<p>I don’t want to be negative, but don’t assume that you are automatically in at Dartmouth, regardless of what people on this board say. Academics are only half the picture - non-academics are the other half of the admissions equation, and it’s hard to spell out your non-academic side in a paragraph on this board. No one can tell you that you are definitely in at an Ivy school from the information most people provide on this board.</p>
<p>20% or so of the kids at Princeton or Dartmouth are athletic recruits. If you’re good enough at soccer, that could get you in. Are your times likely to be good enough in track? Your coach can give you some guidance as to whether or not you can play/run at the Ivy League level. If not, but you’re division III material, that could be your ticket in at Williams, Amherst, Bowdoin, Johns Hopkins or any of the other top academic schools that are division III. If you want to play, I say that you should aim for the best academic school at which you can still play. Then get your coach to contact the schools, and get yourself into some summer camps where the college coaches hang out.</p>
<p>PS: I got into Princeton and Dartmouth as an athletic recruit in the 1970’s. That might be the easiest way for you to get in, assuming that the college coach thinks you’re good enough to play. The process is almost reversed, however. The coach evaluates you athletically, decides you’re one of the players he wants, and then checks with admissions to see if your academics meet the level needed. Those standards are lower than for non-athletes. You still have to apply, but you will be in a completely different category.</p>