Hey! My name is Taylor, and I'm a '27 from Beijing, China. I'm majoring in Mathematics and Quantitative Social Science, with a potential minor in French. Outside of the classroom, you can find me going on hikes with the Dartmouth Outing Club, in the Spare Rib office writing creative pieces, or reading books in Sherman library
Coming to Dartmouth with a solid background in French (Delf B2), I find French 3 a perfect fit for me -- it helps me to consolidate a lot of key grammar and vocabs, and fun weekly cultural activities like coffee hours and french lunch table offers me chances to relax in busy times. While the class is very rigorous and requires a lot of hard work, my professor is so nice and makes the class very fun! I also look forward to going to Dartmouth's Toulouse LSA program after completion of this class!
This course explores how Buddhist concepts of embodiment affect daily life and society in Southeast Asian contexts, and how the intersection of religion, sexuality, and gender impact broader understandings of authority, wisdom, beauty, death, and loyalty. The class takes on many forms beyond mere lectures -- a visit to the Hood Museum of Art, mindfulness practices, and small Buddha-crafting projects. Our professor (the sweetest Prof. MK Long) also invites many of her colleagues at other institutes as guest lecturers to our class so that we can learn from real experts specializing in different countries in Southeast Asia. I have learned a lot from the class and decided to become a religion major after this course!
Having never enjoyed math classes before college, I'm surprised (again) by how I'm becoming a math major and falling in love with math here! My professor (Prof. Shu Longmei, who graduated from the best university in my hometown) is incredibly good at teaching the concepts -- not just explaining things clearly but also showing us the beauty and elegance of calculus. I really look forward to taking more math classes in the future!
SummerVietnam & Beijing, China
I first visited pagodas in Vietnam for a couple of weeks and had days of conversations with monastics! Then, I returned home to savor time spent with my family and old friends, focus on my mental and physical health, and study and work a bit.
This is a really fun and engaging class taught by an award-winning professor. The mini-ethnography assignments provide a lot of hands-on experience in conducting fieldwork, making the methods we study feel real and applicable. From participant observation to interviews and field note coding, this course offers an immersive introduction to ethnographic research on religion. Plus, the discussions on research ethics and methodology are both thought-provoking and relevant, making this an incredibly useful class for anyone interested in studying contemporary religious communities through direct engagement.
This class is incredibly interesting because it feels like traveling through time—from the philosophical foundations of Laozi and Zhuangzi to medieval Daoist traditions and contemporary practices in northern and southern China and Taiwan. Even as a Chinese student, I’m realizing how much there is to learn, not just about Daoism but also about the broader religious landscape and practices in China.
QSS 17 offered a rigorous and creative introduction to data processing and visualization. From replicating Florence Nightingale’s iconic rose plot to designing animated graphics and exploring datasets that captured my own interests, the course deepened both my technical skills and my ability to communicate insights visually. It taught me not just how to make graphs, but how to tell compelling, data-driven stories.
SummerHong Kong & Beijing, China
I completed an internship in Hong Kong and spent the rest of the summer with my family in Beijing.
The class featured an incredibly engaging range of readings—from Virginia Woolf, Kafka, and Shakespeare to Almodóvar’s films, as well as theoretical works by Butler, Žižek, Lacan, and Freud. I learned a great deal from the diverse perspectives these texts offered and benefited immensely from the in-class discussions, which were always thought-provoking and inclusive. The professor also made a genuine effort to get to know every student (all of us invited him to the Pine restaurant for lunch during the term), creating a warm and intellectually stimulating classroom environment.
This class explores French art, music, and history from the Middle Ages to the modern period, offering a broad view of the country’s cultural heritage. I especially enjoy it because many classes are held in museums and cathedrals, where encountering artworks and architecture in their original settings makes the material feel immersive and vividly alive.
A Dartmouth student's immersive French‑language journey in Toulouse
This winter term, I am participating in a language study abroad programin Toulouse, France. Over the coming weeks, I'll be sharing reflections and stories from my time here as I explore Toulouse, southern France, and beyond, all while continuing my academic journey abroad.
Because this is a language-focused program, my coursework this term centers on French language, literature, and culture. I am enrolled in three French classes, each offering a distinct lens through which to understand France. French 6, taught by Dartmouth professor Lucas Hollister, focuses on reading and discussing French literature, from canonical figures like Molière and Voltaire to contemporary voices such as Annie Ernaux, the recent Nobel Prize laureate. The course encourages close reading while also situating these works within their broader historical and cultural contexts.
I am also taking French 9, an art history course taught by two art historians from the University of Toulouse. The class is split between a more traditional, lecture-based component and an immersive, site-based component held throughout the city. These classes take place in museums, cathedrals, and other historic spaces in Toulouse, allowing us to engage directly with the artworks and architecture we study.
Toulouse, Théâtre de la Cité
My third class, French 12, emphasizes refining and strengthening French grammar while incorporating readings and discussions about French history, culture, and the unique character of Toulouse and its surrounding regions. This course ties language learning closely to place, making everyday life in the city an extension of the classroom.
Beyond academics, our program also organizes excursions to theaters, art museums, historical sites, and nearby towns. These trips offer opportunities to learn more about the history of Toulouse and southern France while experiencing the region firsthand. In the following weeks to come, I'm excited to learn French in a way that feels alive—through walking the city, sitting in museums and theaters, and sharing these moments with others. Experiencing Toulouse alongside Dartmouth students, while also stepping beyond the Dartmouth bubble has made this term feel deeply immersive, personal, and genuinely meaningful.
In this blog, I share how joining Ujima, Dartmouth's oldest hip hop dance team, became not just a creative outlet but a family built on collective work, responsibility, and love.
To the Class of 2030: Congratulations! For those of you who are still making a decision, this blog is intended to give you some tips from my own experience of being in your fortunate (but difficult) position.
