If you’ve ever been on a campus tour, you’ve probably noticed that every tour ends with a “Why Tufts” statement from the tour guide. So let’s talk about mine, both then and now.

To give you some background, I went to high school here in Medford, MA. Being so close by, I obviously knew about Tufts. But funny enough, that proximity actually made me less likely to consider it. I always knew it was a great school, academically competitive and well-regarded, but I never seriously pictured myself here until I took a campus tour. And honestly? I fell in love almost immediately. There was something about how green and alive the campus felt that just got me. That tour gave me a real sense of what life here could look like, and that’s ultimately what pushed me to apply.

Another thing that drew me in was the sheer number of student organizations, especially the pre-professional ones. What really caught my attention was JumboCode, Tufts’ pre-professional software development club. The more…

Hey Y’all, 

I think one of the things I am most grateful for is having lived in New England my whole life and getting to experience the four seasons. Each season has something new to offer; whether it be the fresh foliage in the spring, the warm heat of summer, the changing leaves of autumn, or the snow and cool winds of winter. 

What I'm perhaps even more grateful for though, is getting to experience all four seasons at Tufts on Prez Lawn, a large grassy hill at the center of campus behind Tufts' president's house, which is where it gets its name. And if I'm being honest, it's one of my favorite spots on campus. I want to walk you through Prez Lawn in each season; what you can expect to see and, hopefully, help you understand why this place feels so special to me.

In the Summer, Prez Lawn is the perfect spot to throw down a towel, lay down, and catch some nice rays of the sun. There are plenty of trees here that provide shade and make it a great spot to set up a hammock. There's…

Whenever someone asks me what my minors are, I always prepare for the long statement I have to recite and a reaction of either confusion, or a blank stare paired with a soft smile to follow it up. I mean, I completely understand, as I don’t think I’d be able to process “I’m minoring in Ancient World Archaeology and Race, Colonialism, and Diaspora Studies” on the first try either.

So, what are these minors and how did I even decide to study them? 

It took only a single class to convince me that studying archaeology was something I wanted to pursue further. I had always been interested in the topic, but I didn’t really understand the specifics in what it meant to study archaeology, so I decided to take the course “Ancient Egypt: Civilization of the Nile and the Near East,” taught by Professor Matthew Harrington. This class was absolutely transformative- being able to combine sociology and tie it to artifacts and art felt like connecting pieces of the puzzle of human reasoning, behavior…

Soccer and basketball are my favorite sports. In soccer, I have always loved midfield players. There is something special about watching them control the game, create chances out of nowhere, and deliver passes that leave everyone wondering how they even saw the opening. At Tufts, I watched every single home game our men's soccer team played and every home game our Men's basketball team played as well plus a couple of other games. Watching those teams compete made me appreciate the sports even more and, at one point, even made me consider trying out for the soccer team myself.

Although I was interested in playing varsity soccer, I could not make the time commitment that comes with being a student-athlete. Instead, I found my place in intramural sports, which turned out to be one of the best decisions I have made at Tufts. Intramurals are a great way to stay active, compete, and have fun with friends. You simply gather your people, create a team, and see what happens. Our team, Intore…

It is hard to believe my first year is already over. I remember getting accepted to Tufts and then applying for Civic Semester. It feels like yesterday that I found out I was going to Thailand for my first semester of college.

That semester was truly a life-changing experience. I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and immersed myself in a completely new culture and environment. I gained hands-on experience through an incredible NGO and learned about Indigenous issues in Thailand. Civic Semester is an amazing way to immerse yourself in a new language. I never thought I would be able to be conversational in such a complex language in a matter of weeks, but with my host mom I was speaking every day. My homestay experience was truly special. I know I’ve written about it often, but my host mom was a very special person who made Thailand feel like home. My instructors did an incredible job making sure we all got the most from the experience. No matter how many pictures you see, they never…

This summer, working as an undergraduate admissions intern, I’ve had the opportunity to take prospective students and families on countless tours across Tufts University. While each tour is unique, talking with students about their college search has given me plenty of time to reflect on my own experience.

Four years ago, as a junior in high school, I felt very unsure about where I would be in the next couple of years. I knew I wanted to go to college, but I didn’t know how to find the right place for me. So, my mom and I devised a plan. We bought a book on the top 300 colleges and universities in the US and flipped to the back, where each school was listed by state. Growing up in a small town in New York, I knew I wanted a college far enough from home to feel a sense of independence but close enough to drive home for breaks. So, I narrowed the list down to schools in New England. I also knew I wanted to study biology and had a passion for marine sciences and conservation, so I focused…

Growing up, I never imagined that I would attend college at all. I had other plans for my future, and college, especially college abroad, was never something that interested me. My dream was always to become the greatest person I could be for my community and my country. That dream has not changed, but the path toward it certainly has. Everything began one summer when a group of Tufts students visited my high school in Rwanda. Their visit sparked something in me and made me consider, for the first time, the possibility of applying to college.

I grew up in a community where many of the people we admired most were soldiers who had fought for the liberation of Rwanda and helped rebuild the country after the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. Their courage, sacrifice, and commitment to service inspired me from a young age. Because of that, I came to believe that military service was the primary way to serve my country. In many ways, I had closed my eyes to other forms of service and leadership…

When I get a second in my spare day either alone or with my friends, I go off campus into Medford/Somerville. Since there’s many things to do, here is a tier list to share my favourite activities that everyone should check out at least once!

If it’s your last day on Earth, you must go to:

My favorite Thai restaurant is Dakzen, which is in Davis Square, accessible by a pleasant 10-15 minute walk, our Tufts Shuttle every 30 minutes or by the 96 and 94 MBTA buses. Dakzen has an affordable and authentic menu of Thai cuisine such as my favourites like khao grapow (a fried rice) and khao soi (a noodle dish). And, I never leave without their homemade Thai milk tea. Their colorful environment is the ultimate meet up spot for my friends and I all year long, even in the colder winter months.

Also in Davis Square, the Somerville Theater is a must! Unlike your typical cinemas, this is one of the oldest movie and opera houses in the United States designed specifically with 35mm and 70mm film…

The college search process is an especially stressful one, and often tours are a monumental part of it as one of the best ways to get a complete picture of a college campus, one that can feel hard to get from websites or statistics. At the same time though, it’s not always easy to use these events to their fullest potential. During my own college search, I found that visits and tours could blend together into an information soup. I struggled a lot to keep everything organized, especially regarding info in areas I may not have been as interested in. As a tour guide, I've met a lot of people that have made a more productive use of their tour experience than I did. So, I wanted to share some of the most effective questions you can use to maximize your own college tours!

“How did you adapt to campus life during your first year?”

This question is especially great if you’re more curious about what living in college is like after hearing the basic information about first year life. Learning…

As I prepare for my final year at Tufts studying Studio Art and Human Factors Psychology, I’ve become increasingly grateful for my first two years living on the Medford/Somerville campus as an art student. Whether it was late-night chats in common rooms or simply running into friends on the way to class, living on campus was a really lovely way to build relationships and begin to feel connected to the community around me.

During my first two years at Tufts I lived in Tilton Hall and Harleston Hall. Looking back, some of my favorite college memories happened in those buildings. That, for me, has meant tons of movie nights in my residence hall with friends, tea parties and study nights in common rooms, and making hot chocolate and cookies together during the first snow of the year. In a residence hall as large as Harleston Hall, you really get to make friends naturally. You just start recognizing people from the laundry room, run into classmates on your way downstairs, and before long…

Sitting in front of my portal late last August in the sweltering summer, I was overwhelmed and excited by the limitless variety of classes. Navigating the portal itself was a challenge, as I began planning my packed schedule with several back up plans. As a Combined Degree student, I am working towards both a Bachelor's of Fine Arts and a Bachelor's of Arts in just 5 years. I was interested in art history and art but the intersection of international relations and art was intriguing. In the first semester, I focused on expanding new interests through my distribution requirements. For instance, in social sciences I completed Introduction to International Relations, where I was among around 200 students in a lecture hall along with a 30 student recitation. This class brought surprises as we had challenging discussions about topics like the application of the Thucydides Trap in today’s political scene. After this course, I realized that I am not interested in furthering pursuing this subject…

There’s a point in the internship search where you find something you actually want to do, and then realize it’s unpaid or in a city you probably can’t afford.

That was my situation when I came across a Sales and Marketing internship on Handshake. What stood out immediately was that the role was being offered through the Derby Entrepreneurship Center Internship Program at Tufts. I hadn’t really thought much about funding opportunities before, but seeing that made me look into it more seriously.

After I secured the internship, which I’ll be doing this summer, I applied for the Derby Center grant tied to the position. The process itself was pretty straightforward, but definitely required some thought. Most of the application centered around a few essays where I had to explain what I would be doing, what I wanted to learn, and how the experience connected to my longer-term goals. 

I also had to think about the financial side of things. While I could have made the internship work without…

Hi readers, 

So you want to study engineering, but you also want to be civically engaged. Well, then, you’ve come to the right place! Here at Tufts, I have been able to do both. In high school I remember how much I loved to volunteer and help out my local community and when coming to college I was worried that because I was pursuing an engineering degree I wouldn’t be able to do so. 

Tufts does a good job of offering many opportunities to be civically engaged and I often find it really rewarding to be able to do so because when I am wrapped up in equations, circuits and labs, volunteering and helping out the community keeps me grounded and reminds me that I want to use my engineering skills to help people.

Some things that Tufts offers that I haven’t been apart of but are popular are:

Tufts Animal Aid

A club where you can walk local dogs in the neighborhood

Tufts Community Day 

A whole day where students and faculty invite the Medford and Somerville residents to come and listen…

After navigating the competitive process of securing a finance internship for my junior summer, all the way back during my sophomore year, I found myself wanting to get more involved on campus at Tufts. That desire led me to an annual end-of-year food event hosted by the African Student Organization (ASO) called Fena Fena, held on the Tisch rooftop last spring. There, I had the chance to meet and connect with current ASO members, build genuine rapport, and eventually decide to apply for a leadership role. I went on to be offered the position of Treasurer for this school year, an offer I ecstatically accepted.

Being a Treasurer of a college club is a very different experience from anything in high school. It's not just a title for the sake of having one, you are part of a team, and you function as part of the nucleus that keeps everything running. As Treasurer, I'm responsible for managing the club's transactions and budget, and working closely with the Tufts Financial Office and Treasury…