Aliyah Hill wants to help people. And for her, that means helping them feel confident in their own skin — specifically, in their smile.

The business administration major graduating this week is on her way to a career in dentistry inspired by her own years at the dentist and orthodontist.

“I wore braces even going into college,” Aliyah said. “I realized dentistry was a way I could combine my love for science and own my own business. I want to help people find their smile.”

After graduating from a STEM-focused high school, Aliyah started at Tech as a chemistry major. She switched to business after two years with the goal of gaining the expertise she’ll need to eventually run a business. She’s in the process of applying to dental school now — in the meantime, she’s accepted a position working at a local dentist office after graduation.

Aliyah’s experience at Tech has also been shaped by her family, in more ways than one. She is the first in her family to earn a bachelor’s degree, meaning she navigated much of the college experience without having someone to explain how it’s done. She also knew a lot about Georgia Tech before arriving as a student. Her dad has been with the Georgia Tech Police Department for 26 years.

“I was a little worried about that at first, but it’s been a lot of fun,” she said. “When I run into him on campus, I’m always excited to see him and run up and hug him. It’s nice to have a familiar face around.”

Her father, Sergeant Archie Hill, agrees. He serves as special events coordinator for GTPD, assigning detail and officers to campus events and working many of them himself, including sporting events and most Commencement ceremonies. Having Aliyah on campus has changed work for him, too.

“I find myself wondering where she is, or if she’s at an event I’m working. If we have an issue on campus, I find myself wondering if she’s safe,” he said. “When she sees me out and about, it doesn’t matter what I’m doing, she runs up and gives me a hug in the middle of it. It gets a reaction from people.”

Sergeant Hill won’t be working this weekend’s Commencement, though. He’ll be cheering on his first-born and enjoying family members who have come to celebrate Aliyah.

“I want to be in the moment,” he said. “For Aliyah, it’s a chapter ending, but I want her to realize it’s just the beginning of her life. This was just one piece of it.”

As this chapter closes, Aliyah hopes to serve as a role model for her younger siblings — one of whom is now enrolled at the University of Georgia — to show that college is possible for them, too. And for Tech students, she cautions against becoming overwhelmed by all the Institute has to offer. Though Aliyah found time to be a leader in the pre-dental society, president of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, and to start a food-focused Instagram that explores restaurants around Atlanta, she had to learn how to manage her time.

“You can do absolutely anything, but not everything,” she said. “There are so many opportunities, and you can very easily be stretched too thin. Once I was able to learn how to say no to things, that helped me craft a more enjoyable experience. It let me find what I really enjoyed doing and stick to those things.”