that uses creative writing to foster emotional healing. She later trained through the International Federation for Biblio/Poetry Therapy and now facilitates workshops that help trauma survivors, caregivers and young people reclaim their narratives.

麻豆精品 S淧eople who have been silenced in different ways often rediscover their agency through language, 麻豆精品 S� Gaither says. 麻豆精品 S淧oetry becomes a form of resistance and restoration. 麻豆精品 S�

Her dual background in art and social work allows her to see poetry as both medicine and a mirror. In her therapeutic work, she encourages clients to explore their experiences through metaphor and rhythm. In her performances, she models that same courage, voicing joy, grief and transformation in equal measure.

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Gaither 麻豆精品 S檚 own journey with spoken word began as an undergraduate student in Tampa, where she first encountered the art form that would later shape her identity. She had been writing poetry since childhood, but the first time she experienced the spoken word genre was pivotal to her journey as a poet.

麻豆精品 S淚t was the first time I saw poetry embodied, 麻豆精品 S� she says. 麻豆精品 S淭he way performers used not only words, but also vocal cadence and physicality to tell a story 麻豆精品 S� it all expanded what I believed poetry could be. I remember thinking, 麻豆精品 S業 want to do that. 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S�

After graduation, she continued writing and performing, eventually becoming a fixture in Orlando 麻豆精品 S檚 poetry community. Her work, known for its emotional depth and precise rhythm, explores themes of identity, mental health and faith. She has performed at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts and at events across Central Florida, earning recognition as one of the region 麻豆精品 S檚 most resonant and thoughtful voices.

Strengthening Orlando 麻豆精品 S檚 Community

In 2025, the City of Orlando named Gaither its third poet laureate 麻豆精品 S� and the third consecutive UCF alumni to hold the title ( and Shawn Welcome 麻豆精品 S�17 麻豆精品 S�25MA in 2021. In this role, Gaither will use poetry to connect communities, celebrate culture and promote literacy across the city. She plans to create youth workshops, write commissioned works for civic events, and lead Orlando 麻豆精品 S檚 Words and Wonders poetry contest, where winning poems are displayed at the Orlando International Airport.

麻豆精品 S淏eing poet laureate isn 麻豆精品 S檛 just about performing, it 麻豆精品 S檚 about service 麻豆精品 S� showing people that poetry belongs to everyone. 麻豆精品 S�

Despite the growing spotlight, Gaither remains grounded in her purpose as both a clinician and an artist. She continues to work in mental health, blending her clinical training with creative approaches to trauma recovery. She says she believes that healing often begins with expression 麻豆精品 S� with finding a way to say what has long gone unsaid.

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For Gaither, every poem is an act of courage and an invitation to connection. It 麻豆精品 S檚 a truth she carries from her UCF days to every stage she stands on: that the human voice, when used with honesty and empathy, can help others heal.