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Diana D'Souza

Class of 2023
Student smiling for photo holding Dartmouth pennant over head

Bio 

Hello friends! My name is Diana D'Souza, and I'm pursuing a double major in Government modified with Economics and Chinese. On campus, I'm the Co-President of Women in Business and a Chinese language research assistant. I'm also involved in the Dartmouth Outing Club and recently led a fishing first-year trip at the Boston Lot Lake. In my free time, I enjoy cooking, reading, and spending time outdoors.

Academic Program 

Government, Economics, Chinese

Favorite Thing Right Now 

Scoops ice cream

Hometown 

Edison, New Jersey

Pronouns 

She/her/hers

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Diana's D-Plan

What's a D-Plan?

    • FallHanover, NH - On Campus

      Favorite Class: Comparative Literature 1: Read the World

      I ended up taking this class for two reasons. First, I needed to fulfill my CI requirement; second, my friend was also taking it. Regardless, it ended up being my favorite class fall term. Professor Washburn is an engaging, spontaneous professor and we studied everything from memes to The Tale of Genji. By the end of the term, I found myself to be a more confident and humbled writer.

    • WinterHanover, NH - On Campus

      Favorite Class: Chinese 22: Intermediate Modern Chinese

      This was my second time taking a 9 am class with Chen Laoshi. She is understanding, funny, and always eager to help. Even though this was a fast-paced class with daily quizzes, weekly tests, and new vocabulary sets every other day, I became extremely close with my classmates and more excited about learning the language. We ended the term over a feast of dumplings Laoshi prepared!

    • SpringEdison, NJ - Remote Learning

      Favorite Class: Religion 26: Islam in America

      Because this term was online, I used my extra time to study a subject that has always fascinated me. Professor Ayubi was incredibly accommodating by allowing us to complete work at our own pace. The most memorable parts of the class were examining anti-Muslim materials during a virtual tour to Rauner Library and exploring Muslim punk rock through the movie Taqwacores.

    • SummerEdison, NJ - Remote Internship

      My summer plans were derailed due to the pandemic, but Mr. Forbes, a Dartmouth alum, graciously allowed me to intern at his consulting firm. Over the course of two months, I became a master at navigating Microsoft Visio and writing grant narratives. I also lifeguarded the 5am shift (pain) at my local community pool.

    • FallEdison, NJ - Remote Learning

      Favorite Class: ENGS 12: Design Thinking

      Students at Dartmouth say ENGS 12 will change your life, and I'm one to agree. Professor Robbie helped me rethink and redefine my approach to creativity and radical collaboration. After the class, I became involved in the design community, participating in the Designation, 3 Day Start Up, and Tuck's entrepreneurship program, TuckLAB. I'm even a TA for the class now—oh, how the tables have turned!

    • WinterEdison, NJ - Remote Internship

      In hopes of studying abroad, I declared a five-year D-Plan. I'm still a '23 at heart, but I'll be graduating with the '24's. I ended up working at my local newspaper, TAPinto News, and continuing my linguistics research with Professor Donahue.

    • SpringEdison, NJ - Remote Internship

      With the help of the Magnuson Center, I landed an internship at Q30 Innovations, a medical device company. As a law development intern for Mr. Greene, a Dartmouth alum, I compiled a 20-page patent portfolio and provided recommendations for FDA clearance. I also took part in two Rocky programs, RGLP and MLDP.

    • SummerHanover, NH - On Campus

      Favorite Class: ASCL 70.18: Social Revolutions East and West

      Professor Dorsey is by far my favorite Dartmouth professor. He hosted in-person office hours every Friday, where we talked about anything from Japanese healthcare to craft beer to our personal lives. The class was an absolute blast, in which we dissected comics and listened to Japanese folklore. Class highlights included a field trip to a nearby Japanese Zen garden and a zoom call with Japanese folklorist Nakagawa Goro.

    • FallHanover, NH - On Campus

      Favorite Class: ECON 77: Social Entrepreneurship

      This was my hardest academic term to date, but I’m extremely proud of my work in this class. Over ten weeks, Professor Samwick challenged us to design a financially viable social enterprise. My team ended up creating BayStay, a one-stop service for homeless individuals in the Bay area to locate a new roommate and temporary communal housing. The best part of the experience was getting to interview leading experts on homelessness and pitching our business model to an angel investor!

    • WinterHanover, NH - On Campus

      Favorite Class: GOVT 5: International Politics

      Given my areas of study at Dartmouth, it’s no surprise that I loved my introductory international relations course with Professor Powers. She did a great job helping the class transition to in- person learning by providing us with reading guides and laying out clear expectations in her memos. We used high-level theory to explain the motivations of terrorists and the likelihood of nuclear war. In my final paper, I presented my own analysis of why the United Nations was powerless to prevent Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

    • SpringHanover, NH - On Campus

      Favorite Class: GOVT 86.27: Ethics of the Family

      In this upper-level government seminar, my classmates and I met once a week for three hours. Although it was sometimes tough to focus, I appreciated having the rest of the week to prepare and complete readings. During the term, we debated a range of topics, including whether the government should regulate marriage or whether having a nanny was inherently anti-feminist. Another cool aspect of the course was that the class was entirely driven by student discussion and debate. Professor Rose pushed each student to flesh out her thoughts through open office hours and writing workshops. Looking back at my final paper, I’m really proud of my newfound ability to argue complex philosophical topics in a clear manner.

    • SummerHanover, NH - On Campus

      While most of the ‘23s are off campus, I’m spending my junior summer in Hanover because I took a gap year! I’m spending most of my time this term as a Paganucci Fellow at the Tuck School of Business. I’m also working for Dartmouth Admissions and serving as Co-President of Dartmouth Women in Business. Even though I’m not taking classes, I’m definitely keeping myself busy!

    • FallWashington, D.C. - Internship

      I spent my off-term interning on the China desk at the U.S. Department of State (DOS). I loved being able to apply what I learned in class in a professional setting and getting to see diplomacy and foreign policy in action. Some of my internship highlights included volunteering for the first, historic Indo-Pacific Summit and meeting North Korean defectors. Still, I’m excited to be back at Dartmouth, taking classes again, after six months off!

    • WinterHanover, NH - On Campus

      Favorite Class: ASCL 80.08: Imperialism in Modern East Asia

      I took this class because it was the final culminating experience for my Chinese language major. Professor Ericson gave really engaging lectures that made it feel like he was reading us a story. As a capstone project, I wrote a 20-page paper about imperial Japan's use of visual propaganda in Manchukuo, analyzing primary texts in Chinese and Japanese.

    • SpringHanover, NH - On Campus

      Favorite Class: ECON 37: Gender and Family Issues in Modern Economics

      This class explored the economics behind the gender gap, child penalty, and labor market discrimination. My favorite part was the MBA-style class study, which focused on the rationale behind Patagonia’s generous parental leave policies. Professor Olivetti was so helpful and held frequent office hours. Definitely take this class, even if you aren’t an economics major.

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Quarantine Eats

My latest quarantine obsession is binge-watching Bon Appétit, a cooking channel on YouTube. The show features chefs like Claire (a universal favorite), who recreates factory-made foods like Skittles, Sour Patch Kids, and Butterfingers. I also have a soft spot for Chris, who blindly tastes food and then attempts to recreate the dish. Oh, and who could forget Brad, a world traveler who ferments food? It is absurd that I spend hours watching Chopped competitions and Tasty videos when I have no intention of making anything in the kitchen. So, this week, I challenged myself to make at least one meal every day—while heavily relying on frozen, pre-made food.

  1. No. 1

    Monday

    blog_1000x1110_dumplings

    I started off easy with Ling Ling dumplings. I boiled them in a pot for ten minutes, drained the water, and then fried them in oil for two minutes on each side. Overall, I was pretty pleased. We got that nice browning, a bit of crunch, and best of all, it wasn’t raw. I helped myself to a side of blueberries and a cup of cranberry juice. 

  2. No. 2

    Tuesday

    blog_1000x1260_samosa

    Today, I warmed up frozen samosas (filled with chickpeas, potatoes, and peas) in the oven. Chopping up the onion was a painful experience. It certainly wasn’t a fine dice, but I persevered despite tearing up. My mother ended up mixing the onions with the chicken (pictured at the top). 

  3. No. 3

    Wednesday

    blog_1000x1333_salad

    This salad was by far my proudest achievement. As an avid salad eater, I ate a salad at least once a day at Dartmouth; I highly recommend the Hop’s Kale Chicken Caesar Salad. For today’s salad, I chopped up a head of lettuce, tossed in a handful of cherry tomatoes, and attempted to julienne a carrot. I also gathered the croutons, dressing, parmesan cheese, and extra carrots on the side. 

  4. No. 4

    Thursday

    blog_1000x1333_brownies

    I was craving something sweet, so I brought out the Betty Crocker brownie mix and whisked in oil, water, and eggs. Despite the mild cracking around the edges, I deemed this a victory. My family demolished it within a day. 

  5. No. 5

    Friday

    blog_1000x902_peppers

    I further refined my chopping skills with these yellow and red peppers, which were used in our lunch of grilled steak and peppers. As this challenge drew to a close, I reflected that while I learned a lot about chopping, dicing, peeling, and warming up, I didn’t do much cooking. I’m going to have to keep working on it. 

Posted 06/13/2020 at 11:30 AMAll List Posts

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