607 items found for your search. If no results were found please broaden your search.
(08/27/26 2:45pm)
Hopkins is perhaps best renowned for its gargantuan research budget, topping the rankings of US institutions’ R&D budgets for 44 years straight and running. Many first-years might tell the reason they chose to come here was to participate in research, whether in Hopkins humanities, Applied Physics Lab, med campus or elsewhere. Yet, finding these opportunities can still feel very daunting for freshmen just arriving on campus. As someone interested in pursuing a career in biomedical sciences, finding the right research experience was very important to me. I’ve failed in my research endeavors more times than I can count but I’ve also pushed through barriers and achieved new heights. I hope that my experience can help guide incoming students to a smoother transition into a positive research experience.
(08/27/26 2:42pm)
When I committed to Hopkins, one of the first things I heard was that Milton S. Eisenhower (MSE) Library was being renovated. As an incoming freshman, this news honestly stressed me out. Hopkins students study a lot, and I was convinced that without our biggest library, I would never find a good place to work.
(08/27/26 2:39pm)
Oftentimes, college is expected to be a time of reinvention: you’re thrown into a new environment and asked to build yourself back from the ground up after the world’s hardest factory reset. Maybe this is the year you start going to the gym on the daily, practicing your instrument more or writing your magnum opus. The problem with asking such a hard pivot of yourself, just as with New Year’s Resolutions, is that your body’s resistant inertia will nearly always lead to those new desirable habits first becoming chores, and then memories left in the past.
(08/27/26 2:37pm)
When I came to Hopkins, I felt insecurity and fear of missing out. Like an alleged 70% of first-year students, I also circled “pre-med” on my questionnaire. I didn’t think there would be other paths for me. I was told at a very young age that the almost glorious and admirable occupation of becoming a doctor was the ending I was working toward.
(08/27/26 2:36pm)
When I applied to Hopkins, I did so as a projected International Studies major. During my freshman year, I had the opportunity to explore the History, Political Science and English departments, among others, while attempting to fulfill my major requirements and taking First-Year Seminar (FYS) and Reintroduction to Writing courses. In doing so, my passion for history was reignited. At the end of my sophomore year, having already fulfilled both of the historical methods requirements, I declared a second major in History.
(08/27/26 2:41pm)
Hello, incoming Blue Jays! My name is Joseph Rainbolt, and I am a rising senior majoring in Public Health on the pre-med track here at Hopkins. On behalf of the Hopkins community, I would like to welcome you to campus. I think that you will find, like I have, that Hopkins brings together an amazing group of kind and driven people. But I know how stressful those first few weeks can be, especially since you are, in all likelihood, pushing yourself to do amazing yet difficult things, particularly when it comes to academics. That’s where I come in. In an attempt to help each and every one of you, this is going to be my rigorous, straightforward, no-BS guide to success in your classes at Hopkins.
(08/27/26 2:48pm)
Our Cover Letter would be incomplete if it didn’t include a guide to joining The News-Letter! If you see any sections that interest you, feel free to reach out at managing@jhunewsletter.com or the section’s email on our website.
(08/22/26 7:00pm)
Grace:
(08/22/26 8:00pm)
With nearly 400 student organizations on campus, there is no shortage of clubs at Hopkins, but finding where you belong can be a daunting task. While the University organizes events like the iconic, semesterly Student Involvement Fair (SIF) or brings together a list of events occurring on campus through HopkinsGroups to help students connect with clubs, just knowing which organizations exist doesn’t always mean you’ll immediately find which clubs you fit in with. That’s where I hope to shed some light.
(08/22/26 7:00pm)
In the nonstop tornado that defines life at Hopkins, stress quickly becomes part of our everyday routine. It all starts from the very beginning of freshman year, making it hard to consistently set time aside for our mental health. Syllabus week does not exist at Hopkins. Instead, it is syllabus "ten minutes," where, in a matter of moments, every freshman is thrust under a mountain of assignments and expected to navigate what is quite literally a whole new universe independently.
(08/22/26 7:00pm)
After helping me move all my stuff into the first floor of Griffin house, my parents dropped me off right outside AMR II. I hugged them once, tightly, and walked through the security gates. Then I unlocked my dorm door and started unpacking my clothes. I felt fine — a little dazed from so many changes at once, yes, but I wasn’t crying. That night, my roommate and I walked to Homewood Field, where I found First-Year Mentor (FYM) Group 75 sitting in a circle. I remember sitting there, shaking hands with the first few people I met as an undergraduate, listening to orientation leaders welcome me to Hopkins. I thought about the thousands of people around me, a whole class of people I’d be living with for the next four years, none of whom I knew. All the people I did know were at least a hundred miles away. Not that far, I know — I’m only from New Jersey — but it still felt massive. Even then, I felt alright. I figured out how to use the communal shower, set my alarm and went to sleep.
(08/23/26 4:00am)
As an incoming freshman at Hopkins, you’ll receive many welcomes to Baltimore, the city you can now call home. You’ll receive advice on how to engage and interact with the city as part of your freshman programming, yet it often overlooks a key aspect of participating in daily life in Baltimore: how to get around. If you’re anything like me, a New Yorker who never had to learn how to drive, coming to Baltimore may feel like a big change for you. It’s no secret that Baltimore’s transit options somewhat lag behind other Northeastern cities. However, with a little bit of knowledge and patience, you’ll be able to get yourself around the Baltimore area like an expert.
(08/22/26 7:00pm)
One of my favorite Hopkins experiences spawned outside campus confines. Inside The Charles Theatre, I was seated for a revival screening of Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey. Kubrick’s unsettling sci-fi film moves unexpectedly through its depiction of space and humanity, but I had seen it before. I knew what to expect. I had been to this theatre before to watch old and new films in this exact auditorium, and I would keep to myself until the end of its runtime. But at this instance, Natalie Wang, an English and Film major from the Class of 2026, sat in the same row as me. She recognized me from the one class we shared, and we initially made fine but mundane conversation.
(08/27/26 2:34pm)
When I first arrived at Hopkins, one thing I kept hearing was that Baltimore had an incredible food scene. Throughout freshman year, I made it my goal to discover new restaurants, but what I remember just as much as the food is my experience at each place. So instead of simply recommending must-try restaurants in Baltimore, here’s my guide of the best places to go for all the different moments of your freshman year.
(08/27/26 2:33pm)
If you're reading this after checking your housing assignment, you might be feeling one of two things: excited because you got the dorm you wanted, or disappointed because you didn't.
(08/27/26 2:52pm)
After living in the Bay Area for two years, I grew well accustomed to its endless options for cafes. Trying new cafes quickly became a habit of mine, as it was a fun way to fuel my coffee addiction and change up my study environment. Oftentimes, I found that when I went to the effort of venturing off campus to study at a cafe, I was extra motivated to focus and make the most of my time there.
(08/23/26 4:00am)
Sunday evening: sitting at one end of the Undergraduate Teaching Labs with a cold box of Hopkins Cafe food, adjacent to an empty chem lab... the space felt too quiet and strangely empty. I adjusted my AirPods, thumb hovering over the call log info button with my mom. 43 minutes. Six more than the day before.
(08/22/26 7:00pm)
Welcome, new Blue Jays! As you start getting used to your new nest, I suggest keeping an open mind. There’s a lot to do in the city if you’re willing to spread your wings — whether through the public transport circulators, the JHMI shuttles or good old fashioned walking. Here are some highlights of Charm City to get you started!
(08/22/26 8:00pm)
As a freshman, there seems to be endless things to look for: your dorm key, where your classes are, the best coffee order on the Brody menu and the answers for that weekly assignment. To have “found” something often implies that you were once aware of its absence, or were in need of it to the point where you were searching for something that you felt empty without. But what does it mean to find your “place” among thousands of new students and hundreds of new opportunities in a new chapter of life? Being a senior myself, I feel like it wouldn’t be my last Cover Letter without imparting some kind of advice to readers from the incoming class. So if you’re ever feeling like you have yet to find your place at Hopkins, here’s a list of some places to look:
(08/22/26 7:00pm)
Welcome to what may become four of the most memorable years of your life!
