Olá! I'm Luana from Brasília, the capital of Brazil. A couple of years ago I was, just like you, looking through this blog hoping to get to know Dartmouth. But now, I get to tell you why I love being a Dartmouth student! From the academic opportunities to the community, I'll show you how grateful I am to have chosen the College on the Hill. So, consider this an invitation to accompany me as this blog becomes your looking glass into life in Hanover.
As a bookworm who loved dissecting and analyzing novels or philosophical works, a writing class focused on classical literature with weekly discussions was the right fit for me. Between reading Sophocles, Nietzsche, and Rawls, I had the opportunity to reassess my approach to reading, deepen my interpretations, and improve my public speaking skills while broadening my recognition of the significance of critical thinking.
I'll be honest: Physics has never been my favorite subject, until now. This term I am taking Introduction to Physics, a course that has shown me new horizons of what science can do. This class wasn't about calculating the movements of falling objects, it was about mathematically comprehending natural phenomena. The grandeur of that became evident as my professor, an accomplished experimental physicist, would passionately lecture on kinematics, waves, thermodynamics, and more.
I went into the woods and explored the fantastical worlds of the Brothers Grimm tales. It was definitely a thrilling and meaningful experience to analyse Snow White's virtues and Little Red Riding Hood's morals as important pieces of European culture. In other words, I got to study my childhood fairy tales, journeying through their real-world impact on a sociological, psychological, anthropological, and historical perspective.
For this summer, I decided to go home! Along with enjoying family and friends, I had the opportunity to learn a great deal during an internship at one of Brazil's top financial services institutions. There, I supported strategic growth and market positioning initiatives, delivered analysis and recommendations directly to senior stakeholders, and designed and executed internal engagement strategies to enhance organizational alignment and employee experience across business units. I also used this time to travel a little bit, exploring some of Japan. All in all, it's been a wonderful summer!
This class posed a new challenge for me: to improve the communication and marketing strategy of a real non-profit organization in New Hampshire. Through a 10-week term, our class analysed the marketing strategies of multi-national corporations and their sustainability positioning. We used these skills to create some real-world impact in our community and help surrounding organizations. Applying my classroom knowledge to improve my community was a thrilling experience!
If you are interested in pursuing medicine after graduating from high school, as I was, you'll be looking at how different universities design their "pre-health" experience. What does that experience look like at Dartmouth College?
Welcome back to Open Doors—your inside look at life in the Woods! This week, Isabelle Sullivan '26, an environmental studies and geography major, showed me around her room, where we discussed Dartmouth residence halls, classes, and campus life.
There was never a single "aha!" moment of clarity when I knew that Dartmouth was right for me, yet now, it is impossible for me to imagine having chosen anywhere else.
Green Key weekend at Dartmouth was filled with concerts, free food, live music, reunions, and spontaneous moments with friends. Read on to hear why this weekend reminded me what makes spring term at Dartmouth feel so special.
