Hi everyone! Welcome to my blog, also known as my digital diary. I'm majoring in Asian Studies modified with Business, a new program here at Dartmouth, so feel free to ask me anything related to that. Beyond the classroom, I love the Dartmouth sunsets, the traditions, the classes, the merch, and the people, of course. Come along with me as I explore the ins and outs of life in the woods.
A course that definitely surprised me, I did not know what to expect and had very little philosophical knowledge before taking this course. It was a mixture of current and past readings, with the final project to make a group video, testing my technological ability. Professor Bumpus was amazing, and I got to know her more when I took her to breakfast at Pine through the Take Your Professor to Lunch Program.
I was recommended to take a history course, specifically a history course with Professor Lu, and it has not disappointed! This course is cross listed with Asian Studies, my major, but it has made me consider a history minor... We start every class off with a song relating to the topic of that class, and then we move on to discussion based activities.
So far, the Dartmouth classes I have taken have been all based around discussion and essay writing. As an Asian Studies and Government major, I expected that the rest of my time at Dartmouth would follow a similar pattern, but in fact a pre-requisite for the Government major is a Political Analysis class. This class involves coding, analyzing survey samples, and other quantitative methods. The professor is amazing—a friend and I got to know him better by taking him out to breakfast at Pine through the 'Take Your Professor to Lunch' program. The final group project involves making projections for the 2024 elections using past data. Although, obviously, this election already happened, some of our predictions were more accurate than the polls! It is super interesting to take a class that I can see the themes in real world news outlets.
My favorite class this term had to be Developing Vietnam, which is a ten-week course taken in Hanover, in preparation for three weeks in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam during the winter break. The goal of this class was to plan and carry out a research project pertaining to development in Vietnam. During our time at Dartmouth, we collaborated with Fulbright University Vietnam students to come up with a shared research topic, research brief, and agenda. The interdisciplinary nature of this class meant that we had the opportunity to explore Vietnam through different angles/themes spanning religion, history, political economy, and environmental governance.
Despite being a College, Dartmouth has various graduate schools attached to it, including the Tuck of Business. These schools offer various course for undergraduates, taught by its own faculty. Tuck 1 is an introduction to financial accounting, drawing from various case studies and real-world examples. We got to hear from leading experts, and were given an overview of life at business school and careers in business. As with regular undergrad classes, the professor made himself incredibly available for consultation outside of class hours, but this time, at Tuck.
The question of 'where are you from?' is met with me considering whether I should give the short answer, or the more confusing one. I was born in London, England, and spent a significant portion of my childhood in Beijing, China. I attended secondary school in Sevenoaks—a commuter town located southeast of London. Although my parents are American, I have never lived in the US, only making the trip on summer holidays.
Wondering how I was going to answer that question at Dartmouth, as well as the others that came with it, led to a bit of worry in making my college decision—a concern that lasted right up to my arrival in Hanover. This blog post is intended to discuss and ease two potential worries that I had, as an international student making the decision to come to Dartmouth.
International Students' Pre-Orientation Program (ISPOP) was a comforting way to start off my four years. Firstly, arriving on campus two days earlier than domestic students meant that the move in experience was significantly less overwhelming, without the hustle and bustle that 1,200 first years would inevitably bring. With clear, focused programming intended to ease the transition to college in the US, information was shared on topics ranging from safety and security on campus, to visa regulations, to the good study spots on campus. I made some of my closest friends during ISPOP, facilitated by the fun programming by the International Students' Experience Office (ISEO).
Leaving our mark on the Baker-Berry bell tower, with one of my friends I met during ISPOP
Another resource that international students have access to is the ISEO. Open daily with refreshments and snacks, it is a place to ask for advice about any problem that we may face, and they will provide us with useful information, or direct us to those that can. Trips to the DMV are also arranged by this office. We also receive weekly emails from the ISEO, detailing the programming and support available.
A concern that I had coming to Dartmouth was my lack of mobility. Having always lived in or near a large city, with public transport systems and other ways of getting around, I was worried that I was going to be 'stuck' in Hanover, or else be travelling to Boston every other weekend aboard the Dartmouth Coach. Firstly, the Upper Valley in fact has an exceptional public transport network, made even better by the fact that it is completely free of charge. Connecting Hanover to the bigger towns of Lebanon, West Leb, White River Junction and Lyme means that I do in fact have the ability to explore the surrounding areas. That is not to say we don't have everything we need in our town of Hanover, all of which is walking distance away. From CVS (a retail and pharmacy) to restaurants to a poster & vinyl shop, I am never short of anything that I need. More often than not, my calendar is full of Dartmouth-organized activities to participate in. This creates a strong sense of community that a city doesn't allow for. Plentiful options on campus mean that we don't have to look elsewhere for weekend plans.
Friends I met through my sorority!
The second worry that I had surrounded Greek life. Before coming to Dartmouth, my reference for Greek life was from videos I saw online; however what I encountered was vastly different. I would describe Greek life kind of like a radio—you can adjust the volume to whatever suits you the best. Events are open to everyone, regardless of whether or not you are affiliated (part of a Greek house). There is no 'one' sorority member or a typical path of involvement. Rather, I have found it to be a wonderful addition to my time at Dartmouth. It's another community for me to be a part of, with my participation in the house varying according to my schedule.
All in all, getting to experience Dartmouth as an international student has been nothing short of life changing. Yes, I had concerns coming in, and at times I have been met with challenges that domestic students wouldn't necessarily encounter. Through my incredible support network at Dartmouth with the ISEO, the Dean's office, my professors, I am always confident that I will have resources and people to turn to.
Since 1911, Dartmouth has hosted the annual Winter Carnival. This year, we celebrated the 116th Winter Carnival, The Blizzard of Oz, filled with winter-themed activities and campus wide fun!
Ah, college—a new beginning. Read on to hear what the transition was like for me, from being a nervous but excited high school senior to slowly settling into college life.
