Class Note 2022
Issue
January-February 2025
Gap year stories are always my favorite to write for the column, but few get better than Scarlett Souter’s year around the world.
Scarlett received her A.B. in 2022 and stayed on campus for a fifth year to complete her B.E. Scarlett was a biomedical engineering major and a physics minor. During her fourth year on campus, she applied and got accepted to the Geisel Early Assurance Program, but ultimately decided to defer her admission by a year to travel and pursue her interest in marine preservation.
Growing up, Scarlett loved surfing and the ocean and has always been passionate about biological and marine sciences. She spent the summers of 2021 and 2022 in Costa Rica doing turtle research and the year after graduation in Hawaii and Indonesia doing animal protection work. In August 2023 Scarlett moved to Oahu and volunteered with Hawaii Marine Animal Response (HMAR), where she did animal rescue work for sea turtles, monk seals, and sea birds.
Scarlett then moved to a small island off Lombok Island in Indonesia in April and interned with Project Hiu, hiu being the Indonesian word for shark. The project was founded to provide alternative income to fishermen in one of the largest shark fisheries in Indonesia, which leads the world in shark fin exporting. Scarlett described shark fishing as an extremely dangerous trade, where fishermen rely heavily on generational knowledge, go out to the ocean in small boats, and fish mainly by hand. By providing them an income with ecotourism, Project Hiu aims to stop the fishing activities on the island and eventually eliminate the generational knowledge that teaches these fishermen how to hunt for sharks.
In August Scarlett returned to Hanover and started her first year at Geisel. She admitted that she didn’t feel fully certain about going to medical school until after her gap year abroad. She loves marine biology and thought that, if it weren’t for medical school, she would have pursued a career in marine biotechnology. Scarlett appreciated the time to explore the world and make friends who are passionate about the same fields, and she felt like she could always go back to Costa Rica or Hawaii or Indonesia as a volunteer, whereas medical school was a “now or never” decision.
During her fourth year as an undergraduate, she was missing a strong sense of purpose despite how interesting her classes were because she didn’t know what that knowledge would be applied to. She had always liked the problem-solving component of physics and engineering but wanted a more fast-paced and interactive environment, where she could directly make a difference in people’s lives. At Geisel, although the workload has been stressful at times, she has finally rediscovered the joy of learning and a clear path in applying what she learns every day.
Besides her day-to-day in labs and classes, she is actively trying to connect her love for marine biology with her medical school courses. She’s been thinking about how she could return to Lombok and help the local community in a more medical way. During her internship she ran a course on first aid and CPR, but she wants to eventually help improve the islanders’ access to healthcare, as the only doctor in their small community does not have access to medical technology. As a Geisel student, she has found many interesting groups and scholarships related to global health as well as the number of resources available for her to pursue a project of her own. The summer between her first and second year is the only summer she can allocate her own time, and I already cannot wait to hear about it, wherever in the world she decides to go next.
—Louisa Gao, 279 E 44th St, Apt 3L, New York, NY 10017; louisa.gao0922@gmail.com
Scarlett received her A.B. in 2022 and stayed on campus for a fifth year to complete her B.E. Scarlett was a biomedical engineering major and a physics minor. During her fourth year on campus, she applied and got accepted to the Geisel Early Assurance Program, but ultimately decided to defer her admission by a year to travel and pursue her interest in marine preservation.
Growing up, Scarlett loved surfing and the ocean and has always been passionate about biological and marine sciences. She spent the summers of 2021 and 2022 in Costa Rica doing turtle research and the year after graduation in Hawaii and Indonesia doing animal protection work. In August 2023 Scarlett moved to Oahu and volunteered with Hawaii Marine Animal Response (HMAR), where she did animal rescue work for sea turtles, monk seals, and sea birds.
Scarlett then moved to a small island off Lombok Island in Indonesia in April and interned with Project Hiu, hiu being the Indonesian word for shark. The project was founded to provide alternative income to fishermen in one of the largest shark fisheries in Indonesia, which leads the world in shark fin exporting. Scarlett described shark fishing as an extremely dangerous trade, where fishermen rely heavily on generational knowledge, go out to the ocean in small boats, and fish mainly by hand. By providing them an income with ecotourism, Project Hiu aims to stop the fishing activities on the island and eventually eliminate the generational knowledge that teaches these fishermen how to hunt for sharks.
In August Scarlett returned to Hanover and started her first year at Geisel. She admitted that she didn’t feel fully certain about going to medical school until after her gap year abroad. She loves marine biology and thought that, if it weren’t for medical school, she would have pursued a career in marine biotechnology. Scarlett appreciated the time to explore the world and make friends who are passionate about the same fields, and she felt like she could always go back to Costa Rica or Hawaii or Indonesia as a volunteer, whereas medical school was a “now or never” decision.
During her fourth year as an undergraduate, she was missing a strong sense of purpose despite how interesting her classes were because she didn’t know what that knowledge would be applied to. She had always liked the problem-solving component of physics and engineering but wanted a more fast-paced and interactive environment, where she could directly make a difference in people’s lives. At Geisel, although the workload has been stressful at times, she has finally rediscovered the joy of learning and a clear path in applying what she learns every day.
Besides her day-to-day in labs and classes, she is actively trying to connect her love for marine biology with her medical school courses. She’s been thinking about how she could return to Lombok and help the local community in a more medical way. During her internship she ran a course on first aid and CPR, but she wants to eventually help improve the islanders’ access to healthcare, as the only doctor in their small community does not have access to medical technology. As a Geisel student, she has found many interesting groups and scholarships related to global health as well as the number of resources available for her to pursue a project of her own. The summer between her first and second year is the only summer she can allocate her own time, and I already cannot wait to hear about it, wherever in the world she decides to go next.
—Louisa Gao, 279 E 44th St, Apt 3L, New York, NY 10017; louisa.gao0922@gmail.com