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!
One of Dartmouth's graduation requirements is having two physical education credits. Not being a big fan of sports, I was initially anxious about this requirement, but I soon learned that there are plenty of enjoyable ways to fulfill that on campus. Here are some ways my friends have been getting their PE credits on campus!
One of my closest friends, Ochir, has joined Street Soul, a dance company on campus that anyone can join. They do not hold auditions and welcome members with no dance experience. Ochir has been one of those people. Despite being nervous about dancing at first, he enjoyed his time in Street Soul more than he could imagine, thanks to the welcoming and warm environment members created. I also had a great time watching Ochir and his friends perform in one of the end-of-the-term performances of Street Soul. I was screaming like a proud mother.
Speaking of dancing, students at Dartmouth can also attend free tango classes on Monday evenings to get PE credit. I attended a few tango classes last fall before they started offering PE credits because I had always wanted to learn. I could not keep attending classes due to my busy schedule, but I had a great time and always wanted to go back. The classes are designed for beginners, so I never felt out of place despite having no background in Latin dances. It is also so easy and fun to bond with people while learning something new together. Not to mention that tango was a surprisingly good wellness practice for me in the form of mindfulness. I had to focus all my attention on what I was learning, which left no space for outside worries of daily life.
What about good-old exercise and sports, you may ask. There is plenty of that too. For instance, my roommate/friend Tianwen joined the powerlifting team last fall. They have been lifting since before, but they had never done powerlifting before or have been on a team. Since attending the first powerlifting practice, they always spoke highly of the people and the welcoming, diverse environment they created. They are still on the team, and the captain hopes they will get to compete in the near future. If heavy sports are not your thing, you can also opt-in for yoga classes, which my other roommate, Julie did, for one of her PE requirements.
If you are adventurous, you can also learn skiing or snowboarding during winter terms. The cost of skiing/snowboarding classes is reimbursed for students on financial aid: a great example of how Dartmouth tries to make otherwise inaccessible experiences affordable. Not a fan of the snow? You can also take sailing classes during the summer, which my friend Jamie did on her first summer on campus. Personally, I am not a big snow sports person, so I have always been jealous of Jamie getting a chance to learn sailing.
I have yet to fulfill my PE requirements, but I look forward to it. Stay tuned!
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!
