Hi everyone! I'm Julia from Seattle, WA. Reading this blog during my junior and senior years of high school helped me to envision myself on this campus, so this all feels very full-circle. I'm studying QSS and I'm looking forward to taking my French skills abroad later this year in Toulouse. I love cooking/food, watching old Modern Family episodes (my favorite character is Mitch), and finding cozy places to study on campus. Talk to you soon!
This class served as a great introduction to the Quantitative Social Science department. My favorite part of class was working with real-world data in our problem sets each week. I also adored my professor, Elsa Voytas. It was her first term as a professor here, and she was constantly eager to answer any questions you might have. I'm really looking forward to taking more QSS classes in the future!
I loved this class and especially my professor, Michele Tine. My favorite part of the course was watching the "Up!" documentary series as a class. The episodes began with a cohort of children at age 7, and has continued to follow them throughout their adulthood. We got to analyze the children's decisions and lifestyles in the context of what we were learning about, culminating with a paper highlighting one of the cohort members.
Paris and Literature and Film was the last part of my first-year writing experience. Professor Kane did a great job of bringing a variety of sources into our classroom discussions (books, movies, articles, etc.) which made the course very engaging. Plus, it was so much fun to learn about France before visiting in 25W!
I wasn't planning on making a post like this for a long time. I thought I would need more years to experience the College to put my finger on why I love it here so much. But once I went home and began visiting with my high school friends, I realized what it was.
In conversations with my hometown friends, they could not believe my new interests at Dartmouth. You work at a farm?! You dress in flair?! I was confused—to me, these were things that I have always wanted to do. But to them, I had always been the "smart girl." Not much else defined me. It dawned on me that Dartmouth feels so right because I'm seen as a full person here.
The first friends I made on campus were fellow '27s during orientation week. I remember initially struggling with conversation. I would ask about their favorite classes in high school and what they wanted to study at Dartmouth. They would talk about their high-level AP courses and being on pre-med tracks. I was inspired by their wit but, then again, everyone was saying the same things. How could I differentiate between peers like I had back home? So, my questions shifted: Do you like cooking? How did you spend time with your friends in your hometown? What performing arts groups are you auditioning for?
I've made a lot of friends through Class Council!
I realized that these new pieces of information gave me a much better grasp of my classmates. As the year progressed, talks of academic accolades continued to dwindle. All of my new friends had tall academic ambitions. And yet, their paths at Dartmouth were defined by anything but that. I spent winter and spring terms learning much more about my friends' progressions towards becoming Dartmouth Outing Club leaders than classroom performance. My friends didn't ask me about my French classes as much as they pressed me for details about my latest Instagram post for @Dartmouth28s.
In short, being smart has become the least interesting thing about me at Dartmouth and I wouldn't have it any other way.
A candid moment of my friends chatting about life beyond academics.
It's 10:00 am on a Saturday and I've just finished my first apple cider of the day! The fall quarter isn't in full swing until you've visited the Norwich Farmers' Market!
As an international student, I was hesitant to join Greek Life, but I found a welcoming community. Now, as a junior, I hope to help others find their place too.
When asked about my favorite term at Dartmouth, I'll enthusiastically answer, "Sophomore Summer!" Whether it's the enhanced beauty or community on campus, one aspect stands out as the highlight of my term: the start of summer dance ensembles!
