Paulina Cuadra

Life as a D1 Athlete

Almost a quarter of all Dartmouth students participate in Division I sports. Because of this, I decided to interview my roommate (and one of my favorite people on this campus) on how life looked like as a D1 Athlete on Dartmouth's Swim Team. 

Pau: "How does it feel to swim for Dartmouth?" 

Katherine: "I love swimming for Dartmouth. Since I have been swimming for a large part of my life, I feel like it is something that comes naturally to me. I have always felt that it gave my life structure and balance since I have learned to manage my time as a student and athlete at the same time."

Pau: "What is your favorite part of being an athlete?"

Katherine: "I love being part of a team. The swim team here is really close and it comprises an amazing group of people I am so happy to be a part of. We hang out a lot and have events every week like hanging out at Harvest Fest and do bonding activities before our swim meets. Being part of the swim community definitely makes the entire experience worth it."

Pau: "How does swimming in college compare to swimming in high school?"

Katherine: "In high school it was definitely more of an individual activity where I was hyper-focused on my performance, while here I am more focused on the performance of the entire group." 

Pau: "What are some challenges that come with being an athlete?" 

Katherine: "Waking up. I have to wake up at 5:30 in the morning on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays which can often be difficult. On Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays we wake up at 7:00 a.m for practice, so that is slightly better. I take naps after class so that makes it okay." 

Pau: "How does your time management differ from when you were in high school?"

Katherine: "I feel like in many ways swimming in college is a lot more manageable than in high school. In high school I would have a really rigid schedule with school and practice. Back home, I would do about 7 hours of school and 3 hours of practice per day. Here, I only have about 9 hours of class every week so it leaves a lot of free time to focus on work. It definitely is an adjustment to learn how to manage this free time effectively though, but it is possible."

Pau: "How does going away for meets feel?"

Katherine: "Going away to swim is really fun. This term we have gone on two away meets which were both really cool. The bus rides there were kind of long but I got an opportunity to get ahead with work. Going to these events also makes the entire swim team come together and bond more."