First, I'll explain who I am. I'm Nicholas Sugiarto, a '23 from San Diego, California. Second, a quick disclaimer. I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing. Prior to Dartmouth, I've never hiked, skied, or seen snow. So yeah, you could say that Dartmouth is quite a bit different from what I'm used to. You'll probably find me on campus lost. I have no sense of direction. Please help.
A class studying how Christian language has permeated into how we as a society talk about economics. I have virtually no interest in either field as a major, nor am I really religious, but the class is super fun! It challenges you to think in ways that aren't outstandingly obvious, but get more and more interesting if you're willing to put the time in to thinking about them. It's by no means your traditional class. At least in the high school I came from, the idea of dedicating an entire term to a topic as niche as this is unheard of. But honestly? That just makes it so much more fulfilling. Like most Dartmouth classes, there's a ton of freedom to explore topics that interest you. For my final term paper, since I'm a huge hip hop fan, I wrote about the religious and economic underpinnings of Kendrick Lamar's "How Much a Dollar Cost." Without diving too deep into the jargon, I argued that money according to Kendrick Lamar, is defined by Western capitalism heavily intertwined with American Prosperity Gospel; its true nature, on the other hand, is a form of spiritual exchange. I loved this class so much that I was able to take my professor out to breakfast (on Dartmouth's dime, of course. Quick college lesson, never, ever pay for food. Live life Aladdin style.).
For those that don't know, Writing 5 is a class that's mandated for all Freshman. It helps you adjust to college writing, research, all that good stuff. There's a ton of topics to choose from, ranging from the criminal justice system to how food affects your mind. I personally chose "Pursuit of Happiness" because, well, who doesn't want to be happy? This class was my first intro to what the Dartmouth academic experience is really about. It was a small class of only 16 strong where classes were discussion-based and the professor's door is always open. It goes without saying that the course was immensely interesting (is there really a way to make happiness boring?), and we studied a vast majority of topics from Aristotle to Voltaire to Biochemical research studies. I tell incoming students all the time that if you want to make the most of your Dartmouth experience, take classes that interest you and make what you do with those classes interesting too. There's nothing more painful than having to write a paper on a topic you find absolutely mind-numbingly dull. Given my fascination with stand up comedy, I focused on viewing comedy as a form of happiness, starting from comedy in relation to Camus's absurd, the higher prevalence of mental illness in comedians, and what kind of comedians deserve happiness. Honestly? Even though this class was technically "mandatory," I would have taken it regardless.
This is the class I'm currently taking, and it's by far my favorite. You couldn't tell by my posts, or my favorite classes I listed earlier, but I'm actually a huge STEM guy. I'm a biomedical engineering major for a reason, and Dartmouth classes really make STEM fun. They're also so easy a child could follow them. Literally. I'm using the computer science 1 curriculum to teach my little sister coding. At a slower pace of course. She's not THAT smart (yet). I've never tried coding before, but the task-based approach of the CS department really makes things interesting. So far, we've drawn a children's book/ logo, a chalkboard drawing (I drew the Kanye bear), and a retro pong game. There's something fun about solving puzzles for a grade, and even though the course is admittedly pretty challenging at times, it's so worth it.
I'm not one for the outdoors. I mean, I'm not particularly against it, but it definitely does make my choice of Dartmouth a bit more on the strange side.
There's no way around it. Dartmouth is very much an outdoorsy school. The Dartmouth Outing Club is easily the largest on campus, and covers everything from fishing to a 50 mile hike. Which, as fun as it sounds, is something I'll never do. Nothing against it, it's just not really my thing.
Me, another undergrad, and my PI's dog! For some reason, hiking is more fun with dogs. Can't quite put my finger as to why
However, I recently went on my second ever hike (not counting my first year trip). And, like the first time, it was with my science lab. On campus, I'm really into research, and I've spent the past three years doing computational biology work with Xiaofeng Wang. I'm really lucky to have found a lab that has been so supportive of me even though I'm just an undergraduate, and I'm fortunate enough that I have a chance to do a senior fellowship with them this year. But that's another blog post for a different time.
Rather, I've talked before about the idea that research at Dartmouth is its own form of community. Aside from hikes, I've also cooked hotpot, attended conferences, and gone on academic retreats with my lab. Don't get me wrong, work comes first, but at my lab and others that I've seen at Dartmouth it's more than just that.
Last time my lab and I hiked up Mt. Lafayette, which is one of the tallest mountains in New Hampshire. This time we hiked up Mt. Cardigan, which although still sizable at 3,155 feet tall, is nowhere near as close as the 5,000+ feet of Mt. Lafayette. I was with my my PI (principal investigator, or professor who's in charge of the lab), a grad student, two research assistants, a rotation student, and another undergrad like me. Oh yeah, and two dogs.
Don't get me wrong though. The view was still pretty dope.
Unlike Mt. Cardigan, we actually got to chat during the hike, instead of the panting and sweating of the last one. And, I don't know what I expected, but it was all about science. Both our own research, and even random science findings that make the news, like a study someone found about how instant noodles are digested in your stomach. I've long since forgotten the view, but that memory has stuck with me.
And that's the thing about all this, and why I found the hike so enjoyable. I've been on quite a few hikes by now (three, but that's enough for me). I mean, I guess they're cool, but at this point it's pretty evident that it's not my thing, even if I'm at Dartmouth. But, I'll probably still go on them because I find spending time with people as passionate as I am, so far as to spend their "rest days" discussing science in the middle of the woods simply for no other reason than because they just like it.
At Dartmouth, there is an undergraduate requirement for language; after all, it is the liberal arts! Fulfilling this requirement looks different for various people and I will focus on my experience.
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Planning on visiting Dartmouth as a prospective student or an interested person wanting to see our beautiful campus? In this post, I share insider tips to ensure your visit is fulfilled!
As I approach the halfway mark of my Dartmouth journey this spring, I find myself reflecting on the significance of distributive and world culture requirements in shaping my academic experience.
