Jumbo Magazine - Fall 2023

JUMBO THE TUFTS ADMISSIONS MAGAZINE | THE STORIES OF TUFTS, NOT JUST THE STATS

ADMISSIONS.TUFTS.EDU | ISSUE 35 / FALL 2023

EXPLORATION ISSUE Club Sports Expand the Athletics Universe Take a Hands-on Approach to Exploring Planet Earth The Conversation: Frank Talk about the Thrill of Physics South Meets North at Tufts: Only the Weather is Chilly Here

MEET JUMBO

These pages were written by Tufts students. Flipping through them should feel like taking a stroll through campus. You’ll meet professors and students; they’ll share with you what excites them. You’ll drop into a class on an unfamiliar topic and leave inspired, dig into some fascinating research, or hang out in a residence hall with potential classmates.

Along the way, you might decide that Tufts feels like the right place for you. If that happens, this magazine is also for you—flip to the back where we’ve broken down the basics on applying: deadlines, financial aid, and our advice. This is Tufts; explore it.

PHOTO BY ANNA MILLER/TUFTS UNIVERSITY

CONTENTS

FEATURES

20 | The Many Paths of a Pre-Professional Student What does it actually mean to be pre-med or pre-law?

Come find out!

32 | A Community to Write Home About Tufts’ newest DSDI Center, the Indigenous Center, is a home away from home for Jumbos.

3 INFOGRAPHIC 8 ATHLETICS 14 ARTS 15 AROUND TOWN 18 CLASS HIGHLIGHTS 26 APPLICATION ADVICE 28 LIVING 38 ADMISSIONS INFO 39 FINANCIAL AID

On the Cover: Gabriela Perez shares how she built community and found her academic interests at Tufts.

COVER PHOTOS BY KATHLEEN DOOHER (FRONT), ALONSO NICHOLS/TUFTS UNIVERSITY (BACK)

GREETINGS

FROM THE DEAN “WHAT YOU DISCOVER WHEN YOU EXPLORE BEYOND YOUR COMFORT ZONE IS THE SPACE WHERE YOUR GROWTH AS A SCHOLAR, COMMUNITY MEMBER, AND HUMAN BEING REALLY TAKES PLACE.”

GREETINGS,

MEET THE STUDENT COMMUNICATIONS GROUP

THE TUFTS ADMISSIONS MAGAZINE

figuring out what you’re really made of. At Tufts, we will support you through that discomfort—after all, what you discover when you explore beyond your comfort zone is the space where your growth as a scholar, community member, and human being really takes place.

In this issue, you will read about Cole Reese ’25 and his willingness to explore attending a university in a different part of the country than where he is from, you will discover the opportunities that club sports provide for students to engage in organized athletics without the intensity of the varsity program, and you will see how our students explore a variety of pre-professional pathways. You will learn from our faculty about their approach to scholarship. And you will discover how Gabriela Perez ’25 made her home at Tufts through an exploration of

myriad academic pursuits, Centers within the Division of Student Diversity and Inclusion, and student organizations.

My hope is that, as you read these pages, you will learn more about a community that intrigues you—and one that you might hope to explore in the next year or two. For now, keep making the most of the opportunities in your current environment, and I hope to see you exploring the Hill in the near future.

Sincerely,

JT Duck Dean of Admissions

Most of what you’re about to read was written by these Tufts students. Listen for their voices as they introduce you to the Tufts community, page by page.

RAGA CHILAKAMARRI ’23 from Sharon, MA

JED QUIAOIT ’25 from Vista, CA

JOSH COHEN ’24 from Sarasota, FL

VALERIA VELASQUEZ ’23 from Columbia, MO

OFFICE OF UNDERGRADUATE ADMISSIONS Tufts University / Bendetson Hall 2 The Green / Medford, MA 02155 617.627.3170 / admissions.tufts.edu

Produced by the Office of Undergraduate Admissions and Edited by Sam Nicol, Assistant Director of Undergraduate Admissions Design by Hecht/Horton Partners

PHOTO BY KATHLEEN DOOHER

Tufts University President Sunil Kumar recently addressed our newest Jumbos as part of our annual Matriculation ceremony.

Held at the beginning of Orientation week, this address is meant to set the tone for our students as they begin their undergraduate journey through Tufts.

President Kumar made clear his hopes for this class. He said, “As you’ll come to learn, one of the great advantages of being a college student is the immense freedom you are afforded. I urge you to take full advantage of this freedom. It will never be easier to explore a new discipline or to discover new ways of viewing the world than in the next four years.”

So that is what this issue of Jumbo Magazine is about: exploration. The embrace of testing limits, of being uncomfortable in a new setting, of trying new things, and of

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ILLUSTRATION BY MARINA MUNN

YOUR FUTURE IS IN THE STARS There is something new to explore around every corner at Tufts.Whatever your interests, there is usually research, student organizations, or study abroad opportunities to help you bring those to life. So look around (or above) when you come to campus—you never know what you will find!

A) Perseus: Join the team dedicated to bringing a free, digital library focused on ancient literature to life in the Department of Classical Studies

B) Tennis Racket: A Jumbo won the NCAA Division III Men’s Singles Championship in tennis for the first time in Tufts history this past year!

C) An Erlenmeyer Flask: The Kaplan Lab studies tissue engineering and protein-based biomaterials and their uses in regenerative medicine

D) Tufts’ European Center Priory: Study abroad over the summer at the Tufts European Center in Talloires, France

INSIDE OUT

A REAL YET RANDOM, PLAYFUL YET SERIOUS SPIN AROUND CAMPUS—AND JUST BEYOND

EXCOLLEGE HIGHLIGHT: CONFRONTING CLIMATE CHANGE: LEADERSHIP & PROBLEM-SOLVING CLIMATE CHANGE isn’t going anywhere. But

how can we impact systems so large that they feel out of our control? Led by two environmental educators and change makers, students in this course will learn the skills to hold leaders to account as well as bring their knowledge to situations close to home.

NEW PRE-ORIENTATION PROGRAM INCOMING JUMBOS have the opportunity to come to campus

early and get involved in student life with a group of like-minded peers through our many pre-orientation programs. And now, Tufts students have another option available to them through the new SHAPE program. Short for Students Heightening Actionable Political Engagement, Jumbos interested in politics and civic engagement will have the chance to interact with our local communities to bridge divides and work in “think-tank” groups on community issues. Check out the eight other preorientation programs for more ways to get involved and find community before you have your first class!

TUFTS STEP TEAMS ARE NATIONAL FINALISTS ENVY LADIES STEP TEAM, Tufts’ historically all-female step team, recently won second place at

the National Step Championship held in New York this year. Tufts’ historically all-male team, BlackOut, came in third at the same competition. Congratulations to both teams for their incredible achievement!

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A TUFTS DEPARTMENT ON-THE-GO TUFTS’ Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and

Planning recently launched a podcast available to stream on Apple Music and Spotify. With contributions from students, faculty, and staff, the podcast aims to provide easily digestible information about urban and environmental policy from impactful voices within our own community. Bring your curiosity and learn something new!

GOING FOR GOLD (SUSTAINABLY) THE ASSOCIATION for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education assessed Tufts

ENVY LADIES STEP TEAM PHOTO BY ANNA MILLER/TUFTS UNIVERSITY; JOYCE CUMMINGS CENTER PHOTO BY BOSTON AERIALS

at the gold level in its Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System program for the first time this past year! Some of the reasons Tufts was able to score so highly include the fact that a whopping 44% of faculty research involves sustainability, the new low energy intensity Joyce Cummings Center, and massive reductions in energy use and waste on campus over the past two decades.

CIVIC SEMESTER EXPANDING TO THAILAND THE TUFTS CIVIC SEMESTER,

offered through the Tisch College of Civic Life for all matriculating first-year students, offers Tufts undergraduates the chance to study abroad in their very first semester. Students have studied in Urubamba, Peru for a number of years, but now the program is expanding! Students applying to Tufts in the fall of 2023 and beyond will have the choice between Peru and Chiang Mai, a city in northern Thailand. Keep your eyes peeled for more information and for the application which will be available once you have applied to Tufts.

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JOURNEY TO THE HILL

COLE REESE

’25

Having such an effortless and natural conversation with a Tufts student, where you can discuss your shared interests, ambitions, curiosities, and even the philosophical nature of soup, is a unique and special Tuftsy phenomenon. Sitting down with Cole Reese ’25, a bright and enthusiastic sophomore from Las Vegas, he exudes genuine excitement as we discuss his journey to the Hill, his growing fascination with law and policy making, and the myriad ways that he has chased the activities that bring him happiness in the company of motivating and supportive peers. It’s a quintessential Tufts moment.

For as long as he could remember, Cole knew that he wanted to be a lawyer. Naturally, in high school, he joined the mock trial team, an opportunity for him to showcase his talents in public speaking and rhetoric, knowledge of case law, and fast-paced objection-raising.

Cole’s passion for law and policy making continued to flourish when he became an intern for his local congresswoman, Susie Lee, where he gained valuable insights into the legislative climate he hopes to be a part of someday. In his college search, Cole was determined to continue his mock trial journey at a high-achieving collegiate level, and sought out an intellectually rigorous campus environment where he felt he would be supported in his interests in a career in law, without the hypercompetitiveness. He set his sights on a campus setting far enough away from home that he had the space to expand, explore, and step into his best

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self. Although he had never been to Boston before coming to Tufts, he was certain that Tufts boasted the exact kind of environment that would allow him to succeed as a student and person.

Cole’s vision for his college experience has become a reality at Tufts, where he has found purpose, depth, and meaning in his on-campus endeavors. As the student logistics director for Tufts Mock Trial, and preparing for his second year reaching the national mock trial competition (of which Tufts placed second overall in the nation last year!), Cole reflects on all that this program has meant for him. Mock trial at Tufts, he explains, “[was] the first time in my life where it felt like I was really working toward something.” The thrill of working alongside like-minded peers, united by a shared passion, and witnessing the growth and transformation of his team throughout the year, has been one of the most gratifying experiences for Cole at Tufts.

More broadly, Cole has found real resonance with the people and community at Tufts that have shaped his experience. Tufts students take what they do seriously, but not themselves, and his friends keep him learning something new every day.

“I’ll be in the Science and Engineering Complex as they’re going over psychology homework and we’ll just start having a conversation about the brain.”

Cole resonates with the culture of intellectual curiosity that defines Tufts students and shares that last semester he collaborated with students he connected with in a creative writing seminar on a column in the Tufts Daily about all things soup.

Sharing a passion for writing and communicating ideas in innovative ways, his columns are titled “The Art of Good Soup” and with subjects like “Souper grateful” and “Are udon(e) yet?” Smiling, Cole describes the joy in “just sitting down and trying to come up with the worst soup pun possible,” even probing important philosophical questions “like thinking about the bottom of the soup bowl.”

Beyond academics and extracurriculars, Cole recognizes that the Tufts community has embraced him in other significant ways. He notes that the vibrant LGBTQ+ community at Tufts has “been super influential in my experience.” He continues, “interacting with queer people has been so great and just being able to share experiences with them is so powerful and important to me because it’s something I haven’t been able to do before Tufts.”

He adds that this dimension of community is a significant way that Tufts has become an affirming and empowering home-away-from-home for him.

Setting his sights ahead to his bold, bright future, while remaining wholly grounded in the current moment, Cole reminds me of the importance of fully embracing the transformative power of the Tufts experience. “You’re going to change so much over just the first year, let alone over your entire college experience.” His radiating kindness and thoughtfulness motivate us all to embrace this change, seek out the spaces that bring us joy, and fully commit to creating a positive impact in the world.

—JOSH COHEN ’24

PHOTO BY KATHLEEN DOOHER

ENGLISH MAJOR WITH A MINOR IN POLITICAL SCIENCE FROM LAS VEGAS, NV

“You’re gonna change so much over just the first year, let alone over your entire college experience.”

ATHLETICS

CLUB SPORTS

EXPLORE THE VAST ATHLETICS UNIVERSE AT TUFTS

In the early September hubbub of the club fair, where people flock to the busy Academic Quad, bright-eyed and curious, be sure to check out the many athletics and sports teams spread throughout—options of which range from rock climbing to quidditch to lacrosse. For students who are looking to stay active, connect with upperclassmen, or try something new, joining a club sports team is often a great place to start, especially since many of them welcome people of all experience levels. Here, Jumbos discuss their time on ultimate frisbee and water polo.

BY RAGA CHILAKAMARRI ’23

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For those looking for more casual athletic engagements than varsity sports while still joining a more structured community than intramurals, there are an array of club sports teams to explore, two of which are the ultimate frisbee and water polo teams.

While a casual frisbee toss perhaps emerges as a quintessential college cliché, at Tufts, the ultimate frisbee community is vibrant and burgeoning, with multiple competitive levels, fun traditions, and quirky social events planned all throughout the year. For female-identifying and non-binary students interested in playing ultimate frisbee, alongside the varsity-level team, the no-cuts Women’s B team exemplifies an inclusive space for learning and growing through sports, especially since every year a crop of players with zero frisbee experience

eagerly join in. Ultimate frisbee is a unique game in that there are no referees, calling for a more communicative environment on the field, where the sportsmanship or “spirit of the game” is highly valued. Throughout the off-season fall practices, captains run casual skill sessions, drills, and scrimmages to help new players get acclimated with the rules and basics. The commitment is predominantly opt-in: you can be considered a member of the team if you attend one practice every week or one practice every month. And even within the BWO team itself, players can select a more competitive level by frequently dedicating themselves to practices to earn greater game time and playing in the local and regional tournaments. Moreover, there’s a large community to tap into with opportunities to

play in mixed-gender pick-up games, Catan nights in the dining halls, or small workout pods that go to the gym together.

Club water polo, similarly, is a sport that attracts students with varied experience levels, from varsity swimmers looking to break into a different team environment to people who never swam competitively before. The captains coordinate the team’s participation in three tournaments each semester and they were recently ranked in the top club water polo teams across the country. With a fairly opendoor commitment, game time is often proportional to your attendance at practice, but the overall focus is on cultivating fun rather than winning. All you need is a bathing suit, a towel, and a willingness to tread water.

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FROM CLASSROOM TO CONVER

SATION

Physics Lecturer Vesal Dini’s approach to teaching physics at Tufts involves both simplifying and complicating our understanding of the physical world. By refining our everyday thinking, he aims to help students in finding comfortability in confusion. As one of the larger introductory science classes at Tufts, select undergraduates are chosen to serve as learning assistants (LAs) to create a more intimate learning community for students and accompany them through the process of learning physics. I had the opportunity to sit down with Vesal and one of his LAs, Zoe Coyle ’25, to discuss the intricacies of teaching, thinking about, and practicing physics. BY JOSH COHEN ’24 First things first, how does an undergraduate student get to become an LA? Zoe Coyle: I took Physics 1 and 2 back-to-back in my first semesters here and it was such a great lecture environment. The way the lecture was structured into small groups with LAs coming around facilitating the conversation around physics was really exciting for me, and I appreciated how the classroom was much more focused around discussion than any other science or math class I had taken before. After taking the classes, I received an email from Vesal about becoming an LA and I jumped on that!

PHOTO BY KATHLEEN DOOHER

Vesal Dini: Every year there are about 220 students that take both Physics 1 and 2. There are a percentage of students that basically thrive in the atmosphere and I typically figure out who those people are through personal interactions both inside and outside of the classroom. Zoe was among the students who really took to the model and engaged in the practices of physics, and that’s exactly what I’m looking for in LAs. I’m always thinking about ways to activate my students’ intrinsic motivations to try and understand the world around them, and Zoe did exactly that. I asked Zoe to be one of my LAs, and thankfully, she agreed.

What is something that you’ve learned from this LA classroom model?

VD: Zoe, myself, and all of the other learning assistants come together after class and debrief about how the class went. There, they share specific things that they experienced and interactions that they had in class. Those opportunities to hear about how they thought the lecture went are often very eye-opening for me. I really appreciate hearing about difficulties, breakthroughs, and concepts that people are struggling with so that I can adjust how I teach and think about the course in a way that is true to where the students are.

It also helps mitigate what afflicts lots of other STEM courses, which is expert bias—this idea that an expert learns things and forgets how hard it was to initially learn those things. It’s really helpful for me to be reminded that it takes quite a bit of time to process and think about the content that we are trying to understand as a class.

ZC: It’s been really interesting getting a window into all that goes behind our 75-minute class and to see how much the time, effort, and careful thought

support all of the components of the class. As an LA it is such a fun challenge to interact with groups and get across the same underlying values that are being communicated by Vesal. Also, the LAs among ourselves are such an awesome community, which is really an extension of the community of the class and small group setting. I’ve really enjoyed that aspect too.

What role would you say exploration plays in thinking about and learning physics?

ZC: Often when I say that I am interested in physics and English, people warn me that they are such different things, but I see them both as very creative concepts. With English we talk about storytelling and viewpoints, and with physics you have a very similar practice where you can look at a concept or question from tons of different angles. As you gain more tools in physics, you learn more approaches to explore a given question. Finding the “answer” in physics is not a linear process, and often not actually the goal. It’s a lot of exploration of possibilities and you may reach an answer that perhaps you weren’t setting out to find.

VD: Exploration is a central goal of the course— the whole point of the course is to explore ideas.

The goal is the pursuit of coherent understanding, meaning the questions I ask in class are meant to be jumping off points of exploration. Some of them have answers to them, but really getting to that answer is not the point. The point is to do exactly what Zoe suggests, which is to explore many different possibilities. By doing that, by exploring that space, you are increasing your understanding of the world in a way that’s much more expansive than just seeking out the right answer.

Any final insights for students?

VD: Particularly in the physics department, there is a clear recognition that physics happens in collaborations and in groups—it’s more exciting that way and it’s more fun that way. When people come to Tufts, I hope they recognize community is a central feature of the experience and they sometimes have to take the initiative to form those groups themselves, and they form really easily and readily here. There’s a lot of support here at Tufts, professors, graduate students, TAs, and LAs, to help people grow in their ability to collaborate and in their understanding of ideas.

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CHECK THESE OUT Your time at Tufts will see you diving deep into your academic interests, exploring niche topics and finding unique connections across disciplines. After your years of exploration, classwork, and community engagement, you will have the opportunity to showcase your work through a capstone project or senior thesis. Every undergraduate school at Tufts has some form of final project in which students share the culmination of their work with the broader community.

From the interdisciplinary engineering capstone projects that bring together a team across disciplines to tackle a self-guided project, to the senior thesis program and exhibition hosted at SMFA, to the myriad capstones and theses offered by nearly every department in the School of Arts and Sciences, Jumbos are encouraged to celebrate their intellectual curiosity. Read on to see just a few examples of recent projects and get an idea of the interdisciplinary, intellectually curious work that Tufts undergraduates do. BY VALERIA VELASQUEZ ’23

Alex Bobroff ’23, George Eng ’23, Matthew Dilsizian ’23, Zack Rummler ’23, Max Menestrier ’23, Ibrahima Barry ’23: Celestial Blue Team - Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering For their engineering senior capstone project, members of the Celestial Blue Team designed a high fidelity flight computer for amateur rocketry. Citing the difficulties in computerized parachute deployment in amateur rocketry which can hinder successful recovery of the rocket, the team built their “own flight computer intended to deploy the parachutes as a function of rocket height, speed, and orientation.”

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Megan Farr ’23 - School of the Museum of the Fine Arts The SMFA’s 2023 Senior Thesis exhibition was titled “for the record…” The idea behind this collective title for 24 senior theses was to examine the myriad important aspects of their being and identity and how they reflect their unique positionality in the world. Megan is a print maker, book maker, and illustrator based in Boston.

Her thesis, which she describes as “an abstract psychological journey of the process of individuation,” is told through the format of a Choose Your Own Adventure book filled with her creations. Her magical realist landscapes are full of vibrant colors designed to explore “universal and individual psychological experiences.”

Akbota Saudabayeva ’22 - Department of Anthropology Akbota’s thesis intervenes into decolonial discourses in the anthropology of colonialism that have long neglected the Soviet Union’s employment of colonial power over Central Asia. Focusing on the period from the Bolshevik Revolution to Stalin’s Five-Year Plans as it affected Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan, this thesis examines the Soviet modernization project’s simultaneous maintenance and destruction of Central Asian indigeneity through ironic nationalist policies, labor programs, and famine, while also comparing the project’s similarities with Western capitalist development models. In doing so, the thesis ultimately unravels the Soviet Union’s ambiguous effect and status as “a colonial power with a distinct ideological foundation.”

Siwaar Abouhala ’23 - Department of Community Health Siwaar completed her senior honors thesis in community health based on her research at the Division of Newborn Medicine at Boston Children’s Hospital, where she investigated the role of neonatal genetic testing and rare disease prognosis on parental psychosocial outcomes postNeonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) discharge. Through conducting a followup qualitative interview study following a NICU survey to parents, this project aims to capture the experiences and outcomes of parents, as well as contribute to the literature on parent mental health and well-being within the sphere of rare disease and genomic medicine. Her thesis is entitled: “Rare Yet Resilient: The Role of Neonatal Genetic Testing & Rare Disease Prognosis on Parental Psychosocial Outcomes, Coping Mechanisms, & Hospital System Recommendations.”

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ARTS HIGHLIGHT

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

BY RAGA CHILAKAMARRI ’23

Music: BEATs Jumbos march to the beat of their own drum… and sometimes that drum is an overturned orange bucket. BEATs (as in Bangin’ Everything At Tufts) is an all-gender street percussion group, whose instruments include jugs, dish racks, pvc pipes, and collected miscellaneous junk; the bass is a large trash can. Eclectic, funky, and resourceful, their shows are often packed with students, drawn to the energizing rhythms and bouts of humor. “We’re all really passionate and come from different musical backgrounds. Mostly, we just want to create new sounds, experiment, and have fun!” shared Emily Walker ’23 who joined the group in her junior year. BEATs is only one of many student-led arts groups whose distinctive performances and communities contribute to a vibrant mosaic of creativity across campus.

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Comedy: Cheap Sox For students willing to brave the challenge of on-thespot comedy, the Cheap Sox is an audition-based improv group, and they are, you know, actually funny.

Easily spotted in their signature bright pink bowling shirts, the high-energy Cheap Sox put on about four performances each semester, including collaborations with other comedy groups on campus.

Their sets usually consist of shorter games that take in audience prompts and longform stories that build suddenly complex worlds by wholeheartedly inhabiting goofy, impromptu characters.

The wit and adaptability displayed throughout a Cheap Sox show is consistently impressive and, as a group of only about eleven students, the Cheap Sox form a tight-knit support system for one another. Cheap Sox have also just taken on a new form: a 40-minute musical “Wicked Smaht,” featuring, fittingly, improvisational jazz music.

Theater: Torn Ticket II Torn Ticket II prides itself on being Tufts’ only student-run musical theater group throughout its 50-year history, meaning that every role—from director to stage manager to cast—is filled by students. Every semester, the group votes on a major (three months of rehearsal) production hosted in Aidekman Auditorium and one minor or cabaret (one month) production. Most recently, their selection has included Falsettos, Mama Mia!, and The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical. Reflecting back on her experiences in Torn

Ticket II, theatre, dance, and performance studies and French major Annika Solomone ’23 said, “my favorite memory is definitely doing Spelling Bee as a freshman. With an incredibly talented cast, an awesome set, and a show I’ve loved for years, it was the most perfect experience to start out my college theater career,” underscoring the passionate and hardworking community at the heart of the musical group.

Dance: Tufts Burlesque Troupe With over 300 students participating, the Tufts Burlesque Troupe (TBT) is one of the biggest dance groups on campus. Focused on celebrating your body, the goal of this student-run community is to inspire confidence. As one of the first collegiate burlesque troupes, TBT is a unique and empowering space that strives toward building collaborative, safe, and inclusive environments at every layer: from the board of returning dancers, to co-choreographer partners, to their array of participants coming from all experience levels. They put on two shows—one each semester. If you ask students who have been involved in Tufts Burlesque Troupe, they often cite that, whether they participated for just one semester or all eight, the performance and community have emerged as one of the most transformative experiences they’ve had at Tufts.

Notably, burlesque sign-ups operate on a first-come basis and the club’s evident popularity is made abundantly clear when they reach their dancer cap in mere minutes.

PHOTO BY NICHOLAS PFOSI

Amidst the ordinary cycles of a college semester—doing homework, cramming for a midterm, attending club meetings—the many student art performances bring an exciting pulse to campus.

Jumbos will eagerly gather to celebrate the awe of their friends and peers’ hard work and talent, from the myriad contemporary dance shows in Cohen Auditorium to an array of a cappella groups opening at the O Show. At Tufts, word spreads fast and tickets sell out faster. Read more about some of the well-loved, student-led clubs and organizations that take to the stage with gusto.

AROUND TOWN

A​ BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD Boston has been easily accessible to Tufts students through the Davis Square station since December 8, 1984. Last year, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) completed their Green Line Extension, which extends the northern end of Lechmere Station to College Avenue in Medford—right next to Tufts’ Joyce Cummings Center! Now, students can explore more of East Somerville and its various “squares”—neighborhood centers with businesses, restaurants, shops, and other services. Though Tufts’ proximity to Boston is convenient and exciting, there are many places to explore and things to do in Tufts’ host communities of Somerville and Medford. Below is a list of places that we think Jumbos should consider visiting on the new Green Line Extension.

BY VALERIA VELASQUEZ ’23

UNION SQUARE DONUTS UNION SQUARE Union Square Donuts is an award-winning donut company that specializes in creating unique, exciting flavors and experimental donuts that are made with high-quality ingredients. The donuts are made with a Brioche-inspired dough base, making them airy and light. Exciting flavors include Vietnamese Coffee donuts, Guava and Cream Cheese donuts, and a Golden Milk Latte Donut. They also specialize in more traditional donut fare, including a classic Boston Cream and a “Sugar Raised” donut meant to highlight the bakery’s signature dough.

SOMERVILLE ARMORY GILMAN SQUARE The Center for Arts at the Armory is a non-profit organization that resides in the Somerville Armory building. It provides a community arts center for Somerville residents and hosts various events ranging from music performances, dance classes,

fitness classes, and open mic sessions. Some noteworthy dance classes include Queer Tango and Forró, a regional Brazilian dance. The Armory also has its own coffee shop, ROOTED Cafe, which hosts various events such as the Songwriters in the Round event, where songwriters take the stage, trade songs, and engage with the audience. Getting involved with Armory events is a great opportunity to engage with the local community and take advantage of the local arts scene!

OLIVEIRA’S STEAKHOUSE EAST SOMERVILLE STATION Oliveira’s Steakhouse is the perfect restaurant for meat lovers: vegetarians beware. This restaurant specializes in Brazilian BBQ (think different cuts of meat paired with hearty sides and vibrant salads) and has an all-you-can-eat option as well as by-thepound takeout! Now easily accessible, Oliveira’s is the perfect place for a date night or a celebratory dinner with friends.

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PEARL ROBINSON PROFESSOR OF POLITICAL SCIENCE AND STUDIES IN RACE, COLONIALISM, AND DIASPORA

Have you ever been so curious about something that you were drawn into late nights of research?

Then you might connect well with Professor Pearl Robinson, who has spent decades combing through archives in the process of working on her most recent research project, the first intellectual biography of Ralph Bunche. Bunche is most well known for serving in the United Nations and receiving the 1950 Nobel Peace Prize, but Robinson seeks to highlight an often overlooked part of his life: his time spent studying colonialism in Africa, his time studying at Harvard, and as Professor and Chair of the Department of Political Science at Howard University. As Professor Robinson puts it, “he had a career before he went into diplomacy. But much of his intellectual legacy has been erased. So, my book is really about… what we can learn from history and about people by studying erasures and why they happen.”

Professor Robinson’s own journey through academia had a unique start. Initially studying French, a realization while studying abroad led her to the field of political science. “I spent my junior year studying at the University of Bordeaux… I had taken so many French courses that I found out that if I [took any there] they wouldn’t count towards graduation. So I had a whole year to just do anything that appeared to be interesting… I took my first ever course on African politics and my first ever international relations courses, and by the time I finished in Bordeaux, I knew what I wanted to spend the rest of my life doing.” After receiving a masters in political science, Professor Robinson spent two

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years volunteering for the Peace Corps working on public health education in Niger before studying for her PhD at Columbia. She joined Tufts’ faculty soon after graduating in 1975 and has been here ever since.

Research plays a major role in Professor Robinson’s intellectual life, especially this past summer. Her research into Bunche’s intellectual erasure has led her around the country, combing through archives to recover his lesser-known papers and writings. “There are maybe four or five places people go [for archival research on Bunche]. This is my 17th archive.” A major reason for the breadth of her search is because “it’s really hard to research erasures… What I hope to do, besides getting this book written, is to make it possible for more people to do this kind of research.” The research that she has completed so far has been incredibly enlightening for understanding Bunche’s life before becoming professionally involved in international diplomacy.

Bunche was the first Black person to receive a PhD in political science, and along the way he played minor league baseball to afford the degree and helped found Howard University’s political science department. He wrote a prize winning dissertation and was the “first person to get a PhD in a new IR subfield at Harvard called the International Relations of Dependencies.” Specifically, this subfield is dedicated to understanding colonialism from the perspective of the colonized. Traditionally, “you would go [to colonies] and you would read the colonial archives. You would talk to the people who are running the colonies. You would talk to the

missionaries, the traders. And what you learned about Africans, you read it in the archives, or what colonizers were saying to you.” Bunche wanted to flip the script, but faced difficulty in getting his dissertation published because what he was saying “went against the grain of what mainstream international relations and the people who were studying colonial administration and racialized hierarchical sovereignty believed.” According to Professor Robinson, “the things that have been erased were things that challenged the status quo and mainstream scholarship that was maintaining white supremacy.”

Professor Robinson’s commitment to broadening mindsets and worldviews extends beyond the classroom. The three main pieces of advice she gives to students: study deliberately, take time for yourself, and study abroad. “Certain teachers can be an educational experience that will remain with you for life. Try to find out who some of those people are [and take their courses], it doesn’t matter what they teach.” Further, take physical education classes that give academic credit while providing physical activity because that will “get you on the track of having a lifestyle where you build relaxation into your regular program.” And finally, when considering studying abroad, pick programs that excite you but also be excited to come home because “you will appreciate Tufts more… You will come back with the experiences of another place and you will have a better way of making choices about how you spend the rest of your time here.”

PHOTO BY KATHLEEN DOOHER

“By the time I finished in Bordeaux, I knew what I wanted to spend the rest of my life doing.”

CLASS HIGHLIGHTS

EXPLORE THE EARTH IN ALL ITS Isn’t it marvelous to realize that we’re all tiny specks of dust in the grand scheme of the universe? Even so, you’re most likely driven by the innate desire to explore: traveling to places near and far, meeting people from all walks of life, and even coming across new ideas inside and outside the classroom! Now let’s zoom into Tufts where you’ll find the Department of Earth and Climate Sciences (ECS). Home of majors like environmental geology and geological sciences, the ECS department centers the study of 4.6 billion years of Earth’s history of phenomena like droughts, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions. Students gain a deeper appreciation of Earth’s systems and their impact on natural environments and energy resources while also learning about everexpanding fields like climate science and paleoclimatology through fieldwork. Here’s a selection of intellectually rewarding ECS classes that take exploration to the next level.

PHOTO BY

BY JED QUIAOIT ’25

GLORIOUS COMPLEXITY

EOS 0001 The Dynamic Earth What do canyons, mountains, coastlines, and planets like Earth have in common? They all have rocks! In this course, students will learn core geology principles and formulate hypotheses behind how rock and mineral formations form over time. This class also brings forth new ways of thinking about natural processes, scientific methods, and the relationship human beings have to the Earth’s framework of geological time and space.

EOS 0011 Mineralogy With hands-on problem-solving components, this course tackles the formation and geologic occurrence of important economic and rock-forming minerals like copper, gold, and lead. Students will get the opportunity to use polarizing microscopes and morphological crystallography techniques to identify minerals.

In previous offerings, educational field trips included visits to the central pegmatite mines, outcrops, and the Mt. Cardigan pluton over the White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire.

EOS 0015 Mass Extinctions Around 150–200 plant and animal species go extinct on average every day, which begs the question: “Are we heading towards a sixth mass extinction?”

This course investigates the definition and history of mass extinction through the lenses of key factors like volcanism, meteorite impacts, climate change, ice ages, and novel evolved species. Students will also be able to connect mass extinctions to changes in Earth’s biodiversity and ecosystems.

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EOS 0115 Glacial/Quaternary Geology During the last 2.4 million years, often referred to as the “Ice Age,” climate has oscillated between extreme warm and cold conditions. In warm periods, alligators migrated as far north as the Ohio Valley, and during cold episodes, continent-sized ice sheets covered most of Europe and North America. What was responsible for the roller coaster climate of the Quaternary and latest Tertiary periods and how do we know about these dynamic conditions of the past? This course dives deeper into the study of how rocks and sediments of the recent past formed and how we decipher this geologic history. Interactive activities include field trips to Quaternary geological features in the Boston area, as well as excursions to the Connecticut River Valley in New Hampshire and Vermont and the western Mohawk River valley of central New York, where glacial and marine sediments from the last glaciation will be studied.

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By Raga Chilakamarri ’23

Unlike Train’s “Soul Sister,” there’s no “one-track mind” to being preprofessional at Tufts. Driven by their genuine passion and curiosity, students hold exploration and interdisciplinary studies at the core of their academic and extracurricular pursuits. Here on the Hill, students who are readily preparing for an education beyond their undergraduate degree will thrive within a collaborative support network of fellow students interested in law, dentistry, medicine, veterinary science, and more!

Hear from Zach Ferretti ’23, Chidilim Menakaya ’23, Laurelle Sum ’24, and Dan Nguyen ’24 on each of their experiences pursuing a different pre-​professional path at Tufts. Taking advantage of the diverse courses and research opportunities, these students are great examples of striving to generate meaningful change in the field that excites them most.

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ILLUSTRATION BY RAÚL SORIA

THE MANY

ZACHARY FERRETTI ’23 Pre-Law; Majoring in Political Science, Double Minor in Economics and Urban Studies Zach, a pre-law student from Long Island, New York, originally applied to Tufts as a chemistry major; however the Intro to Civic Studies course he took that first semester instantly clicked with him. Having done Model UN in high school, Zach reflected that “I felt like I’ve always been drawn to that side of speaking, building relationships with others, and drawing upon facets of collaboration to solve issues together.” He’s since served as the president of the Pre-Law Society and the Leonard Carmichael Society, conducted research through the Laidlaw Scholars program, and been part of the TCU Senate since his freshman year. Given that there’s no rigid requirements for pre-law students, Tufts gave him the flexibility to explore a diverse range of classes that informed his perspective on law. “I’m very interested in environmental law,” he said. “The best way to go about [my education] was to bridge a lot of my interests. I have an interest in environmental studies and the natural world, but I also do have an interest in talking to people and using the power of law to advocate for change. So, the best way to bridge those two together would be becoming an environmental justice lawyer.”

When asked about his favorite class, he chose one that helped bridge interests and experiences.

“My favorite class I’ve ever taken is Spanish in the Community with Professor Nancy Levy-Konesky. The thing that I appreciated so much [was the] experiential learning…I was assigned to East Somerville

Community School, [where] I worked in a bilingual fourth grade classroom weekly. I felt it was really cool that we were able to have that background, and I think that also fueled some of my aspirations in terms of incorporating social justice into my legal work.”

One summer, on a grant from Tufts’ Tisch College of Civic Life, Zach put his learning in the classroom to practice. “I worked at the Urban Justice Centers which is an advocacy group in New York City. I worked with those experiencing homelessness… and I was in charge of distributing the Robin Hood Foundation COVID-19 Relief Fund. I realized how powerful it is to use the law, but I was also able to see how certain people are disproportionately burdened by the shortcomings of the law. So I think it works both ways. And the fact that the law burdens so many people, but in the same way can be used carefully as a tool for social change.”

But that’s not all. As part of the Laidlaw Scholars program here at Tufts, Zach also got involved internationally. Laidlaw is a multiyear program, where students pursue independent research their first year and put that into practice in the following summer. “My experience in Mexico City with Laidlaw encouraged me to take a career in law, and especially incorporate areas of social justice. I was able to pursue a project about environmental justice and water contamination on Long Island first. And then in the second year, I actually lived in Mexico City working with Spanish-speaking communities to increase resilience for the anticipated consequences of climate change. I’ve talked about how I have a lot of interest in becoming an environmental justice lawyer. And to me, I think it’s really important to have a client or community focus.”

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OF A PRE-PROFESSIONAL STUDENT

Pre-Dental, majoring in biology with a minor in dance Since the tender age of four, Chidilim knew she wanted to be a dentist. Her parents had immigrated to the United States in the late 1980s and developed a great relationship with their family dentist, who they still go to. She was inspired by how invested he was in her and her family, beyond simply attending to them as mere patients. “My love for dentistry transformed when I started to know more about social determinants of health and wanting to tackle a lot of challenges that specifically Black and Brown communities face when trying to access dental care,” Chidilim added.

At Tufts, she originally thought she would pursue the community health major, but in her sophomore year she shifted towards the biology department, interested in the subsections within the subject and how hands-on labs facilitated understanding with the course material. “It got me excited about the material and how it all connects because I got to see it in real life. It wasn’t

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just like, this is science because…people from years ago say it’s science. It’s science because we’re seeing the result of an experiment that we’re doing in class,” Chidilim said. Even so, the community health courses like US Healthcare Systems resonated with her, illuminating the many facets of the expansive public health field. “It was kind of heartbreaking to know about the plights of a lot of Americans at the same time,” Chidilim said. “But also, it just spurred me on in what I’m doing. And I’m hoping to get my master’s in public health after Tufts because of it.”

Chidilim has been involved in the Pre-Dental Society since her first year, serving as a freshman representative and later the president. “I think something that drew me to Tufts when I was applying for undergrad was the connections that we had being in such close proximity to the Dental School,” Chidilim said. Dental students would talk with interested undergraduates and they had a mentor-mentee program both with dental students and within the society itself. “Even hearing from upperclassmen as an underclassman is really cool, and since we’re so small, it was a really close knit community.”

Coming from a more rigorous high school where academics were at the forefront of her priorities, Chidilim shared an appreciation for Tufts’ professors’ patience for students as individuals beyond classroom grades and performance. “Seeing how even in large lecture classes I can go to a professor and talk to them during office hours, and they cared and they would remember things about me and follow up was really helpful.” She mentioned how “the flexibility and access to information [demonstrated by] professors” she’s encountered at Tufts has inspired in her a potential interest in doing dental education in some way.

When asked to reflect on “why Tufts,” Chidilim spoke highly of the collaborative spirit. “I’ve taken ‘weed out’ STEM classes, and I never felt like I was competing with people. I felt like my peers [and professors] were always there to help me. And we’re always just encouraging each other to think more critically and deeply about concepts. For a lot of pre-health people, we’re aiming for the same thing, but we realized that in this profession teamwork is such a critical thing. We all bring something to the table. There’s room for all of us. And I think that’s really strong at Tufts.”

ILLUSTRATION BY RAÚL SORIA

CHIDILIM MENAKAYA ’23

DAN NGUYEN ’24 Pre-Med, majoring in biology and community health Dan Nguyen, a junior from East Longmeadow, MA has been busy on campus. He’s a co-president of the Vietnamese Students Club, a FOCUS pre-orientation leader, a dancer in the hip hop and contemporary group Spirit of the Creative, as well as the founder of Tufts Thirst Project and Talk to Me About Global, two global-health-oriented clubs. As evinced by his many experiences, Dan is a pre-med student who is passionate about the intersections between public health and treatment-oriented medicine.

His path to studying the pre-med track was diverse. “Originally, I wanted to study international relations because I was interested in global health advocacy and thought the IR foundation would be a good complement to the pre-med coursework I was already taking. Ultimately I switched to community health and just fell in love with that department.

Before I realized I wanted to enter the field of infectious diseases and global health, I wanted to pursue neurology because of my inspiration from

LAURELLE SUM ’24 Pre-Vet, majoring in biopsychology with a minor in child studies After a semester as a biomedical engineer, Laurelle realized that engineering wasn’t the path for her. In high school, she had been involved with a dog rescue club, used to ride horses, and had an interest in learning more about animals—a passion for veterinary science that she solidified when shadowing at a general practice hospital near her hometown in New York during her freshman summer.

She explored the course catalog and the Tufts Arts and Science majors webpage, ardently reading through the myriad offerings and coming upon biopsychology, a combination of departments that interested her. Laurelle discovered her child studies minor in a similar way, drawn to the interesting course descriptions. “There are so many different fields in the child studies department,” Laurelle said. “I took a course called Human Animal Interaction that was actually really cool because the professor [Dr. Megan Mueller] is also a professor at the Tufts Veterinary School….she brought a lot of guest speakers that were from the vet school or

my grandmother for whom I was a caretaker in high school. But then after taking those classes, I realized it wasn’t for me. So I switched from IR to community health and from biotech to biology because I was interested in the intersections between microbiology, infectious disease, and how public health interventions can prevent those diseases.”

One particularly impactful course in Tufts’ Experimental College helped Dan understand his passions more fully. And given he is also a Laidlaw Scholar, the course helped him decide on his project. “I took an ExCollege class called Global Health co-taught by Dr. Anatole Manzi, the chief medical officer of Partners in Health and the CEO of an NGO called Move Up Global. With Laidlaw Scholars, I’m mandated to go abroad and do a leadership project...I was drawn to this particular organization because he was from Rwanda and we are working in the community that he was born and raised in, so he understands the needs of the community. I’m going to be doing neglected tropical disease and malnutrition research while I’m there in Rwanda. I always thought research was a very unapproachable thing for undergrads, but Tufts made me realize research is everywhere.”

worked out of the vet school. So, that was really awesome.” Laurelle also worked with Dr. Mueller one summer on a research project about animal assisted interventions in adolescents and analyzing anxiety behavior, developing a mentorship relationship that extended beyond the classroom.

As the president of the Pre-Vet Society, Laurelle described how the small community organizes and shares resources, mentorship opportunities, and even a suture lab led by their advisor. It is open to all students, whether that means they are on the track towards vet school or simply interested in working with animals. “We gauge what people want and invite [guest speakers] based on that…it’s cool to have people that have the same interest as you work together,” Laurelle said, especially since prevets often take the same required courses.

For students who are thinking of pursuing a prevet path, Laurelle advises them not to be afraid to explore classes outside of their major requirements.

“I’ve taken two philosophy courses and they kind of changed my thinking…don’t be afraid to reach out to someone that is doing something that you can see yourself doing, like a summer internship, because honestly, a lot of my experiences probably came from asking my mentors when I was a freshman.”

WHY TUFTS? THE REWRITE RAGA CHILAKAMARRI ’23 ENGLISH AND ECONOMICS WITH A MINOR IN FILM AND MEDIA STUDIES FROM SHARON, MA

PHOTO BY KATHLEEN DOOHER

Raga’s Tufts experience was molded by a partly arbitrary decision to participate in the Tufts Wilderness Orientation (TWO) as an incoming first-year, a community that gave her two of her best friends (turned future housemates). She’s been on TWO’s staff every year since, culminating in her role as a coordinator for TWO 2023. On campus, she’s written for the arts and features sections of the Tufts Daily and was a graphic designer for the Tufts University Social Collective. Some of her favorite pastimes are reading (and people-watching) on Prez Lawn, hosting dinner parties in her off-campus house, and exploring the many nearby Squares. After graduation she is heading to Madrid, Spain as a Fulbright Association English Teaching Assistant.

WE ASK CURRENT STUDENTS TO TACKLE THE NEW TUFTS SHORT-ANSWER QUESTIONS

Complete the following sentence in 100 words or less: “I am applying to Tufts because…”

Looking back at these past four years, it’s challenging to discern what exact strands of Tufts shaped the fabric of my experience—a transformative time of unpredictable growth and connection. On one hand, of course, it’s easy to say the people: bright, silly, and kind. But more directly, it’s the conscientious effort towards community building as an ongoing process.

Throughout the many clubs I’ve participated in, from the frisbee team to TWO to TedxTufts, intentionality and care formed the backbone for achieving a common mission. The sense of Jumbo pride is collective—we show up for each other, pack auditoriums to cheer on burlesque performances, showcase our friends’ Tufts Daily articles on Instagram, and wait in long lines for the student-run coffee shop The Sink. At Tufts, our campus culture is not merely inherited or stagnant, but constantly revitalized and evolving. To adopt a phrase from TWO, when we Jumbos come together, “work is love made visible.”

It’s cool to love learning. What excites your intellectual curiosity?

(200–250 words) On Tuesday mornings from 10:30 to 11:45, my friend Emma and I hold our weekly meetings in the Campus Center. We alternate making the agenda. In her journal, Emma dutifully bulletpoints: “leisure vs. work;” “anonymity vs. familiarity (space & place);” “what does it mean to feel sound?” Both English majors, the classroom practice of engaging with literature—reading, writing, and thinking about reading and writing—seeps into our daily observations. I am in constant search for thematic expressions, collecting scraps of poetry and prose as they emerge, eager to be moved, to analyze diction and extract significance. From this lens, literature, be it 17th-century Renaissance sonnets or the latest Booker Prize-winning novel, pulses with energy and possibility. “Tell all the truth but tell it slant,” Emily Dickinson once advised, and Emma and I eagerly investigate how language, in the crooked angles of complicated syntax or simple diction, works to obscure and reveal its meaning. In fact, studying English is an experience best explained through metaphors. We are excavators standing between concurrent streams of what is stated and what is implied. Or detectives, tracking subtle motifs and inflections of foreshadowing. Archivists, even, mediating language’s relationship between past and present. To put it plainly: the power of literature never ceases to excite and inspire me with its infinite prospects of collaborative reflection and creativity. Pinning down and problem-solving the great mystery of writing through a time-traveling exploration of stories has been a thrilling adventure, every word a choice, a stone to be turned over.

To see the 2023–24 Tufts short-answer questions, visit http://admissions.tufts.edu/apply/essay-questions 25

ADVICE

OPTIONAL REALLY DOES MEAN A few years ago, when the global pandemic first started, many colleges and universities took that time to reevaluate what was requested from applicants in order to keep them safe while still accurately assessing their academic qualifications. But as the years progressed, different institutions have made a wide variety of decisions regarding what is considered optional from applicants and what they require from everyone who applies. Below, I lay out what is optional and what is required from an applicant to Tufts this fall, and hopefully make the college search process a little easier to move through. BY SAM NICOL, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF ADMISSIONS

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OPTIONAL BUT FIRST: IS IT REALLY OPTIONAL?

This is the question I am asked most often. In short, yes. If we say something is optional for your application to be considered competitive for admission, we really do mean that. At Tufts, we have had training for years now on how to evaluate applications with and without optional materials. We read all applications holistically, meaning we have no GPA or test score minimums and no one factor will “make-or-break” your application. The admissions committee reads and evaluates everything that is sent to us, and everything that we see is included in our conversations. If something is optional, that means we feel confident we can accurately evaluate your application for admission whether that piece is present or not. Now, let’s review all of the parts of the application that are considered optional and provide some context.

OPTIONAL PIECES

Standardized test scores

Portfolios

Alumni Interview

Probably the most confusing part of the college application process, at Tufts the SAT and ACT are both optional. There is no pressure to take them or send in your scores. Tufts has also extended our original test optional policy for the next three application cycles. That means that all students applying to Tufts for the fall of 2024, 2025, and 2026 are included. IMPORTANT NOTE: This policy is only for the SAT and ACT. English proficiency test scores ARE required for all students whose primary language is not English, unless they have been enrolled in a school where English is the language of instruction for at least the past three years.

Students applying to the School of Arts and Sciences and the School of Engineering at Tufts are welcome to send us an optional arts or maker portfolio. The portfolio is broadly inclusive. Many students will send us clips of music performances, theater shows, dance routines, studio art projects, or engineering creations that showcase their achievements and talents. IMPORTANT NOTE: All students applying to the School of the Museum of Fine Arts (SMFA) BFA program or the SMFA/Arts & Sciences Combined Degree program ARE required to send a fine art portfolio, the guidelines for which may be found online.

After submitting your application, there is an option to sign up for an evaluative interview with an alumnus or one of our senior student interviewers. You may request an interview on your Applicant Status Portal after your application has been received by our office. As there are more students who request an interview than we have the capacity to meet with, we do not hold it against any student who does not request an interview, or who requests one but is unable to receive an interview.

AND THAT IS IT FOR OPTIONAL PIECES!

Not too bad, right? You may be wondering if you should include any of the above pieces in your application this fall. I would recommend asking yourself this: “does this piece accurately reflect my abilities as a student/artist/engineer/person?” If yes, then consider submitting that piece. If no, then it is perfectly okay to not do so instead. I hope this article can help you set yourself up for success and lessen anxiety in the college admissions process. And if you have any questions, feel free to reach out to the Undergraduate Admissions Office. We’re here to help!

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LIVING

CULTURE & CLIMATE: THE NEW

For many students, college represents the first time they have left their home communities in search of a new educational and community environment. Situated in an idyllic New England suburb in Medford/Somerville, Massachusetts (just five miles from Boston!), Tufts draws students from all over the country who are looking to become part of its intellectually stimulating and supportive community. At the same time, Tufts recognizes that finding your home on-campus is important, and supports students in seeking their home-away-fromhome on the Hill. We chatted with current Tufts students from the Southern and Southwestern US to learn more about their transition to life in the Northeast and how they have found familiar comforts despite being many miles away from home.

BY JOSH COHEN ’24

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Matias Cattani ’24 from Houston, Texas majoring in biopsychology What is the U.S. South/Southwest transplant experience like?

My experience moving to the Northeast was great overall. With time, everyone naturally and easily gets acclimated to living and studying in the Northeast!

I’ve really enjoyed being in a new geographical region, as it’s allowed me to explore different cultures and experience a completely new side of the US. How has moving to New England been great? How has it been difficult?

Moving to New England has been great since it’s allowed me to interact with different groups of people who grew up in all areas of the United States. I love that Boston and other cities in the Northeast are extremely walkable and offer great public transportation since it has allowed me to explore cities easily!

I wasn’t expecting there to be a large cultural shock, but there definitely are some fundamental cultural differences between the South and the Northeast.

Adjusting to these differences was difficult at first, but this is just part of moving to any new city!

Emily Kemp ’24 from Tampa, Florida majoring in computer science What is the U.S. South/Southwest transplant experience like?

Everyone I have met at Tufts has been friendly and welcoming, and I have loved experiencing all of the wonderful things New England has to offer. Even though I am farther from my family than some of my friends who are able to drive a few hours home on the weekends if they are feeling homesick, I have made connections and relationships that make Tufts feel like a second family.

PHOTOS BY ANNA MILLER AND ALONSO NICHOLS/TUFTS UNIVERSITY

ENGLAND TRANSITION

How has moving to New England been great? How has it been difficult?

I was really looking forward to moving up north, specifically out of Florida, to experience a new culture and ideological atmosphere from what I knew growing up. I think, overall, New England has definitely provided that, which I am very grateful for. I think the culture here has given me a new perspective and made me more aware of my impact on the world in many ways that living in Florida never did. On the flip side, the most difficult part of transitioning to this new place was the climate difference. Even though I was warned, and came prepared with many sweaters and jackets, I was not prepared for how the cold weather really can impact you. Other than visiting northern places for the holidays and seeing a bit of snow here and there, I had never experienced a real winter before coming to Tufts. I am in my third year now, and I still do not think I am used to the winter season, but at least I have a better idea of what to expect. The worst part, in all honesty, is the fact that the days get so short starting in mid-November. It can be difficult to feel motivated when there are so few hours of sunlight every day.

Anything you wish you’d known before you came here?

I would have appreciated a few lessons on how to deal with the elements of winter. Most of the things New Englanders learn when they are seven, I am still learning at 20! I have had to figure out how to shovel snow, scrape ice off of a car, and salt my sidewalk, for example.

Sabrina Medlock ’24 from Gulfport, Mississippi majoring in biopsychology and minoring in studio art What is the U.S. South/Southwest transplant experience like?

I am a very cold-intolerant person, even in Mississippi I was known for being the person who is constantly cold. So, when I told my family and friends I wanted to go to a school in the Northeast they were all pretty shocked by that choice. I don’t think I ever fully adjusted to the cold to be honest, and I have a new appreciation for the heat, but I also had never seen snow before coming to Tufts and that was a super fun and exciting experience!

How has moving to New England been great? How has it been difficult?

My city in Mississippi is kind of small and there’s not very many things to do over there (think going to Walmart on Saturday for fun), so it was really amazing to see everything available to me up here. Even walking around the streets of Medford is exciting to me and I love looking at the buildings and shops and activities here. Like I said before though, the cold is brutal and I learned the hard way that bundling up is a necessity for a Southern body like me.

How has Tufts specifically supported you in adjusting to New England life?

Any tips or tricks for maximizing Tufts life as a southern Jumbo?

I am a part of the FIRST Center, a Tufts organization for first generation, lowincome (FGLI), and/or undocumented students. Every fall, they host a FIRST sale where students gather and take donations from the community including books, clothes, winter gear, appliances, decorations, and more. I’ve tried to maximize that opportunity the past three years and it was a life saver for sure. If you’re an FGLI student, I highly recommend connecting with FIRST and utilizing their resources!

“I’ve always been interested in different cultures so it was fun delving into them through styles of dance.”

GABRIELA PEREZ BIOPSYCHOLOGY AND CHILD STUDY AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT DOUBLE MAJOR FROM HOUSTON, TX

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’25

PHOTO BY KATHLEEN DOOHER

For many first-generation, low-income college students, moving away to college is often equally scary and exciting—especially for those traveling to an entirely distinct part of the country. There is the pressure of learning how to make space for yourself in institutions that were historically exclusionary and contending with the unfamiliarity of academically elite spaces. There’s the question of leaving family behind and learning to turn new peers into familiar faces, friends, and found family. In addition, how does one preserve their culture, identity, and sense of self in college? How do we establish our roots so that we can grow? How do we deal with homesickness? We know that being in new situations, gaining new experiences, and undergoing change are vital for growth, but what does that really look like? Students coming to Tufts from far away create community and craft their own spaces in Medford/Somerville and the Greater Boston area in diverse ways, making a place that was once overwhelmingly novel transform into a space of community and joy. Sophomore Gabriela Perez, ’25, hailing from subtropical Houston, TX, is one such student who has built a community within different centers, clubs, dance groups, and departments at Tufts.

Gabriela’s road to Tufts commenced at the end of her sophomore year of high school when she was accepted into a local college readiness program. Through the program, she toured colleges and was introduced to the fundamentals of college admissions: its jargon, the differences between private and public institutions, the CSS profile, and the QuestBridge program. “That’s when I started learning more about these elite colleges that meet 100 percent of your financial need, like Tufts,” she explains. After receiving her college acceptances, Gabriela ultimately decided to attend Tufts due to its generous financial aid package, setting her sights on leaving eastward to a world of changes.

When asked about her upbringing, Gabriela highlights the common factors binding together her tight-knit Houston community, including its ethnic background and the low-income experience. Her high school had 99 percent minority enrollment,

with 88 percent of students being of Hispanic background. At home, she lived in a predominantly Black neighborhood but grew up in a predominantly Hispanic neighborhood. Because she shared so many similarities with those around her, she felt that making friendships and connections was easy.

“I come from a place where Mexican culture is very prominent. There’s food, there’s dance, and everyone speaks Spanish,” she explains. Naturally, Tufts would provide her with a distinct environment that was, in some ways, more diverse than her hometown but deeply unfamiliar in terms of culture, food, and weather. “I felt like everyone at home had a common foundation of mutual understanding, so coming to Tufts was definitely a big shift. It was pretty difficult for me culturally and socially,” she reflects. When it came to making friends, Gabriela recalls initially struggling during orientation because she did not connect with a majority of the first groups of people she met and because, as an introvert, the pressure to socialize could be exhausting. However, soon after, Gabriela met one of her closest friends, a fellow member of her pre-orientation group, with whom she felt she could connect. Gabriela stresses the importance of meeting people with whom you share some aspects of your identity because creating spaces for mutual understanding and fellowship enriches the college experience.

In search of new friendships and community, Gabriela began attending different events hosted by the Latinx Center and the FIRST Center. Notably, she explored her passion for dance, which was strongly cultivated by her Mexican culture. While at Tufts, Gabriela has been a part of Encendido, Tufts’ Latinx dance team, and ROTI & RUM, Tufts’ Caribbean dance team. Through these two dance teams, she met some of her closest friends, many of whom shared her Mexican, First-Generation, Low Income (FGLI) background. Gabriela also auditioned for other cultural dance groups, such as Tufts Pulse and Tufts Woozy. “I’ve always been interested in different cultures so it was fun delving into them through styles of dance—I really took advantage of these different cultural opportunities because I didn’t have access to them [in Houston],” she says.

Now in her second year at Tufts, Gabriela has declared a biopsychology major, where she explores the intersection between neuroscience, biology, and human behavior. Having taken this important step, Gabriela is excited to devote more time to career exploration and fleshing out what her future could look like. She is currently a research coordinator in the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study and Human Development where she helps with data collection and organization, and mediates students’ transitions from research project planning to execution. She also dedicates much time to FGLI student identity as a Tufts First Gen Collective member and is a high school mentor for Momentum Education, a Houston-based mentorship program for underserved students.

Though Gabriela’s transition to Tufts was initially difficult, it has proved worthwhile and rewarding.

She still misses certain aspects of Houston, like the weather and delicious, authentic Mexican food readily available at every corner. However, she’s developed lifelong friendships at Tufts and has taken advantage of community-building opportunities on campus. Additionally, she enjoys attending college in the Boston area, frequenting the Green Line in the direction of the Boston Public Library to study, and going on historical Boston tours to look at the architecture. This summer, Gabriela returned to Houston for an internship supporting caregivers whose family members have cancer at the MD Anderson Cancer Center. “I really enjoy biopsych and human development, but I didn’t know what the intersections of that could be and what careers would look like, so I was excited to explore that this summer,” she states. Gabriela has plenty more time to grow academically, experiment with different dance styles, and make new connections on the Hill. Her story reminds us all that though the college experience can be overwhelming, rewarding, and exciting all at the same time, we are capable and deserving of making it great—so claim spaces, try new things, and hold on tight.

—VALERIA VELASQUEZ ’23

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A COMMUNITY

TO WRITE HOME ABOUT Tufts’ Division of Student Diversity and Inclusion (DSDI) grew this past year with the creation of a new identity center: the Indigenous Center. This means that the DSDI has grown to include eight centers: the Africana Center; the Asian American Center; the FIRST Resource Center for first generation, low income, and undocumented students; the Latinx Center; the LGBT Center; the Women’s Center; and the Center for STEM Diversity. Our writer Jed sat down with the Indigenous Center’s inaugural director Vernon Miller to discuss what brought him to Tufts and his plans for how the newest identity resource center will help make Tufts a more inclusive and welcoming environment. BY JED QUIAOIT ’25 ILLUSTRATION BY MADELYN GOODNIGHT

ernon’s story takes us from the Midwest through his experiences as a high school teacher, a tribal leader, and eventually to his current role as the Director of the Indigenous Center at Tufts. Prior to joining Tufts, Vernon held multiple roles in education. He was a student at the University of NebraskaLincoln navigating through his education journey with minimal representation of Indigenous peoples across the teaching staff and administration. “In general, I never had anyone who reflected my identities and it’s very similar for other Indigenous students. In terms of the curriculum, it never reflected our identity, our history, our values, and so on.” But everything

Tufts community members participate in a blessing and opening ceremony led by Sakoneseriiosta of the Mohawk tribe, Turtle Clan, at the Indigenous Center.

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ILLUSTRATION BY MADELYN GOODNIGHT; PHOTOS BY ALONSO NICHOLS/TUFTS UNIVERSITY

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changed when his grandmother, who was one of the few Native American teachers in his school system, became his fourthgrade teacher. Vernon acknowledges that representation matters: “When you see someone who looks like you in various roles, it sparks the inspiration to pursue those paths. In general, we won’t know if something’s worth pursuing because we don’t know if that’s that type of experience we want. You know, we don’t often see a lot of Indigenous physicians, lawyers, or politicians.”

In college, Vernon was drawn to business, but his grandmother’s influence and his commitment to his community led him to become a high school business teacher on his reservation. This was partly driven by the lack of investment in the community’s education. As a result, “kids in the school system weren’t really wanting to do more beyond those normal school hours and so like, extracurriculars, anything beyond that was not something that was really offered. We just had the basic fall sports [volleyball or football]; in the winter, you had basketball and that was it. And then a spring sport all you had was track and field.”

He poured his heart into creating a supportive environment for his students from coaching volleyball and basketball to managing concessions to facilitating quiz bowl, leading to a 100% graduation rate among those he worked with. His dedication and advocacy caught the attention of the Obama administration, leading to several advisory board appointments—a few examples being the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration and the National Institute of Health’s Tribal Technical Advisory Committee—where he worked to address the needs of Indigenous communities nationwide. “I can’t do something idly. I have to get really involved and totally immerse myself in a strong issue for education. I had no problem being an educator and educating others about my community, my community’s experiences, and what the Indigenous experience is like in the journeys that we have.”

After serving as a tribal leader for three years, Vernon sought to make an even greater impact in higher education. He pursued a graduate degree in college administration, aiming

to create spaces that support Indigenous students in their educational journeys. This path brought him to Tufts University, where he embarked on a transformative mission.

As the first Director of the Indigenous Center at Tufts, Vernon had a vision: to build a strong community for Indigenous students and create a space where their contemporary identities and achievements are highlighted. The center became a welcoming home away from home, adorned with artwork and artifacts from Indigenous artists and communities. “When you look up Native Americans or Indigenous people, you’re gonna get black and white pictures from the past. You don’t see us today. You don’t see the work that we’re doing today.

You don’t see the opportunities that we’ve created for our communities. That’s one thing that I really want to make sure we highlight here: our lives today in a contemporary sense, who we are today, and the work that we do—and that includes supporting Indigenous artists and businesses from communities, families, and alumni.”

Working closely with the Indigenous Students’ Organization at Tufts, Vernon embraced the intersectionality of identities within the Indigenous community and fostered a sense of belonging for all. The center became a hub of support and

empowerment, attracting students from diverse backgrounds.

With a year of accomplishments under his belt, Vernon’s goals for the future are clear. He aims to deepen education and awareness of Indigenous identities, create further opportunities for identity development, and build even stronger relationships with the broader community.

At the end of our chat, I could say that Vernon is not only changing the lives of Indigenous students at Tufts University, but he is also transforming how institutions of higher education can better support underrepresented communities. With his unwavering dedication and passion, Vernon is leaving a lasting legacy of empowerment and opportunity. One thing he’s proud of? “Seeing the growth in the students. I want them to come to the Center and feel like they’re at home, and that was the whole intent of this space: to get away from the hustle and bustle outside the Center’s walls and build community both within and outside Tufts.”

So, if you’re considering Tufts as your college destination, remember that the Indigenous Center and the tireless efforts of Vernon await, ready to welcome you to a vibrant community where your voice matters, your identity is celebrated, and your journey is supported every step of the way.

That’s one thing that I really want to make sure we highlight here: our lives today in a contemporary sense, who we are today, and the work that we do—and that includes supporting Indigenous artists and businesses from communities, families, and alumni.”

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remembers thinking, “I love math. I love science, and I can do these two things together in a way that can really impact the world.”

By definition, a Tufts engineering education is geared towards those students with a particular inclination towards a well-rounded education that extends far beyond traditional engineering coursework—students whose interests cannot be confined or defined by a specific set of disciplines. In addition to taking courses in engineering, students are encouraged to explore a variety of subjects, including the humanities, arts, and languages. Professor Bouchard highlights that Tufts is a place where you’ll find engineers who are also passionate about sociology, for example, and who are able to make connections between seemingly unrelated fields. She explains, “My entire career has been one exploration that I didn’t think I was going to take. I’ve ended up as a faculty member because I’m the kind of person who truly loves to learn and that is at the core of everything I do.”

Professor Bouchard’s research interests— integrating the practices of engineering and education—reflect the spirit of intellectual exploration that is central to Tufts’ culture. She thinks innovatively about ways to design, challenge, and improve the engineering classroom, and more specifically about portfolios, which capture the achievements, skills, and products of engineering students and are frequently used by employers to assess the competencies of these students.

Portfolios and other formal assessment methods are at the center of the questions Professor Bouchard is asking about the way forward in

engineering education. “We know that portfolios are a thing that employers want and we know students are going to end up doing them.” She continues, “But how can we think differently about portfolios in an engineering classroom? How can we look at different ways of doing things, acknowledging that every student learns differently?” As an instructor, she is consistently wowed by the creativity and dedication of her students as they tackle challenging assignments. She actively seeks out opportunities to refine her teaching practice, so that all of her students can fully engage in the joys of the learning process.

Along her educational trajectory, Professor Bouchard reflects on the reality of being the only woman in a field traditionally dominated by men.

She vividly remembers being the sole woman in her senior year math class in high school, and has since prioritized mentoring, engaging with, and championing historically marginalized students in STEM fields. All of her inquiries and ambitions in revolutionizing the ways we teach engineers revolve around her central philosophy that “I really do fundamentally believe that so many more people can be engineers than think that they can be.” Empowered from an equity and inclusion framework, she asks how she can progressively realize an engineering environment that supports the growth of students from all backgrounds. She recognizes the high stakes involved in this work, but remains steadfast in her vision. For Professor Bouchard, teaching engineering isn’t just about imparting knowledge—it’s about teaching students how to learn.

—JOSH COHEN ’24

PHOTO BY KATHLEEN DOOHER

Most people tell Dr. Briana Bouchard that she must literally bleed brown and blue. It’s not hard to see why—she started at Tufts as an undergraduate and has since earned both her master’s and doctoral degrees here, and more recently was appointed as a member of the faculty. Within the School of Engineering, Professor Bouchard specializes in mechanical engineering, collaborating with both students and faculty members, exploring transdisciplinary areas of interest that fuel her passion for engineering education, problem solving, and systems-thinking approaches. Professor Bouchard is not only a dedicated educator but also a passionate engineer who recognizes the relationality between these historically separate fields and actively seeks out opportunities to expand her knowledge and push the boundaries of what it means to be an engineer.

Math and physics were always fields that resonated with Professor Bouchard. She explains that these disciplines were “always something that I just connected with. They made sense.” Having applied to colleges with intentions to study applied mathematics, she recognized that something was missing. As a natural builder and creator, she yearned for opportunities to merge her technical skills with her applied interests. It wasn’t until she attended an admitted students day at Tufts that she discovered engineering for the first time, the missing link she had been searching for. As the only college she applied to with a dedicated School of Engineering, she knew that not only was this the degree program for her, but Tufts was the exact place to chase her passions. “That’s it.” she

BRIANA BOUCHARD ASSISTANT TEACHING PROFESSOR OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

“I really do fundamentally believe that so many more people can be engineers than think that they can be.”

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ADMISSIONS INFORMATION WHAT TO SUBMIT: HERE’S THE LIST. FIND MORE DETAILS ON OUR WEBSITE!

1

Common Application, Coalition Application, or QuestBridge Application

2

Tufts Short-Answer Questions (included in the Common Application and Coalition Application)

3 4 5 6 7 8 +

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High School Transcript(s)

Senior Year Grades

Testing (Optional) We accept either the ACT or the SAT; neither is required.

Applicants may choose whether they wish to have exam scores considered as one component of their candidacy.

Letters of Recommendation We require one from a school counselor and one from a teacher. You may send us one additional if you’d like.

Art Portfolio Required only for applicants to the BFA and Combined Degree (BFA + BA/BS) programs.

Financial Aid Documents If you are applying for aid, you will need to submit: 1. FAFSA 2. CSS Profile 3. Federal Income Tax Returns For more information, read the next page of this magazine or visit students.tufts.edu/financial-services.

Additional Materials (Optional) • Alumni Interview • Arts or Maker Portfolio: Students applying to the School of Arts and Sciences or the School of Engineering may submit an optional arts or maker portfolio to highlight talent in studio art, drama, dance, music, or engineering.

APPLICATION DEADLINES AND NOTIFICATION DATES* Early Decision I Application Deadline: November 1 Notification Date: Mid-December Early Decision II Application Deadline: January 4 Notification Date: Early February Regular Decision Application Deadline: January 4 Notification Date: By April 1 Transfer Admission Application Deadline: March 18 Notification Date: Mid-May *Please visit admissions.tufts.edu/apply for the most up-to-date information on deadlines.

TUFTS CLASS OF 2027 ADMISSIONS PROCESS 34,000+ first-year applications 10.1% admitted 100% of demonstrated financial need met for all admitted students In the first three years of our SAT/ACT test-optional pilot, about half of applicants did not submit scores. About 40% of admitted students did not submit scores. We are SAT/ACT optional for first-year and transfer students applying to enter in the Fall of 2024, 2025, and 2026.

Please visit our Class of 2027 Profile, available online in September, for more information.

TUFTS UNDERGRADUATE STATISTICS 6,815 4.8 20 28 350+ 46% 45% $55,697 88

Undergraduate Enrollment Miles from Boston Average Class Size Varsity Sports Teams Student Groups Women in the School of Engineering of Juniors Study Abroad Average Grant Award Countries Represented As of Summer 2023

THE REAL DEAL: FINANCIAL AID AT TUFTS THE BASICS

WHAT IS FINANCIAL NEED?

TUFTS MEETS 100% OF DEMONSTRATED NEED FOR ALL ADMITTED STUDENTS, REGARDLESS OF CITIZENSHIP STATUS, FOR ALL FOUR YEARS.

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Cost of Attendance Tuition and fees Food and housing Books and supplies Personal expenses

)

(

Expected Family Contribution Parent contribution Student contribution

)

(

Financial Need

)

Your award may include: Grant aid* Student loan Work study

Your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) is the amount your family is expected to pay for college for the academic year. It is calculated from the information provided on your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), CSS Profile, and your family’s federal tax returns. Your financial need is the difference between the annual cost of attendance and your calculated family contribution.

Your financial aid package will make up the difference, for all four years—even if your family’s situation changes. We generally do not include student loans for students whose families earn less than $60,000 per year. All Tufts financial aid is need-based—we do not offer merit-based scholarships or athletic scholarships. *Grants are need-based gift aid that are not paid back.

HOW DO I APPLY?

WHO CAN HELP?

COMPLETE THE REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:

To estimate the amount of financial aid you might receive if admitted to Tufts:

Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)* fafsa.ed.gov Tufts code: 002219 Cost: free *Note: not required of international or undocumented applicants for financial aid

College Scholarship Service (CSS) Profile cssprofile.collegeboard.org Tufts code: 3901 Cost: $25 initial fee plus $16 for each additional college. Fee waivers are available for students who qualify for an SAT fee waiver or whose family incomes are below $45,000.

Non-Custodial Profile (NCP): if your parents are divorced or separated.

The requirement may be waived by the Tufts Financial Aid Office under very specific circumstances.

Federal Income Tax Returns Applicants should submit all documentation to IDOC (idoc.collegeboard.org/idoc), an electronic imaging service of the College Board. Your account will be created at idoc.collegeboard.org once you submit the CSS Profile.

Please do not send tax returns directly to Tufts Admissions or Financial Aid.

BY THE DEADLINE: Application Type Early Decision Round I Early Decision Round II Regular Decision Transfer Admission

CSS Profile November 15 January 15 February 1 April 3

FAFSA January 15* January 15 February 1 April 3

Federal Tax Forms Through IDOC December 1 February 1 February 15 April 17

If you are applying for financial aid at Tufts and have a Social Security number, please make sure to include that information in your application for admission so your materials can be properly matched.

MyinTuition admissions.tufts.edu/ myintuition Tufts Net Price Calculator npc.collegeboard.org/ student/app/tufts For questions while applying: CSS Profile 305-420-3670 FAFSA 800-433-3243 “Chat With Us” Service IDOC 866-897-9881 (US and Canada) 212-299-0096 (International)

*Note: the federal government is updating the FAFSA and will release the new form online in December. Students applying in Early Decision Round I should submit all other parts of the financial aid application in November and December, and complete the FAFSA by January 15. Date subject to change. Check our financial aid website for the most up-to-date information.

PLEASE REVIEW THE FINANCIAL AID WEBSITE FOR THE MOST UP-TO-DATE INFORMATION AND DEADLINES: ADMISSIONS.TUFTS.EDU/TUITION-AND-AID 39

PROGRAMS With nearly 150 majors and minors, 30 interdisciplinary programs, and the courses of the Experimental College, Tufts’ offerings require more than a brief skimming, so you can find an expansion of this quick list on our website. But in the meantime, skim away. Just note that Tufts’ undergraduate programs are offered in three schools: Arts and Sciences, Engineering, and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts. Students may take classes across schools, and many students do.

SCHOOL OF ARTS AND SCIENCES MAJORS

International Literary and Visual Studies International Relations

Africana Studies

Italian Studies

American Studies Ancient World Studies Anthropology Applied Environmental Studies Applied Mathematics Applied Physics

Japanese Judaic Studies Latin Latin American Studies Mathematics Middle Eastern Studies

Arabic

Music, Sound, and Culture

Archaeology

Human Factors Engineering

Asian American Studies

History of Art and Architecture

Mechanical Engineering

Astrophysics

Human Factors Engineering2

Biological Anthropology

Italian Studies

Biophysical Chemistry

Japanese

Biotechnology

Judaic Studies

Chemical Engineering2

Latin

Chemical Mechanism and Structure

Latin American Studies

Chemical Physics

Linguistics

Chemistry

Materials and Surface Chemistry

SMFA AT TUFTS AREAS OF STUDY

All BFA students at SMFA at Tufts focus in interdiscipli­nary art.

They may explore many of the following areas of study while pursuing this interdisciplinary art education.

Animation Book Arts

Latinx Studies

Chemistry of Life

Ceramics

Child Study and Human Development

Mathematics

Digital Media

Chinese

Drawing

Medieval Studies

Cognitive and Brain Science

Fibers

Colonialism Studies

Museums, Memory, and Heritage

Film

Comparative Politics

Music

Graphic Arts

Computational Chemistry

Music Engineering

Religion

Illustration

Computer Science

Installation

Cultural Anthropology

Native American and Indigenous Studies

Chemistry

Russian and Eastern European Studies

Jewelry

Dance

Peace and Justice Studies

Child Study and Human Development

Russian Language and Cultural Studies

Metals

Economics

Philosophy

Chinese

Education

Civic Studies1

Science, Technology, and Society1

Painting Papermaking

Engineering Education

Political Economy

Clinical Psychology

Sociology

Performance

Engineering Management

Political Science

Cognitive and Brain Science

Spanish Cultural Studies

Photography

English

Political Thought

Community Health

Spanish Literature

Printmaking

Entrepreneurship

Portuguese

Computer Science

Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies

Sculpture

Entrepreneurship for Social Impact

Religion

Environmental Science and Policy2

Russian Language and Cultural Studies

Film and Media Studies Finance

Science, Technology, and Society

Architectural Studies Astrophysics

Philosophy Physics Political Science

Biochemistry

Psychology

Biology Biomedical Sciences

1

Biopsychology Biotechnology1 Chemical Physics

Economics

Quantitative Economics Race, Colonialism, and Diaspora Studies

Sound

Medical Anthropology

Physics 2

Roman Civilization

Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

Video

SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING MAJORS

FIVE-YEAR COMBINED DEGREE PROGRAMS

Food Systems and Nutrition

Social Justice Anthropology

Environmental Studies1

Architectural Studies

Foreign Policy Analysis

Sociology

Film and Media Studies

Biomedical Engineering Biotechnology1

Foundations for Future Leadership2

Spanish

French

Arts & Sciences/SMFA Combined Degree: BA or BS and Bachelor of Fine Arts

Geological Sciences

Chemical Engineering

MINORS

French

German Language and Cultural Studies

Civil Engineering

Theatre and Performance Studies

German Studies

Computer Science

Greek

Data Science

Greek and Latin

Electrical Engineering

History

Engineering

History of Art and Architecture

Engineering Physics

Interdisciplinary Studies

Engineering Science

Education1 Engineering Psychology English Environmental Geology

Computer Engineering

Environmental Engineering Environmental Health

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Virtual Reality

Africana Studies American Politics Analytical Chemistry Ancient World Archaeology Applied Computational Science3 Arabic Architectural Engineering3 Architectural Studies

Studio Art

Geology2 Geoscience3

Urban Studies

Geosystems

Visual and Material Studies3

German Language and Cultural Studies

Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

2

German Studies

1

Available only as a co-major

Greek

2

​Available only to students enrolled in the School of Engineering

​3

Available only to students enrolled in the School of Arts and Sciences

Greek Civilization Hebrew History

.

Y E H

JUST STARTING YOUR SEARCH? HERE’S WHAT TUFTS IS ALL ABOUT. WE DO OUR RESEARCH

WE ARE INTERESTED

Tufts is a student-centered research university, which means that we like to dig into our passions deeply and figure things out for ourselves—whether that involves using silk to regenerate tissue or spending a fully-funded summer exploring the political implications of Shakespeare’s plays through the Summer Scholars program. Students and professors come together, across disciplines, to ask questions and create meaning.

…in a lot of things. Tufts students don’t limit themselves: they combine biology with philosophy, compete as nationally-ranked D-III athletes, pursue Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees in studio art at our School of the Museum of Fine Arts, and solve problems as engineers. They’re part of a community that embraces the unconventional and the uncategorizable.

WE ARE ACTIVE CITIZENS

WE DON’T TAKE OURSELVES TOO SERIOUSLY

Jumbos use their skills and ideas to better people’s lives, whether they are teaching engineering in local elementary schools, creating sustainable businesses, or spending a semester in Peru or the American Southwest immersed in social and environmental justice as part of the Tufts Civic Semester. They understand that they are citizens of a global community, and they embrace that responsibility.

This is a place where students are as excited to debate fan theories as they are to apply mathematical theorems—as intellectually playful as they are powerful. We believe that ideas can have a profound impact on the world, and those ideas can be born around the seminar table but also in the residence hall common room.

Sound about right? Read the stories here to learn more. Also check out our website: admissions.tufts.edu

PHOTO BY ALONSO NICHOLS/TUFTS UNIVERSITY

Non-Discrimination Statement Tufts does not discriminate in admissions, employment, or in any of its educational programs or activities on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, ancestry, age, religion or religious creed, disability or handicap, sex or gender (including pregnancy, sexual harassment and other sexual misconduct including acts of sexual violence such as rape, sexual assault, stalking, sexual exploitation, sexual exploitation and coercion, relationship/intimate partner violence and domestic violence), gender identity and/or expression (including a transgender identity), sexual orientation, military or veteran status, genetic information or any other characteristic protected under applicable federal, state or local law. Retaliation is also prohibited. Tufts will comply with state and federal laws such as M.G.L. c. 151B, Title IX, Title VI and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 503 and 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment and Rights Act, Executive Order 11246 and other similar laws that prohibit discrimination, all as amended. Tufts is an equal employment opportunity/affirmative action employer. More detailed Tufts policies and procedures on this topic may be found in the OEO Policies and Procedures page.

Any member of the Tufts University community has the right to raise concerns or make a complaint regarding discrimination under this policy without fear of retaliation. Any and all inquiries regarding the application of this statement and related policies may be referred to: Jill Zellmer, MSW, Executive Director of the Office of Equal Opportunity, Title IX and 504 Coordinator, at 617.627.3298 at 196 Boston Avenue, 4th floor, Medford, MA 02155, or at Jill.Zellmer@tufts.edu. Anonymous complaints may also be made by reporting online at: tufts-oeo.ethicspoint.com. As set forth in our policies, individuals may also file complaints with administrative agencies such as the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”). The contact information for the local office of OCR is 617.289.0111 at Office for Civil Rights, Boston Office U.S. Department of Education, 8th Floor, 5 Post Office Square, Boston, MA 02109-3921. The email address for OCR is OCR.Boston@ed.gov.

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