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!
Here is something I thought I would never get the chance to do again: doing theater beyond high school. I initially applied to Dartmouth as a prospective theater minor, but I have changed my mind about my areas of study during my gap year and beyond. Despite this change of mind, halfway through my first year at Dartmouth, I realized I severely missed being involved in theater. I was in a theater club in high school, mostly acting, but I have always been interested more in backstage roles than performing on stage. However, I was pessimistic about finding a theater scene that fit my interests and background. At the time, the only student-run company on campus was Rude Mechanicals which only adapts Shakespeare plays. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with specializing in a specific type of theater, and the Rude Mechanicals produce stellar productions. But Shakespeare was not for me, and I had done more than enough of it in high school. That's why I was more than excited when Displaced, a new student-run contemporary theater company, was re-born.
Displaced Theater Co. started doing productions in the spring term of last year, and I had heard about it from my co-worker Laurel who was acting in their first ever staged-reading. Unfortunately, I could not attend their performance because I was in quarantine. However, I did not hesitate to apply to join the company next fall when Displaced announced they were accepting new members. I was fortunate enough to join Displaced at the end of the interviews. At the time, their production was already halfway through, so my involvement was limited to attending Displaced socials and company meetings, which was still a lot of fun, and I enjoyed getting to know my fellow company members before being able to be involved in the creation process of productions.
Flash forward to a term later, I finally participated in a Displaced production, the first-ever Umbra: One-Act Festival. We accepted one-act submissions from Dartmouth students and voted on our top four picks to adapt to full-on production. I directed one of the one-act plays, Heliotrope, written by Kabir Mehra '26. Initially, I was a little nervous to direct a play on my own for the first time after taking a three-year break from the theater. But I was more excited than anxious. The sense of community I found in the theater was one of my favorite parts of high school, and I was looking forward to finding that again. I was incredibly lucky to have an amazingly talented, hardworking, and supportive cast, who were among my favorite people I have worked with in anything ever. Of course, the live performance itself is a moment of pride and joy, but what always mattered more to me was the process of creation itself. I am beyond grateful to be able to do theater once more at Dartmouth.
Displaced Theatre Company will soon have a brand-new website. Check it out!
It's hard to believe that it has been a year since I wrote my first end-of-fall-term reflection. It felt like only yesterday that I stepped into my dorm room this September, eager to reunite with my friends.
Most students have to go back to college after Thanksgiving to take their finals, but not at Dartmouth! We have a six-week winter break, known as "winterim!" Let me tell you how I spent my winterim!
As a second-year at Dartmouth, I've embraced leadership roles that foster community, creativity, and support! Here's a look at how each role has shaped my journey.
