I am researching colleges for next year, and at first glance, Dartmouth would not be a place I want to go. (60% of students in Greek Life, daily partying, kinda dull campus). However, it is known for placing a ton of kids into finance and consulting jobs, which is where I hope to go. How pre-professional is it? Does it have many resources for actually helping kids get into a job or is it just a result of who they accept? Will it give me an upper hand over any other school of equal level (Cornell, Brown, UChicago, Northwestern, many others)? And also, I want to take classes that will prepare me for these careers. For that reason, should I consider Dartmouth in spite of the negative aspects of it? I mean… the people who go to Dartmouth aren’t all people who party, join frats, or do outdoor activities, right? Also, does anyone agree with me that Dartmouth’s campus is not impressive?
If it seems like a place you wouldn’t want to go, don’t. There are so many other options that can put you on your desired path. These are 4 years of your life that will be unlike any others. Get it right!
Just a father, but I totally disagree with you that the campus is not impressive. Actually, I take that back. It’s not impressive, whatever that means to you: it’s beautiful and welcoming and charming.
It’s like a lot of things in life. If you do the work, get the grades and the right experiences, grow in thinking and it shows, you can land in finance. Recruiting is solid at all tippy tops. If you’re doing the right research into targets, you’ll find this.
Find where YOU can fit and thrive. Find the colleges that will want your record, what you offer that they want. First and foremost, they’re going to be interested in your four years there, not college as a vehicle to some career.
Dartmouth is one of the most beautiful campuses that I’ve ever seen. And I’ve seen a lot. What makes you think that its not impressive?
There are plenty of great schools that will set you up for a career in finance. If you aren’t feeling Dartmouth, don’t apply. There are more than enough schools where you can find a good fit.
(FWIW, I’m not a Dartmouth fan either).
Others have offered valuable insights, but regarding partying and frats…
1 I strongly doubt that there is more partying at D than there is at most places;, and
2 The frat scene at D is not like that at SEC schools, Big 10, and so forth. It is much more diverse, and people join frats at D who would NEVER consider doing so elsewhere. And who, frankly, would probably never get into frats elsewhere.
Dartmouth has a liberal arts focus, as well as a significant presence in the financial world. If you want to go to a school where the focus is more vocational, I suggest you avoid the Ivies, except perhaps for Wharton. Certainly, schools such as Columbia and the U of C, with the core, will not suit you.
Dartmouth is a heavy party school. Anyone claiming otherwise is misinformed or trying to mislead you.
Dartmouth College offers no advantages in job placement over the schools that you mentioned (Chicago, Northwestern, Brown & Cornell).
Dartmouth College is a great school with outstanding job placement, but it is a party school.
P.S. I love Dartmouth’s campus, but for those who have attended prep boarding schools, it is a bit of “been there, done that”.
As an aside: I have never met a Dartmouth student or alum whom I didn’t like. Really nice, down to earth people.
Also, it is important to understand your tolerance for a competitive atmosphere. In my opinion, Dartmouth College has the best academic schedule of the 5 schools named in your original post. Three classes per trimester (quarter) is perfect. Chicago, Northwestern & Cornell are more intense academically while Brown is similiar to, or more relaxed, than Dartmouth.
I think the Dartmouth campus is beautiful, and historic. Calling it dull on the one hand, then being concerned that there is too much partying has me a bit confused at to what you want…maybe an urban campus would suit you better?
I would guess that the connections that you would make at Dartmouth would serve you very well later in life, no matter what field you are in.
Although any Ivy League will have solid job placement, if you are specifically looking for finance jobs, Princeton and UPenn have the best options considering they often have job fairs and extensive alumni networks. Additionally, if you aren’t into the outdoors, partying, and think Dartmouth’s campus is dull, I don’t think the school would be a good fit for you, considering these are some of the major activities at Dartmouth. If I were you, I would consider EDing to Wharton or REAing to Princeton if you have good stats (high ACT, rigorous schedule, ECs, etc.).
There are many schools with a good pipeline into finance, assuming you do well. Dartmouth is no better than any of the other schools you listed. The one way to guarantee failure is to go to a school that doesn’t suit you and where you struggle academically because of that.
Many of those getting Finance jobs after Dartmouth may be because of the connections they made in the frats, partying, playing sports, or just hanging around on the dull campus. They are building a network.
If you don’t want to do that, find a school that matches how you want to ‘do’ college. You might prefer a more urban campus where you can participate in the campus activities or do more off campus things.
Thanks for all the replies.
I am sorry for sounding too critical of Dartmouth’s campus, etc. I was mainly worried about it not being a place for me. I have never visited Dartmouth, but its pictures never struck me like Duke and Cornell did. I was also worried about it being cold and some has said there is little to do there except party.
I should also be clear that I do enjoy studying other humantities subjects: history, literature, economics, so I would be excited to learn that, but in order to be prepared for the finance world, I want to have some knowledge coming out of college. Probably can get that through clubs at ivies.
Overall, if its value comes completely from the networking that happens through partying, I don’t think Dartmouth would have too much value to me.
Networking is a lot more than meeting other kids with similar post grad hopes. You look at internship opps, other experiences.
Of course you’d have some knowledge, coming out of UG. It’s not like hs, some array of intro courses.
Think further than clubs. If you have the drive, you’lll find the “more.”
And plenty of non-Ivies can offer the depth and breadth you’d need for that career, test your endurance. It’s not just prestige. It’s on you.
Many snarky comments here, and it is easy to recognize the Dartmouth haters. Check out their past posts. Take what anyone has to say with a grain of salt. Or maybe a pound or so. Including me.