Hey y'all! My name is Natasha, and I am a junior at Dartmouth College. I'm majoring in history and minoring in public policy and Chinese. In my free time, I love to watch New Girl, hang out with my friends, and explore the Upper Valley. Dartmouth is a pretty neat place— I hope you enjoy reading my posts about life here!
Academic Program
History Major and Minors in Public Policy and Chinese
The world is currently in a tumultuous state because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Healthcare professionals, government officials, and other workers from around the globe are working tirelessly to keep people safe and help slow down the spread of this virus. To do its part in keeping both the staff and students as safe as possible, the Dartmouth administration has drastically minimized the number of people allowed on campus for the spring term. In addition, all classes are being held online. Although the switch to remote learning took some time to adjust to, I, along with many other Dartmouth students, have finally started to get into the groove of things. Here are some of the tips my friends and I have gathered from our first week of online classes!
1. Separate Your Work Space From Your Personal Space
Even though it is very tempting to attend classes from the comfort of your bed, doing so will worsen your work-life balance. On campus, it was easy for me to separate my "work" life from my personal life by only studying at the library and using my dorm as a place to relax. However, at home, it is a bit more challenging to do this. One tip my friend suggested was to designate one desk as your working desk and to only be on your bed when you want to sleep or catch up with friends.
2. Be Mindful of Your Mental Health
It is no doubt that people are very stressed out because of the precarious situation we are in right now. It is so crucial for any student who is feeling overwhelmed to reach out for help from people they trust, whether that be their parents, friends, relatives, or anyone else. For me, talking to my Dartmouth friends through FaceTime made me realize that we all were truly in this together and could have fun even while social distancing!
3. Learn a New Hobby
At Dartmouth, many clubs and organizations are now being run online, like improv groups, political clubs, and of course, this blog! There is no time like now to dive into that activity you have always wanted to get into.
I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy during these times!
There is no "the" thing you should be stressing over doing between your first-year and sophomore years. It's about what you need and what will bring you fulfillment.
Despite the vast ocean that separates me and my dream school, I applied to Dartmouth College as an international student from Bangkok, Thailand in the early decision round. This wasn't just a leap of faith, I assure you.
