Lucy Randall ’09
French and English double-major
F08-S09 D-plan: R-R-R

Favorite and least favorite thing about department: Within the French department, my favorite aspect has been the experience of studying abroad in Paris. While I had looked forward to the program as a highlight of my career at Dartmouth, I didn’t anticipate the lasting connection between myself and the students who went to Paris the same term as I did, and how much of a pleasure it was to have their company in French courses afterwards, as many of us majored or minored in French or Romance Languages. So much of French literature has its roots and points of reference in Paris, so it has enriched our study of the and made the literature come alive for us. Also, the homstay aspect of the program was enormously helpful to all of our fluency in French, as was making friends with French students

Important info for potential majors: It's important to keep up with reading and have good attendance for French courses, because discussion fully forms what you take away from the class, how you are graded, and what you need to learn as background to be able to write adequate essays and tests.

Most valuable academic information learned: I'm going to be focusing on the 19th century for French literature and the 20th century for English, most specifically prose. My interests also include Italian, Art History, and publishing.

Talk to me if: you're wondering how to balance work-study and academics at Dartmouth. I have two jobs: as a WA for RWIT and as an assistant in the Sales Department of University Press of New England.
. . . you're interested in studying on two FSPs during your Dartmouth experience, as I was on the Paris FSP this winter and will be traveling to Dublin for the English FSP in the fall. Also, talk to me about how to deal with distributive requirements if your skills are all concentrated in a certain area and you're worried about your grades when you attempt to cover the more technical subjects: QDS, SCI etc. This is the area in which I most needed and most lacked guidance last year, and I really want to prevent other students from falling into this trap as I did.

Favorite class and professor: My favorite class so far has been French 55 with Professor Kritzman in which we discussed nationalism and identity in France, focusing on immigration for much of the course. The reading was intensive but our discussions were excellent and I really felt my French improve while reading about riveting concepts. He has every do an oral presentation on a text towards the end of the course, and hearing all of your peers and getting to discuss things in-depth this way was, I found, and excellent way to learn the language while really getting into the content at the same time.

Major classes taken: FR 8, 10. 20, 22, 29, 30,31 and 55 ; Note: FR 29, 30,31 were on the Paris FSP

Major journey: I learned French growing up and studied it all the way through grade school and high school, expecting to either minor in it or have it be a component of a Romance Languages major or minor. At Dartmouth, I really found that the most enjoyable and enriching courses I'd taken were in the French department, and that I never wanted to have a term when I wasn't taking French courses, so that just made me realize how much it would make sense. I truly love the country and its literature, and so happy to be doing something I love.

Thesis Status: Planned

Other activities: RWIT writing assistant, assistant in Sales Department at University Press of New England, EDPA, writer for Arts section of "The Dartmouth", AZD sorority, Panhellenic council representative AZD, yoga classes, Day at Dartmouth mentor

Off Campus Program: French FSP in Paris, 07W ; English FSP in Dublin, 07F