Welcome! I'm Olivia Koo '26, hailing from Los Alamos, New Mexico. I am studying biological chemistry on the pre-med track, and I'm excited to be supplementing it with music, as a classical pianist and singer-songwriter! Some of my favorite things to do are watching YouTube videos about video games, singing and playing my guitar, and reading New York Times op-eds. Look through my page for information about Dartmouth's pre-med track, STEM research, acapella/music, and study abroad opportunities!
Unsure whether I would enjoy the biology-heavy pre-health track, I took an intro biology class. I surprisingly found myself so invested each class—I didn’t think I’d ever be excited trying to determine if the Last Universal Common Ancestor (LUCA) had DNA or RNA, but here we are! I found it a great introduction to thinking processes at Dartmouth.
I loved coming to this class with its supportive environment! The professor's feedback really helped me improve in my writing. This course guided us through personal narratives and organizational writing while discussing what it really means to be authentic. It also introduced me to the library’s resources for writing and research!
This class was definitely not easy! The accelerated version of general chemistry, it was my first class at Dartmouth that used a textbook, and I had to adapt and learn how to use a textbook for a class properly. But that didn't mean I didn't have a good time! The classes were full of physical demonstrations, and I felt very supported in the lab and beyond.
This was the first group music class I took, and I loved it! Each class we'd move a little forward in time; one day we'd talk about medieval chants, and by the next couple weeks, we talked about Baroque music. We even got to observe original medieval music scores from the Rauner Library, and attend a performance of Baroque music by the Dartmouth Symphony Orchestra!
Songwriting 1 was the first time I was able to work on something creative/in the arts at Dartmouth, and I really loved it! I got to learn how to improve my songwriting and get to know a community of fellow songwriters on campus. The class was both supportive and constructive, and I pushed myself to my creative limit with the assignment of writing one new song a week. This class inspired me to continue writing and being expressive, whether in an academic setting or not.
For one of my classes on the London Music FSP, I got to attend a myriad of musical performances in London and discuss them with my class! It was a once-in-a-life-time experience–getting to watch multiple operas, ballets, jazz sets, and a musical, as well as seeing beautiful performances from the London Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic, and more, helped me grow my ear so much and my inspirations as a musician.
I took this class to learn a little more about the social landscape around medicine, and this class delivered that by a mile. From environmental exposure to racial inequities in medicine/health to the discussion of medicine itself as a manipulative tool in colonialist social structures, this class helped me rethink medicine and my role within it.
I find winter term to have a unique energy; with the campus cold and covered in snow, there ends up being nothing more cozy than sitting in the library or my dorm, looking out the window and watching the snow float by. It makes classes fun, too! I love getting to work on my experiment for my chemistry class and looking out the window to see snowflakes falling in droves—they make the lab seem cozy, too.
My first class for this term is Organic Chemistry 2, the second intro organic chemistry class in the sequence. We are learning more about organic molecules, electron density, and reactivity this term. I hope my experience last term will prepare me for this class. From the labs to the exams to drawing hexagonal molecules, I feel a bit more familiar with the rhythm of organic chemistry.
A scene from one of my lectures!
My second class for this term is a history course, Slaves and Rebels of Korea, taught by Professor Soyoung Suh. The course covers the Joseon Dynasty in Korea and its unique social structure, focusing primarily on the enslaved people in the era. Did you know that there was a long-lasting institution of slavery in Korea? Before this class, I didn't, and—as a Korean-American—I was intrigued to learn more. It's a class unlike what I have taken before, and I'm excited to see where it goes!
My third class, which I'm rather excited about, is Songwriting 1, taught by Professor César Alvarez! As you may or may not know, I enjoy writing songs on top of playing classical piano—I've written and shared a couple of songs already, and it's a hobby that I'd like to develop and learn more about. Unfortunately, I had little time to write songs during the last school year! Taking this class, I hope to have the space to produce some songs during an academic term, learn more about songwriting and composition, and listen to my classmates' songs! I've written three songs so far for the class (a song per week!), and I've appreciated the space for experimenting with music, receiving feedback, and sharing music! I hope it can also be a good primer for my next term, my foreign study program in London for music.
The class also provided us recording equipment! I feel a bit sorry for my floormates, though...
And those are my three classes for the term! I feel that, so far in my time at Dartmouth, I've really aimed to have a balanced set of courses, and I've been able to have do that thanks to the school's focus on liberal arts. With a science course, history course, and music course this term, I feel that my brain can feel a bit fresher as I can switch between disciplines and continue to think in different ways throughout the week. Here's hoping that I feel the same for the rest of the term!
Every Dartmouth student is required to demonstrate proficiency in a language other than English. Here's my experience navigating the language requirement!
Unlike some other universities, many of the STEM lecture classes at Dartmouth require concurrent enrollment in a laboratory section. What is it like navigating that time as a student?
