Hello, Eda here: full-time learner, part-time writer, and pretty much a happy amateur at everything else. My hobbies include reading, discovering new movies, and looking at the pictures of my cat. On campus, you can find me peer supporting for the Mental Health Union and SAPA, writing for Spare Rib, doing research in psychology, or listening to Turkish & English alt-rock. Feel free to ask me about taking a gap year, transitioning to a new cultural space, or college in general!
This class discusses the concepts of sex and gender in the broader context of issues related to race, class, national identity, and more. I loved this class because it helped me better understand how systemic inequality affects individual lives and made me think about ways to change it. Professor A'Ness is such an inspiring prof!
In this first-year writing seminar, we discussed how avant-garde movements from futurism to punk rock have constituted a rebellion against the status quo. I loved all the readings for this class and Professor McCann inspired me to take more courses in the English department!
In this course, we learned all the basics of fiction: character, plot, setting, etc. My favorite parts of the course were receiving feedback from other students, reading my peers' work, and having fiction readings as assigned course work! I also appreciated all the guest speakers we had, who were experienced writers in their respective genres.
As an aspiring clinical psychologist, this course has been one of the best classes I have taken at Dartmouth so far. The class focused on the etiology, diagnosis, characteristics and treatment of various mental disorders. Professor Hudenko has been one of the greatest lectures I had the pleasure of meeting. As a clinical psychologist himself, he had extensive knowledge in not only the theory, but also the practice of clinical psychology. He also succeeded in making a lecture-based class feel interactive and dynamic.
We covered the complex neural and biological mechanisms of multiple mental health disorders ranging from common conditions like anxiety to more complicated illnesses such as schizophrenia. In addition to reading about the cutting-edge research in this area, we also read memoirs and watched documentaries about the mental illnesses to focus on how these conditions are affecting people in real life. Professor Funnell is one of the best profs I had!
As an aspiring clinical psychologist, this has been one of my favorite classes at Dartmouth. We learned about different therapy methods, how and when to use them, their advantages, and shortcomings. The class was incredibly engaging with Professor Hudenko's frequent demonstrations of methods, therapy videos, and guest speakers. I would recommend this class to every psychology major.
I worked at Dimock Health Center as part of my community health internship. I was part of a team of summer interns who were college students like myself. We worked as patient advocates that helped people reach out to resources regarding housing, food, utilities, etc. Most of our work involved calling patients, helping them fill out forms, and researching resources. I learned so much about community health resources and how to communicate with a diverse set of patients. It was an invaluable experience!
I took classes in the School of English and Drama at Queen Mary University of London. My favorite class of the term was called London Performance Now, which involved going to different performance events in London and discussing them in class. It was the perfect opportunity to explore the cultural landscape of London.
As the title of the course suggests, this class was about food: its history, economics, and cultural practices. I learned a lot through this course thanks to guest speakers, thought-provoking readings, and engaging assignments. My favorite assignment in this course was writing about a family recipe; I learned so much about my family's history as well as the cultural conflicts in my home country. Overall, it was among the best classes I have taken at Dartmouth. Plus, we even got to eat delicious food cooked by our classmates!
As sophomore summer draws to a close, I wanted to look back on my favorite moments from the first off-term I have spent in the US. Here are my top three!
Collective Rage by Displaced
During one of the weekends I visited campus, the student-run contemporary theater company Displaced, which I am a part of, performed their summer show: Collective Rage. I could not contribute to the production because it was my off-term, but it was fun and intriguing to watch a performance by the company and imagine what the production process was like. It was also the second production they have put on an actual stage in the new theater space Dartmouth created during the construction of the Hopkins Center for the Arts. Collective Rage: A Play in Five Betties by Jen Silverman narrates the lives of five different New York women to explore the themes of sexuality, violence, and artistic expression. Beyond all else, the play has a great sense of humor, and I could tell that the production team had a great time putting it on stage. I look forward to being part of and watching Displaced productions!
Museum of Fine Arts and other Boston excursions
Because I was working in Boston over the summer doing a Dartmouth Center for Social Impact internship, I had plenty of time to discover the city. For instance, one evening after work, I went to a Turkish restaurant and a Turkish market to buy food for one of my Turkish friends on campus. Afterward, I visited a bookstore to buy some books. My favorite excursion was to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, which is a 3-minute walk away from the Massachusetts College of Arts and Design, where we stayed in Boston. Dartmouth has a membership with the Museum of Fine Arts, which means students get free tickets to see the museum. I spent a few hours visiting the galleries I was interested in the most. The contemporary art galleries were my favorite. I still have a ton to explore in Boston, but I will come back to the Museum of Fine Arts!
Saturdays on campus
My weekend visits to campus during my internship kept me mentally and physically healthy. My favorites were Saturdays. I would get boba with my friend who is taking two studio art classes right now. We would drink our boba in her study, as she walked me through her newest art projects. In the evenings, my partner and I would drive to nearby Upper Valley restaurants we had not been to. Afterward, I would build Lego sets as he finished his homework for the weekend. Some weekends, we would go watch a movie, such as Barbie that we saw in the Nugget Theater in Hanover, or attend an on-campus event, such as the Displaced Theater show.
In summary, I had a great time this summer on and off campus thanks to the opportunities Dartmouth provides. After spending a few weeks back home in Turkey, I will be in London for the fall term for the English & Creative Writing study abroad program at Queen Mary's. Stay tuned until then!
On Monday, April 8, 2024, a phenomenal total solar eclipse occurred — and we happened to be within the path of totality. As a result, Dartmouth hosted a variety of eclipse-related events on- and off-campus. Find out how I spent the eclipse!
