Joanna Jou

Academic Interests, Pathways, and Possibilities

Throughout all four years in high school, I surrounded my extracurriculars and passions around the world of healthcare and biomedical science. It had always been my biggest goal in life to become a physician (you can say it was sort of a predestined fate I set for myself). I've always been one to plan ahead and was pretty adamant about the path I wanted to take. So, of course, I even had a 12-year plan ready: get into Dartmouth, major in biology, apply to the Geisel Early Assurance Program (which offers Dartmouth students the opportunity to apply to Dartmouth's Geisel School of Medicine during our junior year with the possibility of getting accepted earlier than a typical medical school timeline - such a great opportunity), attend Geisel Medical School, and complete residency in the specialty of my choice. Nevertheless, the future is always open to wonders, and it's okay to explore it!

After the first seven weeks of the term (and a lot of thinking), I struggled with the internal battle of accepting the realization that being an intended biology major was not where my passions lay. I often thought "If I don't major in biology, I'm still going to stick with the pre-med track"; however, these lines blurred as I began contemplating the pre-med path, and how it was not what I saw myself pursuing (at least not right now nor this first year). As the fast-paced term system of days and weeks flew by, I became increasingly lost with what I wanted to study and what I saw for my future career—if not the biology major and pre-med track, then what else? Well, that's what college and Dartmouth are for. 

At Dartmouth, we aren't admitted under a specific major nor do we declare until the end of our sophomore year (or at the end of our fifth on-campus term). With that being said, first-years are heavily encouraged to take classes we find interesting, exciting, or didn't have the chance to take in high school; the biggest emphasis being to keep an open mind. The general academic requirement gives you enough time to explore classes while also completing your major and distributive requirements, so we shouldn't shy away or limit ourselves on the cool and intriguing courses offered.

My biggest takeaway away from acknowledging the exploration of other academic interests and pathways is the support system that it comes with. For instance, as I was talking to my friend Alex about my shift away from pursuing a biology major on a pre-med track, he told me "I have no idea what I want to do, and that's alright. It's more fun that way," which has also been a similar and popular testament by my other peers. I find a lot of comfort knowing that I'm also not the only one who is discovering new possibilities at Dartmouth, and I am full of gratitude to be reminded that it's okay to not have it figured out right now. That's the beauty of Dartmouth. As I enter winter term, I'm excited to update y'all on my academic journey while keeping an open mind. Stay tuned!