<p>For what it’s worth, Dartmouth admissions does take into account the fact that you will be the first of your family to go to college. It actually helps you in terms of lower scores/grades because they understand you may not have had access to all the prep/planning/etc., even encouragement to do well in school. </p>
<p>I definitely wouldn’t say that you have a great shot, but it is not out of the realm of possibility, especially if you show that you can be an outstanding “community member”. Dartmouth is not just looking for the academic portion of a person’s application - they are also looking for who will contribute to the community as a whole and who they would want at the school in terms of personalities and other “intangibles”. </p>
<p>I would put Dartmouth as a high reach for you, but don’t give up on the application just because your scores are low. Find teachers to write glowing recommendations (not just ones that say you are a great student, but ones that know you as a person and any hardships you have overcome or any particularly interesting strengths you have exhibited in the classroom or school community). Do an interview - those don’t usually do anything but restate what the admissions committee can already see, but they can also tip the scales for or against you in a decision between you and another candidate. </p>
<p>Also, I know it is too late at this point for you, but for anyone else in the future, applying Early Decision lets the admissions committee know you are serious about coming to Dartmouth. It can help you stand out a bit among just 4-5k applications instead of tens of thousands. </p>
<p>Good luck!</p>