<p>dartmouth is looking very appealing to me as of now. the only thing that worries me is its relative isolation. my other top choice is northwestern and from what i gather, Evanston and closeby Chicago are much more exciting in terms of both entertainment (restaurants, theatres) and career/educational resources (for internships, job opportunities). although i would enjoy a closeknit college community, i really don't want to be cut off from the rest of the world (high school has definitely been a bubble for me and i want out). for current Dartmouth students: what do you guys think about this? does Dartmouth's rural location hinder your social life and your experiences beyond the college world? thanks for any input.</p>
<p>I'm in a similar situation. If only I could smash together two colleges... :D</p>
<p>Yeah, it does. It's known as the "Dartmouth bubble." Hanover is essentially Dartmouth; heck, West Lebanon essentially is too. Everywhere you go, you see Dartmouth people, most likely ones you know. If you're looking to find internships/jobs outside of the Northeast (in particular NH or Boston), as I did, you'll find that most places a) don't give as much leverage to Dartmouth, b) don't believe that someone would be willing to travel that far away despite applying there, or both.</p>
<p>I totally disagree with that. I had no trouble finding a job in DC and NY, Dartmouth recruits with the best of them (as does Williams, etc). The Ivies/ top schools are not good at getting people jobs in areas like marketing which want business degrees. But for everything else it travels really well. When I went to LA for example the Dartmouth alums there could not have been more helpful in helping me get into that industry if I chose to. 95% of college students don't work part-time, and the career services office places people very well so don't even worry about that unless you are looking to go into something more random like advertising that doesn't recruit on campus, in which case a school like NYU Stern would be the best bet.</p>
<p>As for the "Dartmouth bubble," that is true but personally I loved it. There are so many things to do every weekend night (plenty of parties or random things), but I think its great that you sort of know everyone - makes the world so friendly. But of course it isn't going to have the theater, restaurants, etc of Chicago at all .</p>
<p>I'm also considering going to Dartmouth next year and I'm somewhat worried about the location too. How is the area around it? And how is the shopping? :X</p>
<p>i haven't been quite reading up, but dcd--are you a dartmouth student? and if so, do you know how to use a computer and log on to career services?
firms come to interview in hanover all the time. and do give quite a lot of leverage. </p>
<p>but dartmouth bubble is true. it's very isolated. to a point where i stopped watching the news or reading the newspaper every morning and still didn't feel weird. but it's not suffocating at all. very weird. you don't notice it until something hits you upside the head and you're just like, woah, there's a war in iraq? hanover's a pretty surreal place.</p>
<p>it's hard to be really bored in hanover. there's always something to do if you choose to do it. likewise, it's just as easy to be bored in a city. hell, i'm living in seoul (12 million ppl, 20 million in the metro area) and i'm bored as hell all the time. it's not like you can't see movies in hanover, unless you need to go to like, dozen concerts every month, plenty of musical/theatrical offerings on campus.... shopping sucks, but outlets aren't too far away. and like they say, "Absence is to love what wind is to fire; it extinguishes the small, it enkindles the great."... you'll only appreciate it more when you go home for breaks.... </p>
<p>really, put it this way.</p>
<p>dartmouth is dartmouth because of the location and the isolation</p>
<p>the close community, the big frat scene, the tight alumni bond.... all a result of the location. and once you become a part of it, and once you begin to share the bond, you will learn to love hanover, as i have come to love hanover</p>
<p>and i mean, if you've ever looked at landscape and been like, "wow, that's sweet"..... you'll feel that every morning during the four years you're here. everywhere you turn, it's a story book. venture out 15 minutes from campus, you're in paradise. </p>
<p>4000 people each year choose to be in this isolation. people from all over the world, from NYC and montana alike. "oh, i've never known anything but a city, so i need to be in a city" or "oh, my high school was so isolated, i need to be in a city"..... people came in thinking that, and they ended up fine.</p>
<p>it's a beautiful place. but make a campus visit. if you fall in love during the three days, there's no question you'll love it.</p>
<p>I graduated last year. I do know how to use a computer, thanks. Career service was where I found most of the jobs I applied to that didn't take me seriously because I wasn't regional. I went in to talk to them, and they basically confirmed my fears, they told me companies don't really take you seriously if you're not in the area. Pretty much all the frms that come to the interview are from the Northeast.</p>
<p>Don't kid yourself; Hanover gets boring. There's always something to do if you keep your options open to include things like "Chinese dance troupe" or "hill climbing" or "drinking until 1:30, at which point most people are passed out."</p>
<p>The thing I agree with in the above post is that "dartmouth is dartmouth because of the location and isolation," and don't get me wrong-it's possible to appreciate that, but the danger in what you wrote afterwards is it makes people believe that it'll work for everyone, and it really doesn't. I came in thinking along the lines of "my high school was so isolated, i need to be in a city" and I did not end up fine. I was lured to Dartmouth by many, many well-meaning students such as yourself saying what you did and unfortunately by the time I realized it it was too late. True, I've seen landscapes and thought "that's cool," but the novelty wore off in Hanover pretty damn quickly. Venture out fifteen minutes from campus and you're in the middle of nowhere and most likely freezing -- as if Hanover doesn't qualify for that already.</p>
<p>Xsamantha -</p>
<p>do yourself a favor if at all possible and visit both, if you have not yet. Evanston is not really Chicago and you can kind of get Evanston-bound. You can stand on campus and see the skyline of Chicago and be amazed. But it still takes about an hour, apparently, to hop the train and get to the city and many students claimed not to have really taken advantage of the proximity of Chicago. Still, that is a matter of choice and ambition, and with signficantly less effort and time than from Hanover you can be in an amazing city. Just understand that for much of the time, every college which has a dedicated campus is its own bubble. There are other differences between the two schools to consider and discern as well, so I hope you have or will have a chance to compare the two.</p>
<p>Post-grad career opportunities are definitely not a problem. Both schools have excellent recruiting (Dartmouth in particular, has fantastic connections in investment banking, consulting, and business).</p>
<p>But it's really pretty simple, actually. Most top 25 school prospectives assume that cities are where it's at in terms of exciting things to do and activities to try. But most top 25 school prospectives also grew up in the suburbs and have no idea that a rural setting can be just as exciting. I CHOSE Dartmouth because it is so intimate and everyone knows each other and has great school spirit. I CHOSE Dartmouth because it is in such an intensely beautiful setting and I could climb and kayak here.</p>
<p>I also figured that there is plenty of time to work in cities after graduation. But will I have the chance to work in a rural area after graduation? Probably not- I might as well enjoy it while I can. Besides, while my friends at Penn and other cities make fun of me for being in the "boonies," what do they end up doing on weekends anyway? Staying on campus and partying with their friends in frats. It's expensive getting around in a city so most students just end up hanging out on campus anyways.</p>
<p>That being said...If you are a city person; if you hate the idea of going on weekend hikes with people and having a very intimate community and going to a school with lots of on-campus partying don't go to Dartmouth. If you absolutely NEED a Saks Fifth Avenue and your weekly Frederick Fekkai haircuts or whatever, then don't go to Dartmouth. But if you're unsure or open-minded to the idea of a more laid-back, relaxed, tight community for college, then visit and then make your decision.</p>
<p>Dartmouth students really tend to take advantage of the atmosphere. We leave our stuff lying everywhere, we hang out on the Green (public property, despite its connection to the college), and we spend a lot of time doing things out of doors. The Dartmouth Outing Club, for example, is the most popular student organization on campus; it has its own building.</p>
<p>Instead of everyone dispersing into the city each weekend, you always see your friends around where you hang out. I can't imagine trying to find people, or having the spontaneous get-togethers that we have at Dartmouth at a school near a city. The "togetherness" can seem a little confining, sure. But really, it makes you a Dartmouth student, not just a young adult who goes to a college in the area.</p>
<p>Wow, I definitely appreciate these well-thought out replies. A few of you have made Dartmouth appear much more appealing to me; I've also read the posts in the Dartmouth 10s group about "What I Wish I knew..." and that has been helpful too. I will be going to Dimensions and I think it will help a lot with the decision process. I might not be able to visit Northwestern due to financial constraints (Dartmouth is paying my way, Northwestern is not). </p>
<p>My quandry basically boils down to this: Living in San Jose/Cupertino, CA for the past 8 years has been incredibly suffocating (if any of you know the area, I think you'd understand). At my high school, there really is no community feel at all. Sure everyone knows everyone, but truthfully, each person will have their clique of close friends and the rest of the class/school will simply be faces in the crowd. Is this how it is at Dartmouth as well? Also, I'm not sure I like the idea of Dartmouth being so isolated from the rest of the world that the students aren't in tune with world affairs, current events - this is what it has been throughout high school and to me, it represents ignorance. Surely college students care more about what's going on outside of their lives?</p>
<p>Thanks for all the help you guys (:</p>
<p>dcd -- job opportunities exist outside NH and Boston, that was the meaning of my response. "northeast" does seem to include big firms in NYC. At the same time, i'd think Columbia has just as a difficult time placing its grads in "non-regional" areas, e.g. Texas, etc.</p>
<p>of course not everyone ends up happy at hanover, and i know of many. however it is true that year after year dartmouth students have the highest rate of satisfaction and happiness, in spite of (and in many cases, BECAUSE of) the isolation and location. and i'm pretty sure that many (myself included) dreaded the idea of coming to a place in the middle of nowhere.</p>