Karl Furstenberg moderated this panel of four phenomenal seniors, each unique, special, and brilliant, though not atypical in terms of breadth of experiences in each of their classmates. What each one tried to convey was that Dartmouth professors, administrators and staff treat ALL of their students this well, and that the most amazing of terms and opportunities can simply fall into your lap just by getting to know the people here.
- Troy Stewart created his own social policy major, and has pursued everything from corporate law to investment banking in his quest to find out what career will best suit him right after college. Though the weather and the town might not have been what he was expecting, he has fallen in love with Dartmouth because of the individual attention he was afforded by mentors from the very beginning of his first-year, through to graduation (and beyond).
- Yuki Kondo-Shah has decided that she would love to work in higher education, but not before an internship in Tokyo, learning Chinese, and studying Government in London; as part of Casque and Gauntlet senior society, she has been a premier activist on campus, and an incredible role model for younger women (and men).
- Allie Gathany knew she was interested in Medicine (mostly from the television show E.R.) but didn't know how that would manifest itself until her professors guided her towards biochemistry and molecular biology research in a lab, beginning her first year, and in and out of the pre-med track. She even picked up a french minor along the way, not before doing a language study abroad in France, and did a service trip to Africa. She is now headed to Yale to study public health, and wants to do work with diseases internationally.
- The last speaker was Nathan Sigworth, a transfer student who was doing a year at Dartmouth (after not being admitted the first time) to study engineering, and then simply couldn't leave. Two of his three classes his first term here quite literally changed his life. The first was a religious conflict class, where he wrote a paper on a conflict that currently exists in India, and his professor told him to go (on his own, with translators) and do real research there! A once-in-a-lifetime chance, albeit dangerous and intimidating, Nate was entrusted with this heavy task of interviewing people first-hand, and communicating with his professors weekly about his findings and reactions, throughout the term. His second class was an introduction to engineering class, where he invented the GyroBike with three classmates. A Dartmouth alum wrote their patent for this device that keeps bikes upright (so there is no need for training wheels) for FREE, and Dartmouth has given them 100% of the rights; he is currently in negotiation to sell his invention to a company that is interested. His last plea to the audience to "come to Dartmouth" certainly resonated after these panelists finished detailing all the ways in which they never would have come to this place of success, achievement, and self-realization had it not been for this college.
