Hello,
I’m a prospective '21 and really like Dartmouth as an academic fit. However, I have some concerns about the social scene that make me hesitate to commit. I’m from a city, and I like going out and partying on the weekends and hope to find lively social scene at whatever school I attend. Given its small size and rural location, I am a little concerned that Dartmouth won’t satisfy me like a larger school would ( Michigan and UCLA for example). I like the frat scene at Dartmouth, but I don’t want to spend four years doing the same thing with the same people. I come from a very small high school, so I might lack perspective, but is less than 4500 undergrads a large enough community where I can meet new people and have a very active social life?
Small size? Well…think of it this way. In your first year, let’s say you will be at Dartmouth roughly 270 days. So if you meet 16 new students every single day during your freshman year, there would still be 100+ students you never got to know. And every year, ~1150 new students matriculate. I definitely did not come close to meeting my entire graduating class and certainly not the three classes before and after me - and I was very social during my time at Dartmouth.
With that said, social life in college might be a bit different than what you are used to in high school. Most people have at least two distinct circles of friends - those who you live with and those who you study with. Sometimes they overlap, but a lot of the time, they don’t. In addition, many students have extracurricular friends as well. So for example, in a fraternity, you could have a track athlete who is majoring in gov, rooming with a bio major who is on the pre-med track and loves the outdoors. They’re good friends and hang out at night and on the weekends, but the track athlete also hangs out with his track friends and studies with his gov friends. The bio major studies with his bio friends and goes hiking with his DOC friends. How they allocate their time between the other groups is entirely up to them. Don’t forget you can always meet new people by joining new clubs, visiting different frats on the weekend, taking classes and studying with people that are outside of your major, getting to know the friends of your friends, participating in IM sports, and so on.
My impression was that the OP was also saying that he likes the city life and the ability to go out and about, and you can’t really say that Hanover offers that. The people and activities are there, but not the city life. However if you are also big into the outdoors, then maybe Dartmouth is the place for you because it offers that in spades, but if you aren’t, and you really feel most comfortable in a city with all cities have to offer, then obviously Hanover can’t compete.
Academically, Dartmouth is better than Michigan and UCLA (although both are great schools). I come from a decent size high school (1500+ students) and Dartmouth is plenty big enough for me. But, of course, it is totally up to you! Did you go to Dimensions?
I did go to dimensions and liked it, met some cool people and overall had a good time. Does the frat scene get repetitive at Dartmouth given its location and relatively small size? I know greek life is huge at dartmouth and I’m probably going to pledge if I choose to attend. Thanks!
@b1ggreenca Hmm. I don’t think Ann Arbor compares to LA either, but you’re right that Hanover doesn’t compare to either one. I was focusing more on the “is less than 4500 undergrads a large enough community where I can meet new people and have a very active social life” part. But if the OP is worried about going to the same bars, restaurants and movie theaters…then yes, Hanover/West Leb can get repetitive quickly.
@CityLiving I think once you join a house, the frat scene can get repetitive anywhere - same house (the actual physical house), same brothers in your class, same weekly meetings, same parties, same formals, etc. I don’t think Dartmouth’s location and size has anything to do with that. With that said, if you’re looking for a giant school in a large city, then Dartmouth is probably not the right fit. You may want to think about everything that Dartmouth offers beyond size and location (academics, class size, etc.) and weigh those against your concerns about social life.
Don’t know what you mean by “a very small high school,” but D’s was <400 so Dartmouth was plenty big.
A large percentage of students at Dartmouth are from big cities. My own kid is one of those “There’s NYC and
there’s everywhere else.” She knew once she finished school, that she would have her career in NYC. It was important to her no to have her whole educational experience be in NYC.
You will probably return to a big city for your career. College is 4 years, take time to enjoy them.
My kid is going back to Dartmouth this June for her reunion. They truly bleed green, she has friends for life both in and outside of the greek system. The the greek system is open but there is also life outside of the greek system.