Am I on the right track for Dartmouth?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Dartmouth College
1

<p>Hi, I know I'm a year younger than most of you (currently a junior), but I want to make sure that I'm not aiming for colleges that are already out of my reach. Although I have not completed any SAT I's or SATII's yet, I have taken practice exams and have a good feel for what I could most likely score.</p>

<p>GPA: 3.829 (right now). Should be 3.86uw by the end of this year ( I particularly stuggle with spanish which shows in my gpa. its my only non-A/A-)
School doesn't rank
SAT I Prediction: 2200-2250 (750m, 750w, 750cr)
SAT II Predictions: (750+) math2, (750+) US Hist, (750+) Physics
ACT Prediction: 32-34</p>

<p>School Type: Very Competitive Public (Westchester, NY)</p>

<p>EC's: Badger (best team in county) swimming. My school does not have a swim team. Co-headed a charity to raise $15,000.00 to help educate poor people in India, Investment club (3 years, VP this year, president next year (the VP is always presdient the next year)), math team (10-12), peer tutor -- both high school and middle school--(11 and 12), TV Film (11, 12. Its a new club, I'm the executive producer of our main project), JSA (11, 12: Secretary most likely next year; i've already started campaigning..haha), Chess Club (10-12), Habitat for Humanity (11-12:new club this year), school newspaper (9-12), play guitar in a band</p>

<p>Hook: Lived on four continents (Asia, Africa, Europe, North America), Indian (all white, jewish school), speak spanish (well 4 years of school), english, and hindi (can't write). Attended Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth for 3 years. Went on the People to People Ambassador Program in 2003, touring Europe. </p>

<p>AP's: This year: AP US (est 5), AP Statistics (est 5), AP English Literature (est 3-4)</p>

<p>Next year: AP Physics B, AP Governement and Politics, AP Macro/Micro Economics, AP Language and Composition, AP Calculus BC </p>

<p>Do i have a shot at Dartmouth ED next year? </p>

<p>I understand that these are predictions,and could possibly not be accurate, but I just want to get a general feel to see if I have what it takes. I believe I am capable of achieving the estimates mentioned above. </p>

<ul>
<li>Thanks a lot guys. I posted in the "Chances" section but I really wanted to get a Dartmouth student/to-be-student's opinion.</li>
</ul>

2

<p>You look better than I did at your stage. I'd say you have a very good shot.</p>

3

<p>Agreed. Nothing is guaranteed, but I'd say you definitely have a better than average chance.</p>

4

<p>do i have enough ec's though?</p>

5

<p>It shouldn't be a question of if you have "enough" ECs. You do. Too many people ask this and feel that with ECs, quantity is better than quality. The question is: are you truly passionate about something? Do you put a significant amount of time and effort into one or two ECs? If so, then you need to make this shine in your application. When the adcoms discuss you, do you want to be the "kid with 20 ECs" or the "swimmer with a TV show"? This is not to say that you want to have few ECs (the smaller ones do help, as long as you have a somewhat serious participation--i.e. I wouldn't include chess club unless it is a legitimate participation), but that you should emphasize your passion in a few of them to make yourself truly stand out as a candidate. Otherwise, you become one of those "bright well-rounded kids" that are a dime a dozen in elite college admissions.</p>

6

<p>I know I'm talking about a different school now (I'm bored so I'm checking all the schools forums lol), but yeah, concentrated ECs are fine. I got into Cornell engineering and my only ECs were 4 years of Varsity Golf, Ski Club, and work at a golf club (I did write my essays about how I've been building my own PCs for 4 years, though). I know Dartmouth is a bit pickier, but still, I don't think they care much about laundry lists.</p>

7

<p>I totally agree about depth vs. breadth in EC's.</p>

<p>Axman, how did you do on your PSAT?</p>

8

<p>205 .. i bombed math..i got a 670..but yeah 67 cr 67 m 71 w </p>

<p>i didnt really prepare for them.</p>

9

<p>Hey quick question about Dartmouth. I applied RD and I'm wondering if they just read the Common App essay? Is that it? Most of the schools I'm applying to had "additional essays" or required essays in their supplements. Why is Dartmouth the only Ivy I'm applying to that seems to care only about the Common App essay? If I'm missing something, please fill me in!!! I would like to know ASAP before the deadline. Should I submit one of the essays I'm writing to another school to Dartmouth just in case? If anyone out there in CC has applied or is applying to Dartmouth, please let me know!! Good luck to everyone. Thanks and have a Happy New Year!! :)</p>

10

<p>bump action.</p>

11

<p>predictions arent worth crap.</p>

<p>so come back when you know your scores.</p>

12

<p>yea, like what zuckies said, come back when you have real scores. It's impossible to predict what you'll actually score. The PSAT isn't a great indicator, and you good do better or worse. Your ec's are great, just study and don't worry about it for a while. Keep getting good grades and you'll be fine.</p>

13

<p>I think you should revel in the fact that you will be competing for a spot in the class of 11' and not the class of 10'. It has been said that this year is the year that competition reached its apex, and although next year will not be significantly easier, the slope will start to move downward.</p>

14

<p>you think so? i was under the impression that the HS class of '07 (college class of '11) would be a more difficult year than this year considering the baby boom. More applicants = more smart kids = more competition.</p>

15

<p>If I may concede, maybe your class will not be easier, but if not then you will be the peak. This year is an obvious peak year as can be seen by the increase in number of early decision candidates at many schools. This number will probably remain the same next year if it does not begin to go down, but who knows? The peak could last a couple of years. The hs class of 08' will definitely have it easier, and from there it will also settle down.</p>

16

<p>ace223, i would say the increase in early decision applicants has nothing to do with an applicant pool growing more and more competetive. It is simply a result of more people knowing about early decision. The people applying early are not necessarily more qualified than they were before, they are just applying in greater numbers. Eventually the early decision policy will void itself because so many people will do it that there will be no advantage at all. Take that</p>

17

<p>I didn't say that the applicants were more qualified. I only said that there would be more applicants. An increase in numbers logically results in an increase of qualified applicants due to sheer proportion.</p>

18

<p>how is dartmouth's economics program in comparison to that of chicago, stanford, harvard, MIT, yale, and princeton?</p>

19

<p>Amazingly, I got the exact same score on my SAT as my PSAT. I actually do think it is a good indicator, at least for people I know. Of course, you can increase it with a lot of study. I didn't study for SATs at all. I'd say you could get a good SAT score though, considering your grades and all that.</p>