Hello there! My name is Shuyi and I'm a '23, which means it's my first year here at Dartmouth! I'm having a lot of fun exploring campus, meeting all the wonderful people here, and trying new things! At Dartmouth, I enjoy playing squash, eating at late night, and of course, blogging! You can ask me about studying social sciences, coming to Dartmouth as an international student, and anything else really. I hope you enjoy the blog!
Hi 24's! I've had the pleasure to get to know some of you through virtual hosting, and I'm so excited to welcome you all to campus! Although there's so much to look forward too, I was sorry to hear that you guys won't have a Dimensions to be excited about. For those of you who don't know, Dimensions is Dartmouth's revisit day for accepted students, which unfortunately has been canceled this year. Therefore, to compensate, I thought I would revisit my Dimensions experience from last year!
My Dimensions started with waking up early in the morning to catch a flight to Boston from Philadelphia. After arriving, I went to the bus stop where the Dartmouth Coach would be picking us up. There, I met some other kids who were also going to Dimensions, and we quickly struck up conversation. Immediately, I recognized that everyone was very open and warm, and it was on that three-hour bus ride that I made some of my first friends at Dartmouth!
After arriving at Dartmouth, we were introduced to our hosts. My host was a sophomore from Canada, who I still talk to today! The rest of the day was filled with introductory speeches, museum visits at the Hood, and performances by wonderful dance and acapella groups. Although all of these events were entertaining, what stood out to me was how passionate and friendly all my fellow '23s and other Dartmouth students were. In fact, one of my favorite memories from Dimensions was hanging out on the Green with another '23 I had just met, when some students asked us to play spikeball with them. It was such an unexpected kind gesture, and it ended up having a lasting impression, although we did lose the game.
One of my favorite Dimensions memories, pictured!
If you ask most students what their favorite aspect of Dartmouth is, they will say it's how kind, supportive and fun people here are. I was shown this throughout my Dimensions experience, which culminated in a show hosted by students. The show consisted of a lot of silly dancing and parodies of hit songs we all know, as they changed the lyrics to try to convince us all to come again next fall. As I laughed at the choreographed dances and wacky outfits, I couldn't help being blown away by the effort all the students had put in to memorize their lines and dances just to welcome us to Dartmouth. I left Dimensions excited for my four years of college, and so far, it's been a blast.
To all the '24s, I'm sorry you guys won't get a Dimensions experience like mine, but I can't wait to see you guys run around the bonfire, enjoy your first winter carnival, and experience all the great things that Dartmouth has to offer you. If you see me around in the fall, say hi! We can even play some spikeball.
I saw my friends and professors in the people I pass on my runs, my classes slowed to a snail's pace but in a good way, and I hung onto every word each professor had to offer.
I've been reflecting on the lovely past four years of my life, and I came up with this list of seven things to help you succeed and thrive at Dartmouth.
The fact that our professor gave us a free textbook of his own design is amazing. With Dartmouth having a ton of free resources, I figured I might as well use some on my younger siblings!
A lot of people are curious about how Dartmouth's location affects social life, but something else that I've come to realize is that because of Dartmouth's location, we have some really cool academic perks.
One of my favorite Dimensions memories, pictured! 
