This article is part of a series focusing on the grads of the Â鶹Éç Class of 2025. Spring Convocation takes place May 30 and from June 9-19 in Halifax and Truro. Read all our profiles here in one place as they are published.
Meaghan De Adder graduates this spring with a Combined Honours in Political Science and International Development Studies (IDS) — a dual degree she didn’t expect to pursue when she first began university.
An interest in worldly affairs drew her to IDS, but she couldn’t fight the desire to study politics, too — something that was sparked at a young age. Meaghan’s father, Michael De Adder, is an award-winning political cartoonist, and though she didn’t often talk politics with him, she recalls growing up with the news always on and her dad’s cartoons lying around.
As a kid, she didn’t always understand the political commentary or the jokes in her dad’s drawings, but she’d recognize symbols or depictions of people that were talked about in the news.Â
“I can’t deny that he’s probably the reason I started getting interested in politics,” she says. “If I didn’t grow up surrounded by it, I might not have been as keen on doing it as a major.”Â
Getting out of her comfort zone
Born and raised in Halifax, Meaghan wanted to experience living away. She moved to New Brunswick to begin university in fall 2020, but an injury in her first semester forced her back home. Completing her first year of courses online (this was during COVID restrictions), she transferred to Dal for her second year.Â
Having grown up around Dal, it wasn’t surprising that it landed back on her trajectory.
“I really integrated myself into Â鶹Éç life, and I believe it was meant to happen for me to come back home,” she says.
With a strong interest in languages and an opportunity to explore the world and try new things, Meaghan realized that her time to study and live away from home was still ahead of her. She set her sights on Asia. In the winter term of her third year, she headed to Seoul to study on an international exchange at Korea University.
“I wanted to get out of my comfort zone,” she explains. “I don’t think you’ll learn unless you do that. I wanted to go to a country where I didn’t know anything — didn’t know the language and didn’t know much about how life works there.”
Meaghan developed a deep appreciation for Korean culture, social customs, and language and met many new friends. She said traveling to Korea was the best decision she could have made.
What she didn’t expect to find there was the inspiration for her thesis topic and a direction for her future career.
Finding inspiration in new surroundings
While living in Seoul, Meaghan became aware of a form of digital sex crimes that involved “hidden cameras” — recording devices that would be tucked in corners or in wall crevices in spaces like women’s washrooms and change rooms that would record people without their consent.Â
This practice made Meaghan feel uneasy and constantly on edge in these public spaces while living in Korea. She was motivated to investigate and focused her honours thesis on how the mainstream media in South Korea portrays women and girls impacted by these crimes in South Korea. Her thesis argues that media must better understand the broader societal implications of their coverage of gender and power dynamics.Â
Knowing she was tackling a heavy topic, Meaghan says she appreciated the support political science faculty members leant her during her research.
Finding independence and confidence
Meaghan says studying in Korea was the best decision of her life. In addition to inspiring her research, the trip helped her realize how strongly she feels about pursuing a master’s degree and a career in politics or policy with a focus on gender and women’s rights.Â
She also found a new sense of independence, confidence and the willingness to put herself out there and try new things. She got involved in student life there, participating in language learning programs and other student activities.Â
I definitely matured and gained a lot of confidence after doing that
Upon returning to Dal, she realized she wanted to be more involved with student life. She volunteered for the DSU food bank and worked part-time at Dalplex. She also joined the Â鶹Éç Undergraduate Political Science Society (DUPSS) and got involved as a member of their executive committee, which she said helped her get to know more students and professors.
Meaghan encourages other students to consider an overseas exchange and to check out the international learning experiences offered through Dal’s International Centre.Â
“I know for some it's scary to [travel and study abroad] on your own, but you’ll meet people there and it's just a good way to learn about yourself,” she says. “I definitely matured and gained a lot of confidence after doing that.”