Dartmouth Class of 2023 Early Decision Results

[ghood2696]

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1410 (740 R, 670M) but they got to see my 1270 (650 R, 620 M)
ACT (breakdown): 29 (29 E, 32 R, 28 M, 28 S, 10 W)
SAT II: N/A
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.97
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 8/533
AP (place score in parenthesis): Spanish Lit (5), Spanish Lang (5), APUSH (4), English Lang (4), Psych (5)

Senior Year Course Load: AVID Senior Seminar (basically a class that aids with college apps), AP Environmental Science, American Government (1st semester), Economics (2nd semester), Photography I, AP Stats, AP English Lit

Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
QuestBridge College Prep Scholar, QuestBridge National College Match Finalist, AP Scholar with Distinction, School-based awards (Academic Excellence in English 9H, English 10H, AP Spanish Lit, APUSH)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): AVID, California Scholarship Federation, Educational Talent Search Wahoopa
Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community service: 200+ hours aiding at a middle school in my community & at a retirement home
Summer Activities: stayed at USC during summer for 3 weeks

Essays (rating 1-10, details): for both 8/10 (personally feel like my essays spoke a lot about who I am as a person & what I have gone through as a minority [being both Hispanic & gay in a conservative community], but my essays felt like they lacked something at times; however showed my passions [aiding underprivileged people in my communities & hopefully becoming a speech therapist] & how I am willing to give back to my community at an academic & personal level)

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 10/10 AP English Lang (didn’t really talk in her class but would do all her work & would talk to her a lot about how I could improve my writing skills; became close to her since she helped me come out of my shell)
Teacher Rec #2: 8/10 AP Psych (gave her my resume, transcript & personal info which she basically regurgitated onto the rec which made her look like she knew me a lot; horrible at teaching, but a good person who would force me to volunteer in class discussions)
Counselor Rec: 8/10 (I feel like I bug her all the time so that she can do counselor recs, doesn’t really know me since my school is somewhat large & the only time she sees is when I go bother her about counselor recs or that one time that I had a break down my sophomore year)
Additional Rec: N/A
Interview: didn’t do one

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes & got a full ride
Intended Major: Linguistics & Environmental Science
State (if domestic applicant): CA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: Female/Nonbinary
Income Bracket: around 24K per year
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): first generation college, first language is Spanish, parents are immigrants, huge dreams for someone who lives in bad town, minority status??

Reflection

Strengths: taken the most rigorous courses in a high school that doesn’t have much to offer, have worked to remain in the top of my class while at the same time maintaining a connection with my community through comm. service, extracurriculars show that I am determined to go to college, awards, writing about topics that show that I am able to bounce back from my traumas/weaknesses & am willing to fight for what I believe in, strong recommendations

Weaknesses: not the best SAT score, essays were a mix & match since I could have worked harder on them, felt like my application would not really stand out from the rest of the applications at times because I am not as involved as other students or am not a student-athlete

Why you think you were accepted: based on my community service & determination to remain at the top of my rigorous courses, minority status?? (but let’s be real I still don’t know how I got in)

Where else were you accepted: for right now only to CSUs (public California colleges) & my local community college

[Darkbluewho]

Posting this for fellow Questbridge kids like myself (or other low-income kiddos):

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1400 (700 E/700 M)
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II: 660 Bio M/ 660 Lit
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.98
Weighted GPA: 4.66
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 4/640
AP (place score in parenthesis): Human Geography (5), World History (4), Psychology (4), Music Theory (2), Statistics (3), English Lang (5), Biology (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis): Music SL (5)
Senior Year Course Load: IB TOK, IB Music HL, IB Contemporary History SL, IB Calc/Stat SL, IB English HL, IB Biology HL, IB Spanish HL, Speech/Presentation Skills, US History until 1865, College Trig, College Pre-calc (the last four are dual enrollment classes)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Questbridge National College Match Finalist, Questbridge College Prep Scholar, Tomorrow’s Leaders, Science Olympiad State/Regional Awards, Full Ride Scholarship to UF SSTP, AP Scholar with Distinction, and Chosen for Academic Team State Competition (1 of 6 out of the county)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Science National Honor Society (President and Co-Founder), Envirothon (Captain), Academic Team (Captain), Marching Band/Wind Ensemble (Uniform Manager, Logistics Manager, Co-Section Leader), National Honor Society, Science Olympiad, Spanish National Honor Society, Florida High School Democrats (State Parliamentarian), , Environmental Science Research with a professor, and Genetics Research with a professor (UF SSTP)
Job/Work Experience: Babysitting, Math Tutor
Volunteer/Community service: Soup Kitchen, Science Outreach,
Summer Activities: UF Student Science Training Program, Dual-enrollment classes
Essays (rating 1-10, details): (10/10) I wrote one of my essays as a letter to my father who passed away when I was younger. This essay charted the experiences that followed including losing my grandmother, having to take over his role and take care of my sibling, and having to take care of my elderly aunt and uncle nearly every weekend. Beyond this, it discusses how writing letters to my father as a way of coping opened up an entire world of story-telling and writing that I wouldn’t have had if he hadn’t passed away. The essay is very personal and intimate. It made every person who read it cry and my counselor said it was the best essay she had read.
(8-9/10) Through Questbridge I submitted two other essays one was a slightly weaker essay about the importance of enduring uncomfortable times and the other was about my interest in music despite my musical incompetence. My teachers and friends thought they were really good but they aren’t as personal as the first essay.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 10/10, My English teacher is probably the only teacher who knows about my family situation, mental health, and other issues. She knows how much college means to me and she respects my writing ability. She told me she wrote me a wonderful recommendation, and knowing her writing ability it was definitely a stellar rec.
Teacher Rec #2: 8/10 My biology teacher is also the Science NHS sponsor, Envirothon sponsor, and Academic Team sponsor so she knows me very well. She has had me for two years and my other two siblings. She definitely wrote me a good recommendation, one that was probably a little sarcastic as she always is, but otherwise, it was decent.
Counselor Rec: 10/10 My counselor has seen me through some things including taking on receiving my Associate’s degree on top of my IB diploma. She has also seen me increase my class rank by about 30 places over the past four years. She knows me inside and out as she attended my father’s funeral and has long since been a family friend. She told me she wrote an amazing rec and I believe that whole-heartedly.
Additional Rec: N/A for Questbridge applicants
Interview: N/A for Questbridge applicants

Other

Applied for Financial Aid: Yes, and received a full ride (more or less)
Intended Major: Earth Sciences
State (if domestic applicant): FL
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Gender: F
Income Bracket: > 30000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Low-income (Questbridge), LGBTQ+

Reflection

Strengths: My essays and recs were the strongest points of my application. They explained everything my grades, test scores, and such couldn’t and really emphasized the idea that I was worth a shot. My extracurriculars also showcased the idea that I was dedicated to science and really sold the idea that I knew what I was doing (even if I felt like I didn’t). Additionally, my transcript was quite impressive. I have taken on an Associate’s Degree on top of my IB diploma and will be finishing it this semester. I have also taken AP classes online when they wouldn’t fit into my schedule. This means that I currently have 40+ credits to my name (With an A in all except 3). I think that the idea that I took the initiative to drive myself to extra classes, or spend extra time taking online classes helped instill the idea that I was willing to work hard in order to get the results I wanted. Also the UF Student Science Training Program I attended this summer is considered one of the best summer programs in the country as it involves dedicated basically your entire summer to living on UF’s campus and doing nothing besides research. I think this was also a highlight of my application. In my present situation where I spend a lot of time attending to family matters what I did with my free time really spoke to my commitment to getting into Dartmouth.
Weaknesses: Let me be the first to say my test scores are mediocre. Nothing about the objective side of me screams “Ivy League”. My subject test scores are quite terrible, my SAT score is decent but not the best, and my unweighted GPA isn’t a 4.0.

General Comments: I understand that it may infuriate some that I was admitted with such low stats, but understanding that colleges also want real people is important. I am a low-income student from a single-parent background, I knew I would never be the smartest person nor the kind of person who could get in based on money, legacy, or status, so I took the harder route and chose to work as hard as I could. For the past two years, I have taken nearly thirty classes spent many nights at my local community college until 10 pm, spent every free moment working towards getting in even when it was at the expense of my family. The idea that every moment I spent at school, band, or engaged in extracurriculars required such a large sacrifice as I take care of my brother and elderly aunt and uncle a lot because my mom has to work made every accomplishment that much more impressive. So for any students out there who are like me, know that there is a chance for you. For Questbridge students who don’t get matched to Dartmouth through the match don’t be scared to switch to ED. I did, and couldn’t be happier.

[student4771]

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1530 (740 RW, 790 M)
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II: 750 Math I, 740 U.S. History
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 10 out of 375
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP U.S. History (5), AP English Language (5), AP Comp Sci (5), AP Seminar (5), AP U.S. Government (5), AP Biology (3)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Literature, AP Calc AB, AP Spanish Language, AP Economics, AP Research, Physics, Honors Choir
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Commended Scholar, National History Day Finalist, AP Scholar with Distinction

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Acapella Group (Student Director), History Club (President), Varsity Rowing, Drama Club, Honors Choir, Young Democrats
Job/Work Experience: CPR certified Lifeguard/Swim Instructor, Student Intern at Connecticut Secretary of State’s Office
Volunteer/Community service: Team ESPN volunteer, Church volunteer, National Honors Society community service
Summer Activities: Teaching swim lessons, Lifeguarding, Internship

Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Personal: 8/10, Talked about my passion for theater and how it has made me more confident and a better speaker. I then connected this to my interest in government and how I want to take my talents to the political stage
Dartmouth Prompt: 9/10, I did the curiosity prompt and talked about how my love for hiking and memories with my dad along the Appalachian Trail sparked an interest in conservation history.
Why Dartmouth: 8/10, I talked about all the things I wanted to do on campus at Dartmouth and how I would stay involved year-round, demonstrating all I had to offer to Dartmouth

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 9/10, My first recommendation was written by my social studies teacher who I really connected with. I was one of the only Juniors in his class of mostly sophomores so I became a mentor to many of the younger students.
Teacher Rec #2: 9/10, Second recommendation was from my english teacher who really liked me. We worked a lot outside of class on my essays and I got a 5 on the AP Exam.
Counselor Rec: 7/10, We didn’t know each other super well, but he liked me and I was one of his top students so I’m sure it was decent.
Interview: 9/10, We connected well and had a great conversation about his time at Dartmouth and everything I’m interested in doing there.

Other:
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Government
State (if domestic applicant): CT
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: around $120,000 per year
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): N/A

Reflection:
Strengths: I think I displayed a wide array of interests and was unique in the fact that I am a male applicant with a strong passion for both music/theater as well as history/government. I was also very involved with athletics and did a lot of volunteer work.
Weaknesses: Being a white male from a public school in suburban Connecticut definitely put me at a disadvantage. I think my scores also could have been a bit higher.
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I’d like to think I demonstrated a high degree of authenticity and passion in my application, but ultimately a lot of it had to do with luck. As a middle class, white male, living in suburban New England the odds were definitely stacked against me. The whole college admissions process is so complex and unpredictable, that I can only be grateful that it worked out for me. I know I would’ve ended up somewhere great no matter what happened, but I just consider myself extremely lucky that Dartmouth saw something in me.

Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted to University of Connecticut.

General Comments: Can’t wait to start classes next Fall and meet all the awesome 23’s! Go Big Green!