Hi everyone! I'm Rika, a semi-international '28 from Japan, India, and Malaysia. I'm interested in studying women, gender, and sexuality studies, as well as public policy, global health, and biology while also being on the pre-health track! In my free time, I love to read books, cook and bake, play violin, spend time with animals, be sarcastic, and drink hot drinks (especially teas)! I'm so excited to share my exploration of Dartmouth with everyone :)
Sex, Gender, and Society is a class in the Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGSS) department. It focuses on how gender and sexuality are represented in the media and explores different ways society shapes our perspectives. This discussion-based class features multiple group projects, which allowed me to meet and interact with many of my classmates, which was super helpful in my first term! Fun fact: this class taught me how to plan, film, and edit a podcast on campus!
In this class, we explored the different contemporary meanings of the 4 concepts; love, romance, intimacy and dating. What did they look like at Dartmouth? How were they represented or defined in scholarly research? Why are they important to the world and human interaction? Our classes consisted of thoughtful discussions, insightful lectures, and even primary research. The final project was a research paper that featured the data we collected as a class. It was a wonderful course that introduced me to the world of sociology and qualitative research!
This class was my first English/literature class and it was an absolute BLAST. Professor Jodi Kim provided us with so many interesting texts that explore the nuanced intersections of identity and sexuality, in various Asian American settings. Texts include M. Butterfly, On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous, and The Necessary Hunger. Our classroom discussions were lively, filled with new and contrasting interpretations of quotes. I highly recommend this class!
SummerBoston, Massachusetts
This summer term, I decided to stay with my parents, who moved to Boston at the end of May! I kicked things off by spending a few weeks training to become a certified nurse assistant (CNA), and after earning my license, I took some time to recharge. I reconnected with family, explored Boston’s best food spots, and went on a few spontaneous trips around the U.S. with friends! Definitely a refreshing and memorable summer!
This was one of the most eye-opening classes I've taken at Dartmouth so far. As the title suggests, it was an introduction to a sector of academia that I had absolutely no experience in. This class taught me more than just what literature exists about disabilities, but also taught me how to think through, see, and understand the world in completely different ways.
This was my very first Quantitative Social Science (QSS) class at Dartmouth, and it's safe to say it was incredible! We dove into all things data; how things are (un)protected, tracked, and several consequences of unsafe data collection on the human race. We had really interesting readings and projects, like our self-tracking and quantification project. I know I'll be using the lessons I learned in this class for the rest of my life!
During my first-year winter, I started looking for ways to get involved in research on campus. One of the things I quickly learned about Dartmouth is that it is surprisingly easy to find research opportunities if you are willing to reach out. There are a few different ways students usually get started. You can ask a professor whose class you are taking, you can cold email lab leaders whose work you find interesting, or you can do what I did and look through the Undergraduate Advising & Research (UGAR) database. UGAR has a list of labs that are actively looking for undergraduate researchers, which makes the whole process feel a lot less intimidating.
While browsing through the database, I came across a project led by Professor Ayubithat focused on abortion and religion. I was immediately interested because it connected to questions about health, ethics, and culture that I had already been thinking about. I decided to email her and mentioned that I had seen her project listed through UGAR, and asked if she had any open spots in her lab. Luckily, she did, and that email ended up leading me to one of the most meaningful research experiences I have had at Dartmouth.
The lab I joined is the Dartmouth Islamic Ethics Lab (DIEL). Our current project has been the Muslim Health Ethics Project (MHEP), which is a collaboration with the MeRGE Lab at Harvard Medical School. The project focuses on questions around health ethics within Muslim communities, and it brings together scholars, clinicians, and researchers from different institutions to think through these issues in a thoughtful and interdisciplinary way.
Our project flyer!
Source: Muslim Health Ethics Project
Working on MHEP has been an incredible experience for a lot of reasons. One of the biggest things I have gained from the project is mentorship. Professor Ayubi has been such a supportive mentor and has really helped guide me as I learned what it means to do research in the humanities and social sciences. I have also become close with the other undergraduate research assistants in the lab. We spend a lot of time working through ideas together, and it has been really nice to be part of a small group of students who are all interested in similar questions.
Another really exciting part of the project has been the chance to connect with people beyond Dartmouth. Through MHEP, we have worked with doctors, scholars, and researchers from different institutions, including collaborators at Harvard Medical School. Being able to see how research extends beyond one campus has made the work feel much bigger and more impactful.
I have also gained a lot of practical skills through this experience. Much of our work involves interpreting qualitative data, which has taught me how to read interviews and texts closely and think about how to identify themes within them. I have also had opportunities to communicate with professional organizations and collaborators, which was definitely intimidating at first, but has been a really valuable learning experience. On top of that, I have had chances to help present our work to larger groups, which has helped me become more comfortable sharing research in a professional setting.
Overall, getting involved in the Muslim Health Ethics Project has been one of the most rewarding parts of my time at Dartmouth so far. It has shown me how accessible research can be here, and how one email can turn into an opportunity to learn new skills, build relationships, and contribute to conversations that reach far beyond campus.
Amid the whirlwind of a ten-week term, the quietest moments — studying in the sun, cooking with a friend, running through Pine Park — turn out to be the ones worth savoring most.
One of my absolute favorite classes I've taken at Dartmouth has been Cinematography I, which completely changed the way I watch films and think about storytelling. Read on to hear more about my experience!
Curious about the requirements needed to complete your plan of study at Dartmouth? Come explore with me what each distributive requirement means at Dartmouth!
