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My Davidson is Davidson College's student blog, where students share their stories of experiential learning and distinctive moments while offering insights and advice to prospective students.
Nora Fenn Gilman ’26 reflects on her summer as a Center for Civic Engagement (CCE) Nonprofit Leadership Fellow with Smart Start, an early childhood nonprofit focused on book distribution and literacy equity.
What Would Dolly Do: Tackling Early Childhood Literacy in Charlotte
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Valeria Salgado ‘25 shares her transformative experience interning with the Community Building Initiative, a Charlotte-based non-profit organization dedicated to advancing equity, inclusion and access in the community.
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Dallas Brown ’26 reflects on his experience as a Nonprofit Leadership Fellow interning at Freedom Communities, an organization focused on disrupting intergenerational poverty and transforming the West Charlotte community.
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Sunny Baek ’26 reflects on her summer internship with E2D, a nonprofit in Charlotte dedicated to refurbishing laptops, providing computers to families and individuals in need at little to no cost and sharing digital skill training.
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Senior Fellows in Davidson College’s Office of Admission & Financial Aid share their tips for demonstrating interest in the admission process, while also breaking down what it means to connect with colleges and universities in an authentic way.
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Ashley Rangel ’28 reflects on her first semester at Davidson College as a scholar athlete, an illustrator of children’s books and a member of the Student Government Association.
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Davidson College students from the western United States reflect on how they've found home on the east coast and offer advice to prospective students also considering college further from home.
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Jaliel King ’26 reflects on the work Davidson Fashion Club does to create a space for creativity, inclusion and self-expression on Davidson College’s campus. From visits to Charlotte’s vintage markets to an annual fashion show, programming is another
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President of the Union Board, Davis Varnado ’25, shares some of his favorite events hosted throughout the year by Davidson’s largest student programming organization from parties to off-campus excursions and trivia to student performances.
Jingyan Chi ’26 shares insights from his summer as a Sustainability Scholar working at Trane Technologies where he studied embodied carbon reduction and gained valuable professional experience.
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Intended political science major Cameron Unice ’27 reflects on her summer research with Dr. Bersch examining and comparing how populist presidents exert control over administrative states, including a case study on former President Trump and the
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Political science major Peyton Davis ’25 reflects on her summer interning at the Department of Defense and how it has shaped her career aspirations post-Davidson.
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Nguyễn Mậu Đức Bình ’27 reflects on his summer trip to Northern Ireland with the Educational Studies Department where he explored the impact of division on educational policies.
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This summer 2024, Davidson College students were awarded $2 million for experiential learning opportunities including internships, education away, community-based learning and undergraduate research. Learn about their experiences in these student
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Davidson College students reflect on their “Korea Buddhist Pilgrimage” with Religious Studies Prof. Rachel Pang and Associate Chaplain for Buddhist Programs and Director of the Davidson Meditation Initiative, Ivan Mayerhofer.
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Interested in playing a competitive sport in college but not on the Division I level? Claire Kelly ’25 explains how club sports work at Davidson College, and how she has found community within the club tennis team.
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Katieanne Peterson ’24 and Noah Landau ’25, students in Davidson College’s environmental studies department, reflect on their winter break trip to Turkey to study wildfires and their cultural and environmental impact.
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Clara Smith ’24 reflects on her spring break trip to Panama with Prof. Britta Crandall, where they studied politics and economics through meetings with government officials, founders of nonprofits, and indigenous leaders.
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Recent graduate Claire Begalla ’24 reflects on the work done to complete two senior capstones and the ways her work tapped into all areas of her liberal arts education including anthropology, environmental studies, art, community-building and art history.
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Last summer, three physics majors drew up plans to create a sustainable tiny house. They presented the finished product at the Verna Miller Case Research and Creative Works Symposium on May 1, 2024. Learn more.
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Davidson students reflect on their alternative spring break trip to Sapelo Island, Georgia. They worked with a Black feminist collective nonprofit led by Davidson alums to address food insecurity in the South through sustainable agriculture.
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A senior approaching graduation, Ruby Zhou '24 reflects on her time at Davidson College in this letter to her past high school self on making the college decision and anticipating all to come as a member of the Wildcat community.
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A student describes how taking a class with Davidson College’s music department helped him discover his love of playing old time banjo.
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Three environmental studies students at Davidson College share adventures of their summer archaeological research with Prof. Brad Johnson in Cyprus.
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Four political science majors share their experiences with Davidson in Washington, an immersive summer opportunity for Davidson College students. Learn more.
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Davidson College students Daniel Lee '26 and Divin Dushimimana '26 reflect on their work with the Deliberative Citizenship Initiative and the happiness that comes from genuine conversations and thoughtful exchanges of ideas.
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Jacquelline Nyakunu ’26 discusses her chemistry and biology research as part of RISE, an undergraduate research opportunity for Davidson College students.
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Three Davidson College students from the German Studies department reflect on a week of independent research in Berlin with their professor and thesis advisor. From plays to museums to food, learn more in this photo essay.
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Explore Davidson College’s beautiful campus and ample student activities as captured through the perspective of Mikayla Bowens’s iPhone camera.
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Six students from the western United States share what it was like to move to the east coast for college and offer advice for prospective students considering the decision to attend an east coast school like Davidson College.
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Jonathan Hammond ’24 discusses seven weeks spent in Santiago, Chile and the many connections leveraged through the Davidson alumni network.
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Senior Fellows in Davidson College’s Office of Admission & Financial Aid share their tips and tricks for navigating and writing the college essay.
When applying to Davidson, all applicants are required to submit a peer letter of recommendation — someone of similar age who can speak to who you are as a human being beyond a transcript, essay or list of extracurriculars. Learn more.
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Wondering what a weekend at Davidson College can look like as a student? Haley Stock ’25 shares the many ways Wildcats spend their weekends around campus, town and in Charlotte.
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Addie Anderson ’24, a student Mental Health Ambassador (MHA) at Davidson College, works to destigmatize seeking help and to show struggling students they’re not alone.
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Three Davidson College students reflect on the extra challenges that a disability presents when choosing a college. They share their Davidson experience and offer advice to prospective students with disabilities about going through the admission process.
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Amy Tedeschi ’25 reflects on her summer with the Common Thread Theatre Collective, a professional theatre company formed between Davidson College and North Carolina A&T.
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For her senior capstone, Grace Rooker '24 spent five weeks in Kenya assessing the ecological impact of small-scale gold mining on stream ecosystems.
Toshaani Goel ’24 shares how she applied the lessons of Davidson College’s Humanities Program to a difficult social situation while WWOOF-ing in rural Maine.
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Orientation Team Leaders share what to expect during Davidson College’s New Student Orientation and offer advice for first year and transfer students alike on making the most of your transition into the Davidson community.
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Jacob Kim '26 reflects on his experience with Davidson College's Humanities Program, which seeks to bring different disciplinary perspectives to the big questions of life. Created for first years beginning their academic journeys at Davidson, the Humes
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Brody Bassett ’25 reflects on his summer in Egypt where he immersed himself in the formal “high” and informal “low” dialects people there use. Zoom lessons with an Egyptian-born tutor, and countless hours studying vocabulary, phrases, and idioms led to
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Choosing a college with a variety of good food options is important. Emma Goldfarb ’24 ranks her favorite spots for dining on Davidson College's campus.
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Physics students Mallory Justis ’24, Branner D'Amato ’24 and Pat Kielb ’24 reflect on their process designing and building a hydrogen-powered go-kart and the ways you can pursue engineering interests at Davidson College.
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Sydney Schertz ’24 captures a day in the life of Nummit, Davidson’s on-campus coffee shop, through her camera lens. Learn more in her photo essay.
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Niya Ma ’24 shares how she found her passion for computer science through hackathons, and how she worked with her peers to launch Hack@Davidson, a unique hackathon designed to welcome all levels of experience to the world of innovation.
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Over spring break, a group of Davidson students had the opportunity to attend SXSW, an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly in Austin, Texas.
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Courtney Fortunato ’24 shares their experience as an Education Scholar with Davidson’s Center for Civic Engagement in Summer 2022.
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Lucy Helene ’25 shares her experience as a Fellow with Davidson’s Center for Civic Engagement in Summer 2022, when she worked with the Arts+, a nonprofit organization based in Charlotte that works to provide accessible art education to all populations.
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Davidson Outdoors Leaders Addie McDonough '23 and Isabel Morichi '23 reflect on their winter break trip to Joshua Tree National Park.
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Emma Begley-Collier ’25 shares her experience working in a recovery community as a Summer Intern with Davidson College’s Center for Civic Engagement.
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Nasir Jean-Paul ’24 shares his experience as a Summer Intern with Davidson’s Center for Civic Engagement in Summer 2022.
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Ethan Kearns '23 reflects on his time spent nurturing and caring for Davidson College's Farm as a student employee.
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Campbell Walker ’25 gives her advice on course selection, orientation, and how to navigate social life during your first few weeks at Davidson College.
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As Davidson College celebrates first generation day each November, we asked first-gen members of the community to share what being first means to them. Learn what they had to say.
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Divin Dushimimana ’26, an intended public health and economics major from Rwanda, reflects on his first year at Davidson College as an international student and the value of a liberal arts education to his personal and academic growth.
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Arielle Germeus ’25 shares her expertise from a summer of interning with Davidson College's Admission Office on how to make the most of your time on a campus visit and college tour.
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Ty Cryan ’24 digs into research with Davidson College’s Farm and Biology Department as part of a larger relationship with the Catawba Nation.
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Davis Varnado ’25 shares his advice on getting to know colleges and universities from afar and virtually, including Davidson College.
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Kate Cross ’24 and Henry Wilkerson ’23 share how they leveraged a 10-hour-per-week work study position with Davidson College's Sustainability Office to gain professional experiences during the summer months.
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Three current students from around the world share how they found and chose to attend Davidson College.
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ST Hammer '24, Gabby Morreale '23 and Malavika Kalani '24 reflect on their decision to come to Davidson, ways they've gotten involved in disability advocacy on campus and resources to support their student experience.
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Two young alumni share how their experiences with Davidson College’s Sustainability Office got them to where they are today, post-Davidson.
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Four Davidson College students share how they've gotten involved with different aspects of college athletics including data analytics, pep band, and the fan section.
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Spend a day in the life in this travel vlog with Davidson College student Julia Lau '23 as she studies abroad with DIS in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Claire Tatum '24 captures the many facets of Davidson College's creative and artistic communities in this photo essay on the arts at Davidson.
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In this photo essay, Sydney Schertz ’24 documents the day-to-day of spring semester in one of Davidson’s eating houses, Warner Hall.
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International first year students Sahana Athreya '25, Hideki Harada '25 and Michael Hodgson '25 reflect on their first semester at Davidson College.
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Two students share their experiences with FIRST (Fostering Inclusivity and Respect in Science Together) and MILE (More Inclusive Learning Environments), Davidson organizations that aspire to remove barriers, to be more welcoming, and to help make science
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Davidson College student Shen Luo ’25 reflects on her experiences in college and what it has meant to explore the unknown as an international student at Davidson.
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If you're considering applying Early Decision, we know there can be nerves and concerns related to making such a big commitment. Davidson students share why Early Decision to Davidson was the right fit for them and offer some advice for those considering
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Zach Villamin '22 shares his experience applying to college and gives current high school seniors tips on how to better manage the application process.
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Blog Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the individual student writers and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Davidson College.