Peer recommendation letter! Is it essential?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Dartmouth College
1

I’m an international student and applied to Dartmouth (amongst other schools) for admissions for the class of 2025.

I sent the Admissions Committee all the required materials but didn’t send a peer recommendation letter. Is this going to impact my application seriously?

Just for background, I scored a 1510/1600 on the SAT, had pretty much straight A’s during high school, and had a really good interview with a Dartmouth alumni as part of the application process (he said he hopes Dartmouth offers me a place).

Thanks for answering!

2

I mean it says highly recommended on the website, but I assume it’s like an interview in that it wont hurt you to not do it but it can help you if you do.

1 Like
3

The peer recommendation is what makes Dartmouth unique in comparison to other institutions. They are trying to see if you are a sociable person and how well you’ve maintained relationships with others. It is, in my opinion, important.

2 Likes
4

Thank you for the answer!

The reason why I ended up not sending it with the rest of my application was the Brazilian college admissions process, which made almost all of my friends extremely busy by the end of last year.
However, as it seems to be really important, do you think that sending one now would help a little? (the admissions page still has the option for inviting someone to send it)

5

OP wrote: “(the admissions page still has the option for inviting someone to send it)”

What does that tell you ?

My interpretation is that this is an important part of the Dartmouth College application process.

Not sure, but if this portion of the application packet remains unfulfilled, there might be an assumption made that one’s peer did not want to send in a recommendation.

6

hey! i’m an international as well :slight_smile: I wouldn’t stress too much i’ve heard of a lot of people getting in without a peer rec. They do take it into consideration but I doubt it’ll be a big part of ur application in comparison to ur grades or essays. I’ve heard it carries the same weight as the interview in the sense that it can only help u, but i may be wrong!

2 Likes
7

Oh, this has brought some relief haha.

Thanks for answering!

1 Like