Alexei Vallo is graduating this spring with an Honors double major in French and Chemistry. He is looking forward to a gap year during which he plans to teach and travel, before starting graduate school.
Vallo was always planning to combine a STEM and a Humanities field during his college years. He started with Biochemistry, but decided that it was not his thing and switched to Chemistry. As a freshman he also tried Japanese, but he realized that he had enjoyed the French classes he had in high school more, so he signed up for a French minor instead. Once the minor was completed, it was a natural choice for Vallo to continue on to the major. He enjoyed his French classes, instructors, and the way in which the French major complemented his chemistry curriculum.
Vallo, who also teaches introductory chemistry courses, says, “I always tell my students to match up their major with the humanities. STEM classes can get you down sometimes, there’s lots of heavy material. In the humanities you get to learn so much that you would never be exposed to in STEM classes. Plus, a foreign language is always great for anything you do in life.”
During the past couple of years, Vallo has been busy working as a lab and as a teaching assistant, but he always leaves time for his French courses. “Everyone has been fantastic,” says Vallo when asked about his favorite French classes and instructors.
This semester, he’s really enjoying two classes with Professor Flinn, French 2801 – Classics of French Cinema and French 4401 - Drawing Cultures: Comics in the Francophone World. He got a lot out of Professor Hoffmann’s French 4401 class, explaining that it was challenging, but made him a very good writer. And he loved taking grammar classes with Gloria Torrini-Roblin, “She’s the only one who makes grammar that fun,” he says.
In a year Vallo plans to attend graduate school, he’s leaning towards focusing on Chemistry, but he’s also considering a Masters in French. He has really enjoyed working in a research lab and teaching. He says Chemistry is usually not people’s favorite subject, so he tries to turn that on its head and get people excited about it.
No matter what career path he decides to pursue, Vallo is certain that his humanities education and French skills will be very beneficial. “In a Francophone country, I could be a top job candidate, and it’s always nice to have both languages.” In fact, he has already had a chance to use his French skills in a chemistry lab. He worked in a lab focused on Electrochemistry, a field that is important in France, and he was frequently asked to translate things relevant to their work from French by his colleagues.
Future plans aside, the French major has brought much joy to Vallo. “The department has been so good to me, everyone is so nice,” he says. In addition to his instructors, Vallo has really enjoyed the students in his French classes. He likes that French majors are often double majoring in another field, so there’s a good spread of students, some are in other humanities fields, some are in business, etc. “Some of the best people I’ve met in college have been French minors and majors,” says Vallo.
To Vallo, majors in French and Chemistry have proven very complementary. He has gained indispensable lessons in both fields, he feels confident to pursue either one in the future, and most importantly – it is clear that pairing these disciplines will continue to bring him joy and set him apart in the future.
Congratulations, Alexei Vallo! It has been our pleasure having you in our department, and we are sure that great things await you.
