Hey everyone! I'm Cooper from Wayne, Pennsylvania, which is right outside of Philadelphia. I am a '28 here at Dartmouth, and plan on studying Quantitative Social Science and Cognitive Science. In my free time, I love getting food with friends, playing pickleball, watching sitcoms (personal favorite is Modern Family), and going on walks. I am super excited to be here and cannot wait to take you along my journey at Dartmouth!
Winterim at Dartmouth is a 6-week winter break starting a few days before Thanksgiving and ending a few days after the New Year. Having so much time off is undeniably incredible, as it allows students to relax and unwind for the holiday season. Not having to stress out about finals after Thanksgiving break is so nice and truly does allow us to fully enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday. Now, with a 6 week break comes an incredible amount of time to do anything. Let me talk about some of the highlights of my Winterim!
For one, I have been able to work at my job which is conveniently located in my town. Doing so has allowed me to make some money and also get out of the house and interact with customers from all over! Beyond just working in my town, I have eaten at the various restaurants there as well, which has been so nice to have food from my home that I have been missing. I do love the food at Dartmouth, of course, but being able to eat food that you cannot find in Hanover (such as Chick-Fil-A) is something that I cannot deny is very nice.
In addition, being located about 30 minutes outside of Philadelphia has allowed me to venture into the city multiple times throughout this break. I visited the Christmas Village and even went ice skating, which was so amazing. Shockingly, before Winterim, I did not really explore Philadelphia as much as I could have, so I took this break to really get a good sense of what Philly is all about, and I am so glad I did!
The Christmas Village in Philly!
My favorite part about Winterim was having so much time to catch up with friends from home. Getting to hear about all of their college experiences was so wonderful and it was so nice to see everyone after not seeing them for nearly three months. Whether it was Friendsgiving, Secret Santa, or just simply hanging out, I was so happy to see so many of my friends during Winterim. Although it will certainly be hard to leave them once again, it will only be a few months until I see them!
My friends and I outside after our Secret Santa!
All in all, Dartmouth's Winterim gives students an abundance of time to relax and do whatever they want to do. Although I will miss Winterim, I am incredibly excited for the winter term to begin!
While many people might associate cold, long, snowy winters with hardship, I've found that winter at Dartmouth is full of potential to be just as fun as other seasons.
