<p>Hello, I am a 16-year old sophomore currently in high school, and I am looking to apply to Dartmouth, along with Princeton and Columbia, but I would personally favor Dartmouth as my college of choice. However, one thing has been bothering me. I go to a college prep school in Tacoma, Washington, and do all honors and AP classes, get all A's (I have a 3.79), do lots of extra curricular activities like being an Eagle Scout and lettering in Community Service, and I play soccer competitively. All of this (hopefully!) is what Dartmouth is looking for, but one thing is bothering me: My racial/Socioeconomic position. I'm an upper middle class Caucasian male, and I know many prestigious universities back East, especially the Ivies I'm planning on applying to, are looking to diversify their undergraduate's backgrounds. However, I fall into the ethnic/socioeconomic group (fairly rich white male) that is largely being phased out in favor of more diverse backgrounds of people. What chance do I stand at a highly selective, progressive Ivy League school like Dartmouth? Replies, no matter how brutally truthful, would be most appreciated. Thanks!</p>
<p>From my experience as your demographic copy, with a 2350 and 4.0 gpa (slightly higher, but still comparable), I got mixed results. Got into such places as Dartmouth, Hopkins and Georgetown, but got waitlisted at Harvard and even Amherst and Williams. Although other parts of my application were at fault, Dartmouth gave me a likely letter without any significant hook so I guess it wasn’t their chief concern. Hope this anecdotal story helps you!</p>
<p>Fairly rich wite people are in no short supply at Dartmouth or any of the Ivy Leagues. Colleges are looking to diversify but they are in no sense being “phased out”. If you are a legacy, the acceptance rate may be higher for you than most of the minorities who you think might take your place. I don’t know what the metric is for upper-middle class in Tacoma, Washington, but I would assume that it is a lower standard than of the east coast. Frankly, being from an underepresented region might help, no matter how high you consider your parent’s income to be. Altering Geographical underepresentation and gender underrepresentation (males) would actually be a part of the college’s effort to diversify. </p>
<p>Though honestly, you are not exactly a shoe in for the ivies. Lots of people have high GPAs and participate in 3 or more activities. What is your ACT/SAT score? What is your course load? How will your essays be? Are you a good interviewer? What makes you unique from ANY of the 20K+ students applying? I cannot gage that with the information you have provided. Frankly, people like you believe that their biggest barrier to being accepted is their race, but oftentimes it is their credentials or sense of clear entitlement that translates terribly, but clearly, in essays and interviews.</p>
<p>@emmele - I agree. However, in the case of Dartmouth, a good essay does not apply because Dartmouth does not offer a supplemental essay.</p>
<p>@WDM007 - My advice to you is to work towards becoming Val as Dartmouth notoriously loves Vals. Also, consider your peer rec carefully. If you choose the right friend(someone who knows you well and can articulate that knowledge well) it can help you stand out come app review.</p>
<p>Well, I’ve taken a PACT and got a 35, and I took a practice SAT and got a 1520 on a 1600 scale. Is that about what Dartmouth is looking for?</p>
<p>No. Not exactly. Lots of people with perfect scores are rejected every year.</p>
<p>Btw what is with the “racial integration” tag. Seriously. Get out of Birmingham…</p>
<p>Sorry if I offended you in any way, it wasn’t my intention at all. I simply wasn’t sure what else to call it, and figured a tag was better than no tag. My apologies, but thank you for all the other useful information, it was quite helpful.</p>
<p>Like others have alluded: it’s a numbers game. Your profile is similar to many others and while students like you definitely are admitted, the # of slots isn’t great. How do you stand out? Who is to know? Just do your best, be yourself and apply to a wisely crafted list of schools.</p>
<p>Just like you aren’t realistically expecting to get a slot that is set aside for some woman’s diving recruit or the diplomat’s kid from Kuwait, don’t sweat out the “diversity” thing. It is what it is and if you get in, you’ll benefit tremendously from it.</p>
<p>Thank you. As for how I stand out, I am in an elite program at my school for the top 15 kids in each grade level who take on an extra class in zero hour and do research projects and compete in local science competitions. Many of them have gone to nationals, and sometimes even internationals for their main research project, which is of the same size and scope as a college thesis. Mine is on concussions and different recovery techniques and theories, and has me working in conjunction with Seattle Children’s Hospital for my research. Hopefully my project will receive accolades that will pique someone’s interest at Dartmouth and the other colleges I am considering. Thoughts on how this program could help me stand out?</p>