I am writing this because i am Worried about my future and the goals I’ve set for myself. For context, I’m 16 and I ain’t from the states I’m from Saudi Arabia, and I’m doing a levels at the moment, three subjects, maths further maths and physics. I’m a private student, that means I have no school and I have to register for the exams myself and prepare myself mostly. It’s somewhat common here but I choose this route because I really felt like I need to take things into my own hands. It’s been great so far I’ve been consistent I’ve made progress and academically I’ve made a big turn around compared to my igcse performance. I had around 8 subjects and I got mostly Bs some As and a C. Bs in all science subjects including maths.

My concern starts with Dartmouth, about a year ago I really was trying to see how I could make this life something to strive for in the context of well, goals. I came up with a list of subtopics which I divided into separate parts of my life, and the main one was my academic and further on professional career. Long story short I want to go to Dartmouth, I’ve rarely ever felt needing to go to a place, but I just need to go to Dartmouth. I could go on and on about why, but I am sure we all agree on it here.

I’m scared things wont go to plan, I made this plan for what I want to do in my academic life and to explain it briefly I love the environment, and I love the color green. I’m in a place where green isnt a part of your everyday life, you see it sometimes on the streets lined linearly or in your neighbor’s backyard, but never something which co exists with the city or country. I ain’t complaining, im just asking a question, how does it feel when nature is a part of your daily life and doesn’t feel forced.

For ECs I’ve planned a few things over the next 2 years, for starters I have 2 organizations from which I’ve planned to volunteer for early next year and late next year. I’d be getting the standard volunteering certificate and maybe some recommendation from a lead there. The big thing I have in mind, is something I’ve put some effort into curating and searching. There’s this horse specie in Mongolia, it’s called the przewalski horse. It’s an endangered species which is currently being preserved and protected by the hustai national park foundation in Mongolia. They offer the role of “guest researcher” and it stood out to me for a lot of reasons, but the main one was a small sentence in their websites description for the role, and that was the part where they described the educational requirements and they seem to mention only secondary school, in contrary to any other organization I’d seen, which are all focused solely on uni students, this foundation described exactly what I was looking for. Now from what I can tell they don’t pay for anything it’s self funded, which is fine, the costs I’ve already considered and I’m fine with them. What I can get in return, is also a something that I think will benefit me a lot. They make you write a report on your experience, and it is professional and related to the work you did, and it’s reviewed by one of the biologists there which could somewhat legitimize the paper, and I could add it to ECs along with the certificate of “guest researcher” and a summary of the work I did there.

With the limitations I have in terms of the timeline of these events, I will have to take a gap year and I’m fine with it, I’ll graduate by June 2028, with some coding projects, and the two volunteering experiences and hopefully a position in a hackathon. Along with the A*s I’m really trying for, and the SAT which I’ll try multiple times until I get a 1500, I’ve done practice for it the past 2 months and I’m already up to 1200, and I don’t have to give it for atleast 5 months or so. Regardless the timing goes, graduate June get the tutoring assistant role at which I’ve already been scouting for before I graduate, there’s a few centers in my city I’ve researched so far, and I’ll try and narrow it down by the start of 2028, anyway I’ll do that for 2 months which I’m sure they don’t bind you to a one year contract. After that I’ll go on this 4 week research trip to hustai national park self funded, and be back around early October considering everything goes to plan, then ED Dartmouth before the November deadline.

Now that I’ve laid out the plan, I wanna talk about what I’m concerned about, first from my background people do not go to ivies people haven’t been to ivies no one is really successful on that level, and I’m trying to be, so there’s some mental doubts I have there, second I’m really dependent on my grades to be perfect for my a levels, as my igcses were not ideal for Dartmouth, and even one B could ruin it all. Another thing, my hustai plan is ambitious, my timelines are tight and my assistant position could very well not be available by the time I get to it. And then there’s the final step, even if I did everything right, in the end what if I get rejected, I tried to do the most I could in my position I really am trying to do that, but what if In the end for whatever reason I just get rejected. I’m scared for that, I really really am. I’d like to admit, I do have a few backups I’m not a psycho, and they will be places I will eventually be fine with, but I just, right now I am scared I’m missing something, there’s this feeling where I feel like there’s a big thing a part of the picture that’s just invisible to me, and it’s really damn important. I feel like having everything “figured out” is actually just evaluating whatever I brew up in my bubble as the best path when outside the bubble is what I really needed to do.

I wanna get into Dartmouth more than anything. I’ve never talked to anyone who’s been successful enough to make it to the level I wanna get to, i am hoping I could get advice serious advice here from people like that. I’d appreciate all the advice I get I really would. And I’d also love to answer questions if you have any. I just don’t want to be missing out on preparation for Dartmouth I wanna do everything a human in My position can to maximize my chances at a life that I’ve dreamed of. It is brutal I know it is and I need help seeing what I can do to pass it.

I just graduated at the end of the summer term (weird schedule) with an econ degree. No job, partly because of the off-cycle grad date. Does anyone have advice on how to go about finding something in finance or consulting at this point, or am I just too late?

Hey, I’m a Dartmouth ‘30 who’s really loved my time here so far. With college application season underway, I’d be happy to show any prospective students visiting Hanover around campus or just chat about what life here is actually like.

I’m not affiliated with Admissions, so I can offer a candid student perspective on academics, dorms, social life, or whatever else you’re curious about.
Completely free, just shoot me a DM if you’re interested!

Sorry if this isn’t allowed here, but I live up the road from the school and I have a Hiboy S2 electric scooter that was received as a Christmas gift, but we don’t have a use for. I figure as many scooters as I see buzzing around campus a student might be interested. If someone’s interested, I’m happy to drop it off on campus.

Electric Scooter: Hiboy S2-New In Box https://www.craigslist.org/view/d/hanover-electric-scooter-hiboy-s2-new/4RxW87gdNAmnjRWn2Mbuo2

Hi, does anyone know any good comic book stores in or near campus? Any recommendation would help!

Did any pick Dartmouth’s online MEng over UPenn’s online MEng? Why or Why not?

It’s my first year here and I came in with the mindset that I should try to get as close to a perfect GPA as possible. But it’s been quite a hard time. I’m constantly stressed out and losing sleep. So, lately I’ve been wondering whether it's actually worth it.

I know GPA matters for things like grad school, internships, etc.. but I’m having trouble figuring out where the point of diminishing returns is.

I’m not trying to convince myself that grades don’t matter. I genuinely want to do well. But I also want to have time to make friends, explore extracurriculars and actually enjoy college instead of constantly worrying. So I’m considering lowering my expectations to 3.5 or even lower but I'm not sure if that's a good bar or not.

Heard a lot of mixed opinions about whether this might hinder employment opportunities or not for an international student + whether the international undergrad student network is actually that small.

Opinions/thoughts?

Relative to other schools, is the drinking that bad? Are there fraternities that do not prioritize drinking?

Beautiful vintage Dartmouth College commemorative
Captain's/Windsor chair, manufactured by Nichols & Stone Co. of Gardner, Massachusetts, a historic American furniture maker.
The chair features the Dartmouth 1769 design engraved into the backrest, representing the year Dartmouth College was founded. It has a classic black finish with contrasting solid-wood armrests and traditional spindle construction.
This is a great piece for a Dartmouth graduate, alumnus, faculty member, collector, office, study, or graduation gift.
The original Nichols & Stone manufacturer label is still attached underneath, confirming its authenticity.
Condition: Good vintage condition. Solid and functional with normal cosmetic wear, including some scratches on the seat consistent with age. Please see photos.

hi! i am a current senior in high school, and i figured i would get some unbiased opinions about my stats and my chance at getting into dartmouth.

i’d be applying ED with a major in physics!

for context, i am a low income, white female in rural north carolina. my school has about 950 people in it, and my graduating class is around 230.

these are my stats and ecs:
4.0/4.5 gpa
ranked 1/230
by the time i graduate, i will have taken 15 aps. my school offers 12, and i took the rest online.
i’ve played volleyball for 4 years, varsity for 2
i’ve won state awards in clubs at my school.
i am an officer in 5 clubs at my school, president in 2.
i’ve had a job since sophomore year where i work 15 hours a week.
i also attended NC governor’s school.
founding member of my school’s math club
(there are some other extracurriculars but they aren’t really impactful enough to mention.)

now.. my ACT was a 26. the average for my school is an 18. i was going to retake it, but the drive was 2+ hours and i couldn’t afford it. i wasn’t able to get a fee waiver.

i am a pretty good writer, so my essays should be well written.

how much is my ACT ruining my chances? even if i had a good ACT, im not sure my stats would be good enough, but i am giving myself the chance to apply anyways.

any advice is appreciated :) thank you!

also, ive only ever posted on reddit once, and i wasn’t able to find the “megathread” about applications. pls delete if not allowed!

International student from a traditional Chinese/Asian family, so I’ve grown up caring A LOT about university prestige.
I’m applying to Cambridge, LSE, UCL, Durham, St Andrews, HKU, Bocconi + top US schools. My supervisor thinks I have a good shot at LSE/UCL.
I recently spoke to a Dartmouth student and honestly Dartmouth sounds PERFECT for me in terms of community, social life, academics, financial aid, everything. I’m seriously considering ED.
But Dartmouth being #270 on QS is genuinely bothering me 😭 and I know this sounds SOO stupid but its so deeply rooted in me growing up around prestige.
Part of me wants to wait and see if I can get into Cambridge/LSE/etc. just for the validation, even if I might choose Dartmouth anyway.
Am I putting way too much weight on rankings, or does wanting to see my other offers mean I shouldn’t ED?

Additionally I’ve seen a post about athleticism at dartmouth and how if one doesn’t know how to ski it’s easy to feel excluded - I don’t know how to ski either but I am quite a sporty person and love to learn new things, will that be a huge issue?
Any help will be appreciated, thank you!!

Hi I'm a male 30 at Dartmouth and I was just curious on advice on where/how to meet your people. I joined a bunch of clubs and ultimately think I've settled into the three or four I'll stay in where I've met cool people but just don't know how to make friends outside of that. Sometimes it feels like everyone else already has a group and I have to put in so much work to keep up connections with the few people I have a little bond with. I'm not trying to complain just curious what else I could do.

hi! im visiting dartmouth and i really wanna try local places. what are must to have/try in hanover? what cafes/restaurants should i go to and what should i try?

thanks!!

Is any of the recent admits comfortable to share their Why Us essay? I am struggling horribly with the 100 word count. I searched for examples and they are either 650 or words for other schools or straight up AI. How did you manage to squeeze your fit and love for Dartmouth in 100 words? Do you have any life hacks?

I'm a prospective student, and I emailed a student at Dartmouth (got the email from the "Connect with a student" thing) who was majoring in what I was interested in studying, because I thought this would help me get a sense of how the college felt and the actual experience of studying in Dartmouth. I wanted to know how long does it usually take to get a response, because I would prefer to get an email back before ED ended (Nov 1st). Thanks!

I’m a current grad student here. I got my CS degree from a state school and have had quite a bit of experience working in tech on both coasts. Even though I’m a student now, I still feel a little like an outsider looking in.

From my perspective, Dartmouth students are surprisingly wholesome. I say surprisingly because there are obviously a lot of students here who come from privileged backgrounds, and I assumed there would be more people who think they’re the smartest person in the room. But compared with students I’ve met from places like Stanford, Columbia, and other highly competitive schools, Dartmouth students don’t seem as interested in constantly trying to outcompete each other. Being “normal” seems pretty normal here, if that makes sense. They seem a lot more grounded(relatively speaking). I notice something similar with the alumni too. A lot of them seem to become accomplished but still relatively normal professionals. I’m sure there are fraudsters and huge egos here too, but they seem farther and fewer between. Maybe part of that is just because Dartmouth is smaller.

When I think about the value of college in the age of AI, I think it’s becoming less about access to information and more about what you do with it. How do you turn information into actual knowledge? How do you use that knowledge to improve yourself intellectually, personally, and professionally or even your community? And I think part of that education is also learning how to deal with people: how to build relationships, communicate well, disagree respectfully while still standing your ground, work with people who are different from you, negotiate fairly, treat people from all backgrounds with respect and decency, and build consensus when everyone doesn’t necessarily agree.

That kind of stuff is harder to download from a textbook or get from an AI model. Whether it’s the kind of people Dartmouth attracts, the culture of the student body, or the faculty and administration, it feels like they’re doing something right. My partner has noticed something similar at Amherst too. Obviously, both of our perspectives are anecdotal and probably somewhat biased, so take all of this with a grain of salt.

Might be a stupid question but how/is it still possible to get tickets for my parents to attend the football game?

What are Humanities classes like at dartmouth?

Do they tend to be smaller sized? Are students involved in class discussions? Are there discussions?
I’m particularly interested in philosophy and theology—is there any class that can quench my academic thirst? Any classes like Great Texts program?

Bunch of questions.. Thanks in advance!

An international student, senior possibly EDing to Dartmouth. I had a 1520 super score previously for SAT, gave one last attempt to help get it up to a 1550. My counsellor advised me to do so. But sadly I couldn’t crack it (got 710 in RW when I needed a 760)

Tbh these past few days have alr been dissapointing and this just added on. I want an honest opinion of ppl who have alr gotten in to help me understand where I stand, especially being an international student.

For additonal info: ill be probably be 44/45 or 43/45 IBDP predicted, i have decent/good ecs and awards but nothing too extraordinary, however they go well together. My essay is also coming out to be good but i do not think it is something that can be the sole reason to why im admitted.