Alena Huynh '26

Political Science
Minors in Asian and Asian American Studies and Japanese Studies

Where are you originally from? 

I am a born and raised Long Islander! My family immigrated to the US from Vietnam about forty years ago!

Why Stony Brook?

Many of my family members attended Stony Brook University for their undergrad education, and some of them are still furthering their education here right now! This school has always been something that has just been a part of my life, and it felt wrong to go anywhere else!

On her major:

I chose Political Science because I have had a strong interest in history and politics since I was young. It felt like the right choice when the time came for me to declare a major.

Favorite class:

Definitely JPN411! Minoring in Japanese here at Stony Brook has truly been a blessing and I encourage anybody who is considering studying it beyond the elementary levels to do so. This class in particular was one of my favorites because of how challenging it was, especially because we couldn’t speak English at all. The small class numbers made it feel like one big friend group that could support each other. 

Advice for potential Seawolves:

People are EVERYTHING! Your peers, professors, and everyone in between are absolutely going to define your life and memories here! It might be up to you to find them or maybe they’ll find you, but either way, the right people are going to make or break what you are able to take away from this school!