Has anyone gotten them yet? I haven’t seen many threads about them, and in past years they were out by this time of year.
What is a “likely letter”? I saw people mentioning that at Stanford too.
It’s basically an early acceptance letter. Top colleges send them out to the best-fit applicants to coax them to their college.
It’s a letter that basically says they plan to accept you, although it isn’t a formal acceptance. I think the point is to tell the recipient to hang on, don’t accept any other offers yet, if you can just be patient you will be accepted here.
Dartmouth sends out approximately 500 likely letters in three waves starting in mid February. Remember that majority of students accepted during the RD round will not receive a likely letter. The letter states that your admission to Dartmouth is likely. They also send you information about Dimensions (admitted student days).
Personally, I have a love-hate relationship with the process (and yes, my kid received a likely letter)) as it is designed to put you at ease and not to worry because your admission to Dartmouth is likely. On the other hand I think the process creates more angst as student who do not receive a letter think that they will not get accepted.
We are now into March. While it has been a long admissions cycle, it will be over soon. I have every confidence that every one will land someplace great.
When my son received his it also caused consternation. We had never heard of “likely letters” and had no idea what it really meant or what we should make of it. In fact, when I saw that thin envelope in the mailbox my heart sunk because I thought it was an early rejection letter! A little research set us straight! 
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The phrasing is a little bit more affirmative than “they plan to accept” but even “[t]here is no question that when we mail our final decisions at the end of March, you will be offered admission to the College” is not a guarantee, and the letters just aren’t very common. Sybbie makes some good points.
Well, a “likely letter” can have the adverse effect of driving kids to another school. My “high-stat” student hasn’t gotten one, but she has other really good scholarship offers. Wanting this whole deal to be decided, and having not gotten a “likely letter,” she is close to accepting a bird in the hand and be done with it. If there were no “likely letters” she would begrudgingly wait until 3/30. Now, she is convinced she will be rejected, so why wait?
@luckymama64, if she does not lose her other scholarship offers by waiting, why not wait until 3/30? We’re almost there!
@luckymama64: Her [and your, I guess, to some extent] choice, but that strikes me as biting off your nose to spite your face. I know the wait is stressful, but what is the downside apart from that? Are the scholarship offers going to disappear before RD day? If not, it seems as though she has nothing to lose and perhaps something to gain by being patient. The vast [VAST] majority of accepted applicants did not get likely letters.
New development: This morning, my daughter received an email from FA office saying that “Although the Admissions Committee is still deliberating, the Financial Aid Office is currently reviewing Class of 2021 documents. . . .” and asked for an additional document to complete her financial aid award. @AboutTheSame, I know that seems drastic, but where we live everyone knows where they are going to college already. Sometimes it gets so tiresome saying, “I’m not sure.” But, this request from FA made her excited – surely they don’t go into that much detail with denied applicants?
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@luckymama64 look at the ED 2021 thread; the students who got that email got in.
My impression is that an email of that sort doesn’t mean much EARLY in the process, but at this point, I would certainly view it as a very encouraging sign. Wishing your daughter the best of luck and peace of mind, ATS
sorry for coming out of nowhere and asking this, but do you think that the e-mail below would be a good sign too?
"Thank you for your application for admission. We look forward to reviewing your candidacy.
As we review your materials, we encourage you to note the following:
Dartmouth guarantees to meet 100% of the demonstrated need of every student, including international students, who apply for and qualify for financial aid at the time of admission. It is important to note that international applicants must apply for and demonstrate financial need at the time of their application for admission in order to receive financial aid from Dartmouth at any point during their undergraduate studies.
If you anticipate needing financial aid in order to attend Dartmouth and have not yet done so, please submit your financial aid application materials at this time. Your completed financial aid application must be received by our office by February 15, 2017."
You see, I received that e-mail on Feb 8… It didn’t impacted me a lot until I saw this thread and noticed that the e-mail was named “Important Note Regarding Your Application for Admission.”
@AboutTheSame, thanks! I have to say that at this point in this long process, we were all very happy with the current choices. But I have to admit, something about Dartmouth is irresistible. It kind of makes my heart flutter.
@luckymama64 Could you tell me the status of your application? is it “received”, “In review”, or “satisfied”?
@josevi, it just says “received.”
@joaevi
I think it is just a genetic letter reminding international students about the deadlines to submit all of their financial documentation for admission consideration. Remember Dartmouth is no longer need blind to international students. Your ability to pay will be a factor in admissions. The school cannot evaluate your ability to pay accurately unless they have all of your information.
@josevi: I have to say that one looks to me like an early generic email that could have been generated by computer if a box was not checked somewhere. Please note that I am not an expert in college admissions generally or Dartmouth in particular.
@luckymama64 : Irresistible is a good word. I think D was one of the few ever to choose it over Harvard, and we loved our four years of visiting her at the college. We tease her [only half in jest] that if she were to get a position on the faculty [about halfway through grad school now], we’d pull up stakes and leave sunny California for Hanover.