Hi there! I'm May and I'm sooo excited to share my Dartmouth experience with you! I love basically all types of food, binge watching Asian shows, and cozy movie nights! Find me in gym playing badminton, with my friends in the common rooms, getting coffee at Collis (my favorite), or volunteering at local service projects!
Academic Program
Quantitative Social Science
Favorite Thing Right Now
Finally having Stir-fry from Collis after a looong year...
This class was my introduction to quantitative social sciences but it definitely won't be my last QSS class at Dartmouth! We worked with datasets, from global wealth distribution to most popular ramen chains in Japan, and learned how to make graphs/visuals through the programming software R.
Do we really live in the best of all possible worlds? This course explores pessimism and the values of human existence from Greek literature. I've never had much interest in the classics but Prof. Lurie's passion and enthusiasm in his lectures had me up reading Plato at 2am. This is a class which will surely stimulate your intellectual curiosity and push you to ask questions about even the most mundane of things.
As the name suggests, BIO12 explores the nature and function of cells and the class covers a lot of material through lectures and assignments. Through Zoom break-out groups, we discussed and solved practice problems together, an approach I wasn't very familiar with, especially virtually. We also used online databases and findings to compile our own data to analyze for labs, which I found extremely insightful!
My first geography class at Dartmouth and first introduction to GIS technology, something that I've always been intrigued by. Prof. Xun Shi takes the time to go over each conceptl to make sure his students have a solid understanding of the fundamentals. We also had lab sessions where we used ArcGIS to work with spatial data, geographic information, and maps in group projects.
Arguably one of the best classes at Dartmouth! Whether you are a computer science major or not, this class is a "must-take". Beyond coding, I felt as though I gained a whole new outlook on problem solving and creative thinking. Some of the problem sets Professor Vasanta gives the class are really fun and interesting and she herself is a phenomenal teacher. You won't regret taking this class!
You're no longer the bright-eyed and bushy tailed freshman nor are you the formidable junior/senior. After the first year of college, you've gotten a taste of the course load, picked up a few tips and tricks here and there, possibly stumbled upon some new interests, and watched people come and go in your life. It's that phase where you're still figuring out who you are and where you belong.
Definitely one of the biggest things we start to think about in sophomore year is what we want to major/minor in. Some of us begin college knowing exactly what we want to study. Others may have a vague idea or no clue at all, which is COMPLETELY fine! Whether you fall into any of the three, one thing for certain is that you'll have plenty of opportunities to dabble with a variety of interests in your freshmen year and through sophomore year. Dartmouth's distributive requirements ensure students complete courses across the liberal arts so you will be challenged outside of your comfort zone whether you consider yourself a "STEM" or "humanities" person.
Something I like to remind myself is that there is always time for me to try something new or even revisit a long-lost passion. Through sophomore year, you'll start to narrow down a list of major options you can see yourself pursuing in the long run. Be open to inspiration! Maybe it'll be a professor who had a strong impact on you, a class you didn't particularly think too much into, a research project you're hoping to get involved with, or a club activity you find yourself completely immersed in. There really is no better time to get to know and talk to your professors, undergraduate advisors, upperclassmen, and friends than during sophomore year. The resources and networks around you want to build you up, see you thrive and succeed, not to scare you away or limit your potential.
Beyond academics and extra-curricular activities, sophomore year is a time when you're continuing to find your identity and how you "fit-in." The friends you make during your freshman fall might not be the ones who you find yourself with in a year. The places you enjoy going to and the things that you enjoy doing might not have the same charm to them after some time. You'll surprise yourself with the quirks, traits, and even talents that you never knew you had. I encourage and challenge you to embrace them. Be kind to yourself and embrace that you're growing and evolving. As a college sophomore, you might not know where you're headed or when you'll get there. But it's an exciting time to keep building on the day before and be inspired by your intuition and creativity, all the while trusting that you're investing in yourself and becoming better every day.
Being a super senior ('23) is like being an incoming freshman ('28) in that you get to make a new set of friends. Luckily, Dartmouth is a small school with many social spaces students can tap into.
The "Why Dartmouth" supplement was the hardest for me to write. How would I explain all the reasons I loved Dartmouth in 100 words? I chose Dartmouth because of how the people and campus made me feel. Dartmouth radiates excitement.
