I got accepted to both Dartmouth and Northwestern and have to make a decision quite soon. Both colleges are great options which makes it a difficult choice. Academically, they are more or less equal for my major (polysci). I was wondering if someone from either college can speak to the social scenes. How active is the social scene at either school? What are the stress levels like at either school? In your opinion, which school should I attend if I am looking for an intellectually diverse student body and a vibrant (relatively low stress) social scene?
Both are high in fraternity/sorority participation, but fraternity/sorority participation is higher at Dartmouth, if that matters to you.
Neither will have an intellectually diverse student body, since the minimum standards for admission are very high at both colleges. An intellectually diverse student body is more likely to be found at a state flagship with relatively low admission standards, but where the top students in the state, the barely college ready in the state, and everyone in between attend.
Northwestern is a stone’s throw from Chicago and is in a very vibrant community. There are free shuttles to downtown Chicago for students. We see students doing all kinds of things on the weekend outside of Greek life.
Dartmouth is very, very rural. Lots of outdoorsy stuff available - skiing, hiking, etc…
What kind of setting to do you prefer?
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@oreocookie785 I’m a current Dartmouth student. There are frequent buses every day to Boston from campus, and a number of students I know go there on weekends to do various things.
But won’t lie, it’s generally a more campus based life. There’s plenty to do outside of greek life though. There’s music performances, visiting lecturers, movie screenings, glow-in-the dark indoor minigolf etc. It varies from week to week. As mentioned before, there is also our outdoors program if you’re into that.
But of course we do have a party presence, facilitated by a number of greek houses. They are all inclusive though, by which I mean you only need your id to get into most events. That makes these spaces pretty diverse.
We are also a very close community largely due to our undergrad focus and rich traditions.
Stress wise, I would say that our community is much more collaborative and laid back than most other elite schools. A number of others have more cutthroat competitive vibes (not sure if Northwestern falls into this latter category).
Also, due to out undergrad focus, all of your classes will be taught by professors (except for possibly first year calculus, in which one section is not). Also, most classes are smaller, facilitating closer engagement with your peers and professors.
Not saying you can’t get this at Northwestern, but Northwestern’s postgrad community outnumber the undergrads. Professor involvement and smaller classes will still be available, but to a lesser degree, especially in your first couple of years.
Hope this helps. Feel free to PM me any Dartmouth-related questions.