My name is Gabriela Jimenez! I grew up in Queens, NYC (the best borough), and I went to high school in the Bronx. I spent about 3 hours a day commuting to and from school! So I am excited about only being a "long" 15-minute walk from the Green. As much as I love NYC, I needed a change of scenery, and Dartmouth is a perfect escape. I will definitely be joining the Dartmouth Outing Club! I hope my excessive use of exclamation points hasn't scared you off yet!
My intended major as of right now is Government, so I opted to first take a Government class. If you have zero clue of what you want to major in, that's completely fine! Do your research and find a class that sparks your interest. Ask around and go to open houses that departments host. Take advantage of all the resources Dartmouth provides you with. I used these resources offered including my Academic Advisor, the Undergraduates Dean's office, and upperclassmen.
What classes am I taking:
I am currently taking Government 5: International Politics with Professor Lind. I am really enjoying the class and how it is taught. I like that my professor uses online lectures. This allows me to play the lecture later at my own speed, and it makes it easy to review material to prepare for an exam. I would recommend this class to anyone who is interested in learning about how countries interact with each other and why! This class is a great class to take if you want to learn more about current conflicts and why they are happening.
My writing class could honestly be my favorite class. All first year students take a writing class, and you can choose which one speaks to you. I opted to take Writing 2-3 because I felt like my writing wasn't especially strong. The amount of support and feedback I get in this class is so helpful and has definitely helped me become a better writer.
Last but not least, is my Spanish class! I am taking Spanish 15 with Profesora Antigua, and it is truly a blast. Her energy and passion for teaching just makes the class all that more fun! As a native Spanish speaker, my grammatical skills aren't as sharp as I would want them to be, and this class has helped me learn some of the grammar rules in Spanish. I would recommend this class to anyone looking to sharpen their Spanish skills, are interested in learning about prevalent issues in the Hispanic community, writing creatively in Spanish, watching interesting documentaries, and having very engaging small group discussions.
All in all, I think that my picks for the fall term allowed for a great start to my academic career at Dartmouth. I will continue to keep you all posted!
