Hi, and welcome to my corner of the woods! I'm Lauren, a '27 from Munger, Michigan. Outside of academics, I'm a member of the Ledyard Canoe Club, the Dartmouth Organization of Rural Students, and Dartmouth Sports Analytics. I can't wait to share stories from my final year at Dartmouth with all of you!
I took this class as part of Dartmouth's first year writing requirement. We read a pro cyclist's life narrative, discussed research papers on controversial topics in sports, and wrote our own papers on a contentious sports technology of our choice. I really enjoyed this course's emphasis on discussion, and the small class size!
This was my first class in the classics department, which was super exciting as a classical studies major! We learned about the ancient Olympics and the connections between athletics and other aspects of ancient Greek society. I loved the final project in this class, which involved creating an argument about how the ancient pentathlon was scored!
To conclude my language requirement, I took Latin 3! This class was super exciting because we began to read ancient texts and poetry. We also took a class trip to the Rauner Special Collections library so we could physically handle and read some manuscripts. And as an added bonus, Latin counts as a prerequisite for my classical studies major!
As a part of my language study abroad in Italy, I also took a class on Italian history and culture! We went on field trips to the Colosseum and the Roman Forum, participated in walking tours of Rome, and watched a lot of great cinema in this class! I loved it so much that I decided to minor in Italian.
This class, in addition to being a pre-requisite for my major, was super interesting! I loved learning about archaeology through hands-on projects and lectures that felt like TED Talks.
My favorite course on my Italian LSA+ in Rome is focused on Italian literature, which we are studying in a reverse-chronological order! It has been incredibly fun to see different topics and styles evolve over time and to learn from the works of the best writers.
I’m absolutely loving this hands-on introduction to paleography, and the fact that my class meets at Rauner every day! I can’t wait to hear from our guest lecturers, too, and I’ll be sure to share those experiences on the blog. All in all, Latin 10 was a great way to get back into the language after a term away in Rome.
I signed up for this Latin class after the FDOC (first day of class), and I'm so glad I added it to my sophomore summer schedule! Our class is combined with GRK 30.08 History and Structure of the Greek Language, and it has been incredibly interesting to compare the ancient languages and learn a bit of Greek.
FallIvrea, Italy
This term, I'm interning with the Olivetti Leadership Institute in Ivrea, a small town in northern Italy.
WinterHanover, NH
For my second off-term, I'm back on campus! I'm keeping myself busy by working, spending time with friends, and working on my to-be-read list.
I signed up for this course to complete my final distributive requirement for graduation, and it has turned out to be one of my most rewarding classes! It’s been fascinating to explore a region of the world I hadn’t formally studied before. As a bonus, the lectures are incredibly engaging and I always leave class feeling like my perspective has been broadened.
SummerMunger, Michigan
This summer, I'm spending time at home working on post-graduate applications and hanging out with my family. I'm also working remotely for the Hood Museum and spending a lot of time traveling to visit Dartmouth friends across the country!
I applied to Dartmouth during the Early Decision window, which in hindsight was either very brave or very naive, because I had no idea what to look for in a college. I didn't believe in myself nearly as much as I should've—I kept running through every reason I might not get in, without ever letting myself imagine that maybe I would.
After a long conversation with my parents, I settled on one thing: I wasn't going to reject myself. If I didn't get in, it wasn't going to be because I talked myself out of applying. I clicked submit.
A photo from my road trip from Michigan to New Hampshire to move in for the first time!
I hadn't visited campus, or New Hampshire, or New England. When my decision came back, I was incredibly excited. But I was also anxious and unsure. I think part of it was because I'd committed to a place I'd never seen in person, and made the biggest decision of my young adult life trusting only my research and my gut.
Before I started submitting applications, I had put together a short list of non-negotiables: smaller school, not in a city. I didn't think much about things like the social scene or academic departments, because it genuinely didn't occur to me to do so. Looking back, it's pretty funny, because my friends and my majors are a huge part of my life here!
I didn't think much about housing, either. Thankfully, I've loved everywhere I've lived on campus!
The quality that ended up mattering the most to me wasn't on my list at all: flexibility. I applied to Dartmouth while still floating academically between a few subjects. Going to a liberal arts college gave me the space I needed to try things out. I don't know if I would've landed on Classics or Italian if I'd gone somewhere with a more rigid curriculum.
My name tag from orientation, back when I was considering majoring in Cognitive Science or Quantitative Social Science.
A rural schoolmattered to me on paper, but even that was different than I expected. I grew up in a rural part of Michigan, and I think I assumed that going somewhere rural would feel more familiar. In practice, Hanover feels a lot more connected than my hometown ever did—I can walk to a bustling downtown within minutes or hop on a free bus to ride to West Lebanon, which I once would have considered a pretty big town.
I love Ice Cream Fore-U in West Lebanon, just a quick drive from campus!
If there's a takeaway that might help you out during your own college search, I think it's that what I thought I wanted going in wasn't actually what ended up mattering once I got here. This is a big decision, but there's no single right answer. Do your research, trust your gut, and you'll end up somewhere you can thrive.
Last September, a friend and I crafted a ten-item bucket list for our final year as undergraduates. It's the end of our senior spring now. These are some of the boxes I've checked.
