Hello there! I am an avid doodler and caffeine addict who can be spotted 24/7 at KAF (the coffee shop in Baker-Berry Library). I've grown up skiing in the Rockies, so I'm a hype man for low temp activities like throwing snow at friends and carving ice sculptures (yes, I actually did that!). Aside from blogging, I am an economics teaching assistant, design mobile, web, and VR apps for Dartmouth's DALI Lab, and travel around with the fencing and debate teams for competitions.
Freshman fall flew by! While I unwittingly took some of Dartmouth's more difficult classes, I met so many amazing people and got to explore campus with a fresh set of eyes (I'd never visited before). I also got inspired (after taking my prof to lunch) to pursue a major in economics!
Winter was my favorite term freshman year, largely because I felt more settled into the campus rhythm and took awesome classes. Prof. Kalish (my Writing 5 -- a required class for all freshmen -- professor) was not only fun and insightful, but also made an active effort to connect with every student. It's one of the best classes I've ever taken.
In my opinion, Hanover is most beautiful in the spring: you see everything from fluffy snowflakes to vibrant blossoms. The weather kept me cheerful, even if spring was my most rigorous term. My favorite class was Econ 22 with Prof. Comin, who led a case-based course that helped us understand the real-world applications of what we were learning. He's also a super cool guy to chat with, and he's done fascinating research.
Most freshmen don't stay "on" their first summer, but I scheduled my D-Plan around my winter internship. Summer didn't disappoint: I love the new friends I made and the classes I took (and I also got super fit from attending two PE classes). Taking Drawing I was also one of the highlights of my summer. It's a lot of work, but I'd rather spend 10 hours on a drawing than 10 hours on a problem set.
I finally met the '22s!! (Seriously, you all are so cool.) This term, I took a class on game theory, which is basically a subject where we literally learn about games. While it was by far my most challenging class this term, I thought that what we learned was super rewarding.
WinterSalt Lake City, UT
This was my first "off" term since I arrived on campus! I interned for Cross Creek, a venture capital firm in Salt Lake City, Utah (my hometown!).
I could RAVE about public economics and Prof. Skinner for hours. While public econ wasn't easy, it challenged me to think critically about my political philosophies and about the economic theories I'd previously considered fact. Prof. Skinner was one of the most engaged professors I've ever had; he even recommended a few running routes to me!
The famous "Sophomore Summer" and my second summer on campus! I took an unconventional four-course term complete with Econometrics, Gender & Philosophy, DALI Lab Independent Research, and Independent Studies in Engineering! I had so much fun studying on a dock by the Connecticut River and having lots of gelato under the sun. :)
I had the opportunity of a lifetime to be an economic policy intern at the White House! I loved my job, met incredible people, and had plenty of time to Facetime my friends on campus.
This was such a fun winter! I went skiing with friends, spent a few weekends eating Chinese food in Boston, and to top it all off, I took my very first government class. I really loved learning about political science from a comparative perspective; specifically, how institutions can affect the way a society can vote or even organize collective action. I wish I'd taken more government classes earlier.
While I was physically camped out at home in Salt Lake City, Utah, I still spent plenty of time with friends (albeit over Zoom), and I got to know professors in office hours! I also had the rare chance to spend quality time with my parents and my dog while also learning a lot in my classes on business strategy (offered by the Tuck School of Business) and authoritarianism in Central and Eastern Europe.
SummerNew York City, Virtually
I spent the summer as an investment research intern at J.P. Morgan. My internship was completely virtual, but I still got to befriend my coworkers, and I'll be going back full-time after I graduate!
After six long months away, I finally came back just in time for the beautiful New England fall. I began writing my economics thesis in a difficult yet rewarding advanced econometrics class with Professor Staiger, attempted acting in a play, and learned about the nuances behind Adam Smith's "invisible hand" (which has become a caricatured generalization of his work). I even made a few new friends out of '24s from six-feet away!
WinterUniversity of Oxford, Magdalen College
I spent my winter term at Oxford studying economics and politics at the beautiful Magdalen College.
SpringOn Campus
I can't believe it's senior spring already! This spring, I'm finishing my thesis and taking classes on creative writing for fiction, costume design, and the economics of gender and family. Be sure to say hello if you're on campus (or Zoom)!
This term, I'm taking two classes that disagree with each other.
Why? Well, going to a liberal arts school inevitably means exposing yourself to a variety of academic disciplines. As part of the promise of that liberal arts, Dartmouth has a distributive requirement that requires us to take courses out of our comfort zone (dubbed "distribs"). While I've found distribs to be rather daunting in the past, distribs have ultimately pushed me to try classes outside of my traditional academic interests and to become a better critical thinker.
Studying on the Green!
A byproduct of taking such a diverse array of classes means that your classes will approach topics from varying perspectives. It also means that some of your courses might challenge certain topics that you've grown to accept from studying your major. My geography class this term (GEOG 17: Geopolitics & Third World Development) has done just that. The class continually challenges me to think twice about the economic theory I've learned, particularly the theory I'm learning in my public economics class this term.
Much of my geography class is devoted to discussion on the effects of economic development policies that "Western" countries advocate for. Basically, countries like the U.S. prize economic theories that don't necessarily apply to other countries. These theories typically support free trade and market deregulation, which my geography class argues have often exploited other countries; on the contrary, almost all of my econ classes have whole-heartedly backed these policies.
Economic theory (or at least, neoclassical economic theory) predicts that markets are better left alone. Naturally, most beginning econ classes show the benefits of policies like free trade and deregulation that I've mentioned before. While the class mostly focuses on U.S. domestic economic policy, much of what we've learned can be (and, in real life, has been) applied to other countries as well. In class, we've discussed the pros and cons of such policies, but the theory I've learned thus far in my economics courseload overwhelmingly suggests that those policies my geography class claims to be exploitative are actually helpful. These disagreements have enhanced my understanding of the nuances and complications of the topics I'm learning.
My big takeaway from taking a geography and economics class in the same term is that disagreement is productive. Often, our major classes can tackle concepts from a single point-of-view. That's why other departments can offer a fresh new take on the concepts you thought you knew. Taking classes from other departments has not only allowed me to explore other subjects and interests but has also allowed me to better understand the interests I already have.
I'd like to talk a little bit about exploring your future career and the opportunities Dartmouth offers to guide you. What should you get involved in your first year? Let's use my first year as a case study!
A byproduct of taking such a diverse array of classes means that your classes will approach topics from varying perspectives. It also means that some of your courses might challenge certain topics that you've grown to accept from studying your major. My geography class this term (GEOG 17: Geopolitics & Third World Development) has done just that. The class continually challenges me to think twice about the economic theory I've learned, particularly the theory I'm learning in my public economics class this term.
