Hello All,
Im making up my college list and am wondering what Dartmouth has to offer thats unique as I have heard some bad things regarding hazing etc.
Thanks
Being taught by professors rather than TAs
Being taught by professors who believe in teaching as much as research
The most beautiful campus [okay, opinions may vary]
A very inclusive social network that does not require you to join the Greek system to benefit from it
You can’t be hazed if you choose not to
You can’t even run the risk of being hazed if you choose not to rush
I think the D-Plan is something unique to Dartmouth and can positively affect your experience there if you want it to. Essentially, during sophomore and junior years, you choose which quarters you will be present on campus. If you hate the winters there you can be off winter quarter and come over the summer, that kind of thing. It gives you a lot of flexibility in terms of internships, study abroad, vacation time, etc. and I don’t know of another school that has it.
Interesting fact that many applicants don’t know of: the alumni network is ridiculous. When I visited the accepted students program, I talked to some students who raved how easy it was to get a job due to alumni connections. Dartmouth has the second highest alumni donation rate, and the many school traditions and community-feel make alumni very attached to the school even after graduating. Former students told me that if they saw a Dartmouth grad applying for a job, most alumni would typically not only vouch for you, but stick out their necks to try and get you hired. Guessing from your username @happywharton, i bet you’re interested in business; as you might know, connections are super important in the finance and consulting fields. Obviously this shouldn’t be your only concern when choosing which school to apply to, but this was definitely a deciding factor when I had to choose between Dartmouth and other schools.
Also, I was worried about the frat culture initially, but after visiting and talking with many current students, I’m not sure that it’s a cause of concern. From what I’ve been told, frats are incredibly inclusive (you aren’t barred from Greek events if you don’t rush) and do many cool things like business trips and community service. This is probably another unique thing dartmouth has going for them: the inclusivity of their Greek life.
I know there was a Rolling Stones article about Dartmouth frats, but after doing some research, nearly all of the frats aren’t anything like that. Also worth pointing out, the dude from the Rolling Stones article was suspended from Dartmouth due to illegal drug possession, so it’s more than likely that guy was just salty about his bad experience at Dartmouth, which is far from typical.
The second paragraph in the above post from @VnEkFf reminded me of this: http://www.dartblog.com/data/2015/06/012099.php
Good letter. Unfortunately, the Greek organizations do not publicize such achievements, don’t keep their websites up to date, and IIRC the AD membership refused to speak with the press and communicated only through a legal spokesman, who apparently didn’t see offering such info as part of his job. A mistake, I think.
The constant rehashing of the Animal House thing is annoying and misleading, I agree.