Hi everyone! My name's Daniel, and I'm a 25! I'm from Orange County, California and Seoul, South Korea. I'm hoping to major in Biomedical Engineering and Anthropology Modified with Global Health. If I'm not under my sheets watching a new Netflix series, you'll find me spending time at Still North Café or at the engineering building. I hope you learn something new about Dartmouth today!
Academic Program
Biomedical Engineering and Anthropology Modified with Global Health
This class had an emphasis on really learning the material, rather than mindless regurgitation. Every class lecture truly excited and interested me, and readings were thought-provoking, The final was also a project instead of an exam, which was very fun to complete. I could tell Prof. DeSilva was also very passionate about the class materials as well!
As a "seminar" course, we focused on enjoyable discussion-based lectures. Each and every one of Prof. Kangas' lecture topics were engaging and intriguing, constantly pushing me to think. While we had reading assignments, they weren't necessarily linked to graded discussions/quizzes, which allowed me to feel more relaxed and stress-free (I didn't need to go crazy and write notes in-class). All in all, I loved learning about Pompeii!
A classic pre-med requirement course. This class has a basic structure of problem sets, two midterms, labs, and a final. I thought the points were well-distributed and the exams were fair. I personally enjoy problem-solving, which allowed this class to be more exciting personally. I'd suggest you pick the right professor for you as each professor has a different way of teaching!
This class is taught by Prof. Shipley, a professor who teaches mainly during summer terms. It was very different from the previous anthropology courses I've taken –– we had a filmmaking component as well as a collaborative project. I enjoyed this class because the assignments had a very broad, overarching outline and allowed you to explore your interests very freely. For example, for my final project, I created a podcast that delved into the educational inequity in South Korea.
My first sociology course at Dartmouth. It goes very in-depth about the macro immigration policies in-place in America and how it relates to different immigrants' experiences. I found it intriguing because I'm an immigrant myself, and I also was able to analyze and develop a different outlook on my family's experiences as well. We had interesting projects such as immigrant interview assignment, immigration policy brief, and in-class discussions.
Another first - my first Asian Societies, Culture, and Language (ASCL) course here at Dartmouth. Essentially, through a 3-hour class block each week, you watch a Korean film that provide insights into the different aspects of South Korean culture –– from Korean independence of Japan to modern economic disparities. Very interesting discussions and minimal work: the course focuses a lot more on student learning than testing!
I know what you're thinking: no way this guy liked MATH 13 the best out of his classes. I was thinking the same going into the class, but I enjoyed the problem-solving aspects. Math was one of my favorite subjects in high school, but I didn't get a chance to take any courses here at Dartmouth until I changed to an engineering major which made MATH 13 a prerequisite. All you do is solve problems, practice, grasp concepts, and take exams. But, after a bit, you get the hang of it.
One of my favorite, favorite courses throughout my whole time at Dartmouth. If you thought you know medicine and health, think again –– evolutionary perspectives open up a completely new spectrum of thinking. Have you thought about institutionalized racism in BMI indexes? How about adolescent growth differences between women who give birth in birth centers versus hospitals? Conversations you've never thought of within the medical realm happens in this class. Highly recommend it!
ANTH 76 - Evolution of Upright Walking is a biological anthropology senior seminar. The class itself is very discussion-based, reading books/articles/literature to grasp different aspects of bipedalism. Prof. DeSilva allows you to explore areas YOU are interested in with the midterm paper and final project, and there is little emphasis on grading so you can focus on learning!
A very collaborative course –– daily discussions, guest speakers, and group data analysis assignments. I also really enjoyed the term-long ethnography project where you can choose a community to analyze. Essentially there are different frameworks and theories that can be applied to the way we talk within linguistic anthropology, and it was super interesting seeing how everything is connected to our conversations on a daily basis!
During your four years at Dartmouth, almost every student enjoys a "sophomore summer" term, where only sophomores are on-campus as they get to foster a closer, tight-knit relationship with their peers. This "on" term is a part of Dartmouth's D-plan—by being on sophomore summer, students are able to take a different term throughout their next year (fall, winter, spring) off for an internship or other ways of personal development. But, as a freshman, I decided to take my summer term on, and I wanted to elaborate on why I made that decision!
Course-planning
As a pre-health student, I have a handful of courses to finish before senior year. I'm not entirely sure as to what I'll major in, I've decided to crank out as many pre-health requirements as I possibly could. Throughout fall, winter, and spring, I completed CHEM 5, CHEM 6, BIOL 12, and PHYS 3, which meant that I had two quarters of organic chemistry (CHEM 51 and CHEM 52), one quarter of physics (PHYS 4), and one biology course left. So, I am taking BIOL 13 this summer!
Better internship opportunities on-campus
By being on-campus, I was able to continue doing the microbiology + clinical research internships I've been a part of since fall. I knew that taking classes and doing internships simultaneously would be better than finding a new research opportunity near my home and taking on a completely new project.
Not being burnt out just yet
A lot of my friends were burnt out by spring term. This is completely understandable, as we underwent three consecutive terms full-time with three classes on top of other extracurriculars. But, for me personally, I didn't feel burnt out just yet. So, I thought this would be a great opportunity to continue pushing further!
I'll most likely take next winter/spring term off during sophomore year to do a clinical internship off-campus, but we'll see if the plans change!
In addition to blogging, I work as a Fellow for the Tucker Center, which focuses on promoting spiritual and ethical life on campus. As part of this role, I'm leading the Interfaith Alternative Spring Break Trip. Read on to learn more about my work!
