For Dawoud, small campus means big connections

From the moment her older sister, a student at the Columbus campus of The Ohio State University, told her about a regional campus in Newark, where the class size was intimate and the campus felt like home, Dawoud was sold.

The Pickerington native signed up for classes without looking back and has since, as a freshman, become arguably one of the campus' most outspoken advocates.

“I didn't visit any college; I kind of knew. I was like, ‘This is the one. Why am I even looking around?’” said Dawoud, a mechanical engineering major who will transition to the Columbus campus after the fall semester to continue working on her degree. “I knew I didn't want to leave Ohio, and I knew I wanted to go to Ohio State at some point.”

The moment she stepped on campus for orientation, Dawoud experienced firsthand all the promises her sister had made to her about the beauty of small campus life: More attention from professors, smaller class sizes, easier navigation and an easier time making connections with peers.

Not long after she began taking classes, Dawoud took a job in the admissions office in hopes of making more connections and becoming better acquainted with the campus. There, she encountered Diane Kanney, director of enrollment, who tapped her for a specific role.

“From the first time she saw me, she was like, ‘I want you to give the welcome speech at Buckeye Visit Days,” Dawoud recalled. “And I was thrilled.”

Between taking classes, working in the admissions office and giving welcome speeches, Dawoud has found fulfillment in various facets of Buckeye life offered in Newark. If she needs extra help in a class, she visits professors’ offices to get one-on-one assistance or stops by the tutoring center. 

As an Egyptian native — Dawoud’s family moved to the United States when she was 10 years old — she has found ample opportunities to connect with other Arab people with whom she shares cultural connections.

“I made a lot of Arab friends here, and I didn’t even know they were here,” she said of her earlier days on campus, when she made a habit of introducing herself to people in the cafeteria, class or in common areas. “You just make connections so easily because it's a small campus. You meet these people on the regular. 

"You might as well make the connection, make some friends, see how they're doing college. Maybe they can help you with something.”

Left to her own devices, Dawoud would spend all four years of her college experience in Newark. But she also has big dreams and is confident her time in Newark has laid a solid foundation for her Columbus campus experience and, beyond that, a successful career in engineering.

Ideally, that would mean taking her body of knowledge back to her home country.

“I want to go back to Egypt and work there as a professor or something,” she said. “For me to help the culture I came from — help others do what I did — that'd be amazing.”