Hi everyone! I'm Yehalah and I'm a '26 coming all the way from Colombo, Sri Lanka. My academic passions lie in Energy Engineering and Environmental Studies. I am a first-generation and low-income student, actively involved with the community. I love to paint and read during my free time. I'm excited that you're here, and I hope you enjoy this account of my life at Dartmouth!
Taking an art class has long been a dream of mine. Drawing 1 with Professor Enrico Riley exceeded my expectations greatly! He is an inspiring instructor who allowed us creative freedom, while guiding us in the right direction. We drew in different forms of charcoal, with colour introduced towards the end of the term. I loved my experience and I cannot wait to take another Studio Art class!
The sequel to Drawing 1 with Professor Enrico Riley! We worked in oil paint, which I was completely new to and admittedly afraid to use. I ended up falling in love with the medium and the flexibility it gave me to adjust and refine my paintings at any point in the process. I am sad to finish this class and I hope I get to take another Studio Art class in the future!
Moving to America was a drastic adjustment, especially considering the difference in perception of race and ethnicity. This class gave me a insight into past and current American oppression against Black and Indigenous communities. I loved how much I learnt through this class, which was also my First Year Seminar requirement.
My first language class at Dartmouth! Taking German was intimidating, especially because of the fast-paced and rigorous learning method that Dartmouth uses. It was so interesting to learn the different grammar and rules used in the German language. I cannot wait to use my Beginner German skills in Berlin next Spring!
The Sacred Architecture of Asia is one of the most incredible courses I have taken at Dartmouth! The course is primarily discussion-based, with Professor Seher explaining and initiating conversation about the course material. The material assigned was incredibly inspiring and taught me so much about South Asian religions and their beginnings. Everywhere I travel now, I think about the lessons I have learnt in this class and I am truly grateful to Professor Seher for facilitating an incredible learning experience!
Learning about German history in Berlin was a great way to explore the city and culture! The class had weekly excursions where we visited important sites in Berlin, which was so informative and helpful. Overall, I learnt so many new aspects of Germany and the people who played a significant role in German history.
SummerPerrysburg, Ohio
Interning at First Solar, a solar panel manufacturing company! I work on the Application Engineering team under Product Management, developing ways to better serve our clients and enhance our products. It has been an amazing experience so far, I have learnt so much and I am so grateful for this opportunity!
Solid mechanics is a class all about stress, strain and structure. My favorite part about this class was getting to design, 3D model and construct a wooden bridge from scratch! Using SOLIDWORKS to perform FEA analysis and a laser-cutting machine, my group and I put together a model bridge that held four times more that the desired weight! It was an awesome experience to put our classroom theory into practice. This has been the most exciting engineering class I have taken so far!
An excursion on our German-Engineering FSP brought us to Hamburg, a major port city in the Northern part of the country! After a few days of countless sheep in Pellworm (read about that adventure here), our arrival in Hamburg was a reintroduction to city life. I immediately loved the bustling nature of the place.
The days our group was in Hamburg fell on the 835th anniversary of the port! Everything in Berlin seemed so new and this port was more than eight centuries old. This anniversary was a combination of festivals, carnivals, concerts and markets. There was even a submarine open to visitors!
Our first stop was a walk and boat tour of the city. We passed by many important landmarks and got to see the ships at the port up close! One of the most important landmarks we visited was the St. Pauli Elbe Tunnel. This was the first river tunnel on the entire continent, and it has been used to transport people and vehicles since 1911.
The Elbe tunnel in its present state!
We had a whole day to explore the riverside carnival, where we tried all sorts of food and drinks. The main type of food was fischbrötchen, fish sandwiches made in different styles. A few friends and I got a ride on the Ferris wheel to get a view of Hamburg from above! From here we could see how far this carnival extended.
The biggest attraction for me was an extensive flea market on the outskirts of the carnival! They had everything you could think of, from clothes to accessories to CDs. I bought a pair of earrings and a purple leather jacket! Even late at night, the carnival was still in full swing.
One of the ships at the port!
Our time in Hamburg was entirely sponsored by the program! We were given money to spend on all our dinners. Even our little Ferris wheel ride was covered by the eighty euros we were each given for cultural excursions.
"Only three classes?!" The typical response I get from someone outside of Dartmouth. Come and join as I describe how those three classes actually feel in a ten week term!
Where can I find internships? How do resumes and LinkedIn work in college? Am I behind if I do not have it all figured out my first year? All great questions so let's get them answered…
The first-generation community at Dartmouth is an extremely tight knit and supportive community! This past week, we celebrated first-gen week, with a myriad of activities and lots of chances to meet new people!
I can't wait to celebrate Winter, so I just had to write a blog post all about it. Read on to hear about all the fun (and affordable) Winter activities at Dartmouth!
