Hometown: Seoul, South Korea

He Came, He Saw, He Hated Davidson
Andrew Ma grew up in Seoul, South Korea, and went to high school at Culver Academy in Indianapolis. When he visited Davidson, it was hate at first sight. "The people were too smart," he says. "And everyone was really nice to each other-I wasn't used to that! But on the way home, I decided I wanted to go somewhere different from where I'd been before. I knew Davidson was right for me."

The South-It's Not What You Think
At Davidson, Ma participated in rugby until an ACL injury took him off the field. Since his sophomore year, he's been active in Kappa Alpha. "When I came to the South, I was worried about rich, white, Southern kids-but it's not like that. This is the first place where I've felt like I can be myself. In high school, I felt like I had to change myself to fit in. Here, I can just be me."

Better Than a C Minus
"Professors here actually care about you, which may seem weird. I mean, profs aren't supposed to be concerned about your writing; they're just supposed to give you a C minus. But with Prof. Samson, I'd go to his office and he'd talk with me about how to make my writing better. And I need help with my writing!"

Come to Davidson, See the World
Ma spent a summer in Ghana with a Dean Rusk Travel Grant, took his Davidson friends on a hometown tour of Seoul during a Winter Break, and in his junior year is traveling the world through study abroad with the International Honors Program. "I want to use my time at Davidson to meet all kinds of different people," he says. All that human interaction can be good for self-awareness, too. "I'm still figuring myself out-I'm only 20 years old! But I've read great literature, had great late-night conversations with my friends. I have better insight about who I am than I did before."