04/22/2026
Meet Seth, a first-year student and Vande Kopple Fellow working with Professor Kristine Johnson.
His project explores how Third Culture Kids (TCKs), students who have grown up living in multiple countries for their parents’ jobs, express their identity through writing.
Here’s what he had to say about what the research work actually looked like:
“A big part of my role was recruiting and connecting with TCKs on campus. Once we found students who were interested, we’d read through their writing, prepare questions, and then interview them about the choices they made and the experiences behind their work.
After that, we’d transcribe the interviews and start looking for patterns with the goal of understanding how their backgrounds show up in their writing.”
What did you gain from working on this project?
“I’ve gained a lot of interviewing and conversation skills. That was something completely new to me, and now I’ve had experience both giving and conducting interviews.
I’m also a TCK myself, so this project helped me better understand my own writing. It gave me more clarity on why I make certain choices and how to explain the way TCKs write to other people.”
What surprised you the most about the research experience?
“I knew there were a lot of TCKs on campus, but I was surprised by how many people we found who just kind of fly under the radar. There are so many stories and experiences that you wouldn’t notice unless you asked. And then, the results of our research surprised me with the patterns and connections that we found.”
I was also surprised by how supportive the experience was. Professor Johnson has been very open to investing in me, mentoring, and helping me work towards my career options.”
Join us on April 23 for the Research Showcase to hear more about Seth’s work and the projects other fellows have been exploring.
