It's Convocation season at Dalhousie, with hundreds of graduates crossing the stage Oct. 20 and 21 in Halifax. Meet one of our newest grads, Mars Semenova.
Learn more about Convocation and view webcasts of all the ceremonies at dal.ca/convocation
Mars Semenova was always good at math, so she attended a high school that specialized in it and got into programming. When she came to Dalhousie to study computer science, she found a way to pursue her passion for another long-standing interest as well.
This fall, Mars graduates with two separate degrees: A Bachelor of Computer Science and a Bachelor of Arts with a Major in Classics.
“I always had a special interest in Greek mythology and learning about the Ancient Greek world — partially because of Rick Riordan, as many of my generation with similar interests would say — so I thought it would be nice to take some Classics courses,” explains Mars.
Planning to use all her electives for classics, Mars realized she’d have enough for another major and ended up arranging it so she’d also graduate with the second degree.
Classics “has filled many gaps,” she says, noting her academic writing saw a lot of improvement given the emphasis on critical thinking and discussion in Classics courses.
Distinct knowledge
“There is very little overlap,” she says of her two disciplines. “Because of this, the knowledge I gain from each is entirely new, which has resulted in me being fairly well-versed in many more areas than I would be just doing one or the other.”
Well, there may be a little overlap, she admits, noting her co-op placement at game developer Ubisoft — the creator of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, a video game set in Ancient Greece. Mars says it’s why she wanted to work there.
During her Classics degree, she dove into studying Ancient Greek language, moving from introductory levels through to advanced seminars. She notes she loves to read famous works, regardless of the language they were written in, adding that she doesn’t “trust translations as it’s often very hard or even impossible to communicate the original meaning”.
“I would much rather learn a language to read the text in its original language, and while this is obviously not reasonable to do for every work, if an opportunity comes up to learn a language, I will happily take it,” she explains.
Mars notes that she “had a very delightful Ancient Greek journey” at Dal, gaining interesting experiences from different professors.
Mars says she has read many Ancient Greek texts in translation, most notably The Iliad and The Odyssey. Learning the language has enabled her to read them in the original language, providing new insights into the ancient texts.
Originally from Saratov, Russia, she and her mother immigrated to Canada when Mars was four years old. Mildly proficient in Russian (and somewhat proficient in French), Mars says, “learning a new language is always valuable.”
Unique and detailed courses
Mars says Dr. Emily Varto’s history classes, in particular, drew her in. “She handpicks the material and readings, which makes her courses rather unique and detailed. She always includes very interesting topics and presents macroscopic ideas.”
This past summer, Mars participated in the Classics department’s Archaeology of Greece Study Tour — a study abroad program organized in partnership with the Canadian Institute of Greece (CIG). She visited archaeological sites and museums featuring important Greek art, history and culture and attended immersive lectures and excursions led by experts of Greek culture and history.
“This program was a dream come true as I had never been to Greece before, and seeing the things I had been studying all these years in person was fascinating,” Mars says.
Now that Mars has completed two bachelor’s degrees, she is currently doing a Master’s in Computer Science program at Dalhousie with the aim of working in video-game development.
“My interest in Classics was partially responsible for my interest in gaming, which consequently led to my involvement in game development,” says Mars. “I really wanted to play Assassin's Creed Odyssey, so I built a PC powerful enough to play it, and I ended up getting really into gaming because of this.”
Words of advice
Realizing her undergraduate studies path isn’t exactly typical, she advises future and current students with the following:
“If you find something interesting and it fits in your plan, take it! Courses in disciplines drastically different from yours will teach you something useful that the courses in your own discipline wouldn’t and [they] are always a nice change of pace.”