Dartmouth Legacy

Colleges & Universities A-Z Dartmouth College
1

<p>I'm not that worried about getting into Dartmouth, but I thought I might just post my stats as a legacy (dad graduated undergrad at Dartmouth).</p>

<p>GPA: ~4.15 unweighted*</p>

<p>*My school has a weird system where 4.30 is an A+ and everything else is the same as a normal 4.00 scale.</p>

<p>Class Rank: top 1%*</p>

<p>*My school also doesn't technically do class rank, but since my college counselor recommended making a resume, I'm throwing this on. I've been the top student on and off as well.</p>

<p>ACT: 34 - E 33, M 34, R 33, S 36, W 12, E&W 35</p>

<p>SAT IIs: US History 800, Math II 770</p>

<p>APs: USH 5, Enviro 5, BC Calc 5, Lang 4, Comp Gov 5*</p>

<p>*All APs were taken junior year. I didn't take any APs sophomore year, but was in all honors classes prior to junior year. Comp Gov was a self study listed as an Independent Study with an advisor on my transcript.</p>

<p>ECs and Other Info:</p>

<p>Sports: 3rds Soccer (9, 10, 11), 3rds/JV Squash (9, 10), JV Baseball (9), JV Tennis (10, 11)</p>

<p>Outdoors: Wolf Pack (hiking group on Friday mornings), Fly Fishing Club, Birding Club, Maple Syrup Corp., Back Country Skills (Fall 12)</p>

<p>Other Stuff: Political Radio Show (weekly broadcast on local NPR affiliate), Political Columnist for School Newspaper, Model UN</p>

<p>Academic Awards: English Prize (10), Political Science Prize (10, 11), History Prize (11), Spanish Prize (11), Harvard Book Prize (highest academic award for a junior, 11)*</p>

<p>*These prize names are not the real names, but rather quick simplifications.</p>

<p>Internships: a) Intern for Minister Lucinda Creighton TD, a member of the Irish Parliament, and Minister for European Affairs of Ireland, June 2011; b) Intern for Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D) of California, July 2011.</p>

<p>Also, I go to a private boarding school in Massachusetts if that's important as well.</p>

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<p>With good reason… you stand a pretty high chance. My guess is you’re not applying early, since you have other reach school that you’re trying for? </p>

<p>Regardless, good luck.</p>

<p>BTW, how did you get an internship with Sen. Feinstein? Was it through the Senate Page Program?</p>

3

<p>Not good at chances, but just know that any legacy boost only occurs in ED. (Otherwise, you are sending the clear signal to Dartmouth’s adcoms that D is not your first choice.)</p>

4

<p>I think you should be worried about getting into Dartmouth. For every 10 applicants who apply, 9 will be rejected. Particularly if you apply RD, I would not be at all surprised to see that you’ve been rejected, especially if your arrogance sneaks its way into your application – which it always has a way of doing. (It may not be through your portion of the app, but don’t forget about your letters of recommendation. Not all teachers will just sing your praises. Plenty will also include some of your weaknesses.)</p>

5

<p>I think that DartmouthForever nails it. Your qualifications are very good, but in this post, at least, your tone is unpleasantly arrogant. Maybe you are a perfectly charming person and this is an aberration. But don’t worry: that “I’m so special” thing is just what H&Y are looking for. D, not so much. The one place I disagree is the recs: prep school teachers in Massachusetts know very well that their bread and butter is to get as many students as possible into Ivies and other elite schools. I doubt that they would let any hint of dislike creep into their recs, and if they did, I bet the guidance dept would catch it and fix it. On the other hand, in their back channel communications with ad coms at schools, they may indicate that D is not your first choice, in order to get someone else into D while you are safely ensconced elsewhere. Or maybe I’m being too cynical, and times have changed.</p>

<p>Just as an FYI, a friend of my son’s who was accepted at both H & P was waitlisted by D. He was a double legacy, and on one side the legacy stretched back to a classmate of Daniel Webster.</p>

6

<p>I agree with Consolation…you read more like a HYP applicant. That being said, there are hundreds just as qualified as you that got rejected this past year. It’s really become a crap shoot at these selective schools. If Dartmouth is really where you want to go, you should probably apply ED.</p>

<p>Best of luck!</p>

7

<p>Consolation, as I noted earlier, a legacy who applies RD is basically broadcasting that he prefers other colleges. Not a good thing to stamp on your application!</p>

8

<p>For the class of 2015 there are 186 legacies (8.5%) in the admitted class. You have to also take into consideration how many of these legacies were hooked or tipped in other ares; URMs, developmental admits, trustee kids, athletes, facbrats, siblings in attendance.</p>

<p>Does Op also fall into one of these groups?</p>

<p>I think being a legacy without something else is not longer the hook that it once was.</p>

9

<p>My friend is a double legacy. She didn’t get in ED, was deferred and got in RD. Her scores and ECs were excellent, as are everyone’s. She happens to be really nice, and low key. Probably didn’t hurt. </p>

<p>Sent from my Desire HD using CC App</p>

10

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<p>Exactly! But the OP isn’t really worried about getting in to D, so who cares, right? :)</p>