Should I Try Applying to Dartmouth? (ED, legacy)

I’m currently a junior at a competitive high school in New York. White, female, income >$100,000. my mother went to dartmouth and is involved as an alumni. she has donated money in the past and interviews prospective applicants in our area. would apply early decision. i want to go into psychology in college.
i’ll be honest, realizing that i would be going to college didn’t hit me until the start of junior year. i plan to make this year and senior year count. my current gpa from 8th- sophomore is a 3.76 uw and 3.9 w on a 4.3 scale. on my psat 10 i scored in the 1400s. i plan to take the psat again this october, and then the sat twice. aiming for somewhere in the 1500s, or as close as i can get to a 1600. got a 4 on AP World History. taking 4 APs during my junior year (APUSH, AP Lang, AP Psych, AP Bio) and plan to take 4-5 during my senior year. i’ve done two seasons of jv rowing, and have participated in only a few clubs last year (1 leadership position). but this year i’m doing three honor societies and additionally 5+ clubs. aiming for 3+ leadership positions, and will definitely get at least 2. also i’m doing around 5 hours a week of volunteering. going for the presidential award and my school community service award. volunteering at food drive, hospital, and with children. high school internship at the met during the winter/spring, overseas volunteering during next summer, and hopefully some sort of internship over the summer, too. scholastic art and writing awards medals + a few other wins from writing competitions.

now i know you will read this and will probably immediately dismiss me because of my gpa. i haven’t really considered the possibility of applying to dartmouth, or any other selective schools, until this year. let me tell you a little about my backstory: single mother divorced when i was very young, never got to know my dad and i have little memory of him. my mother remarried when i was around 6, and over the next few years we lived through domestic violence, both verbal and physical. i have some bad memories of that time. mother divorced again. moved to a much smaller house, struggling to pay rent, severely financially suffering. i remember kids making fun of me for always wearing the same thing every day in elementary school, and the embarrassment of checks bouncing, and my mother begging the manager to let her buy food so her kids wouldn’t go hungry. fast forward to middle school. that’s when my severe depression and anxiety kicks in. i’m only 13 and having suicidal thoughts. self-harm. self hatred and lots of feelings of worthlessness. then in 8th grade my eating disorder starts with bulimia. my twin brother gets sent away for about year to a detention center for trying to hurt my mother (more domestic violence). then last year, things get worse, and i relapse the self-harming. school finds out. about 10 CPS cases against my family at this point from over the years. i go to therapy twice then stop because the CPS case was closed- mother doesn’t know and/or care how depressed i am. currently still struggling with my mental health. eating disorder went from bulimia to binging to EDNOS and now to anorexia over the course of a few years. might get hospitalized if i lose enough weight. who knows. some days i think i’m better. some days my disorder is the only thing i have.
but even through all that i still got mostly As (a few Bs). even at my lowest points my grades never suffered that badly.

anyway, that turned into a very long rant(ish) story. but that part of my life is perhaps the most important. it’s the main reason i want to study psychology. it kills me inside to know that there are millions of others who have gone through similar things i have. if i end up helping just one family, or just one person, i’ll feel like i might have something worth living for. that’s why i’m considering applying to dartmouth. my gpa and ecs may not be the typical dartmouth student’s, but then again, neither am i. i think my essay will play a vital role in my application. i have been through a lot, but i’m not throwing a pity party. i’m doing better this year, and i swear that in whichever college i end up going to, i’m going to work for my education so i can help the people who have suffered, and prevent it from happening to them again. i’m not looking for sympathy. just trying to show that i’m coming out stronger on the other end.

You’ve certainly had to face a lot of challenges. Happy you are doing better and love hearing your positive attitude and motivation for studying psychology!

To answer your question, the thing I didn’t see in your post was anything about why you love Dartmouth and think it would be a place you’d thrive. This decision is about you, not following your mom’s legacy. If Dartmouth is your #1 choice and you’d have no regrets attending there, then by all means apply ED. Your story is unique so it’s tough to compare yourself with the typical applicant. But if you’re not sure, research and visit other schools and build a short-list of those that are a good fit for you.

Good luck!

Yes you should! Get that GPA up, get a 1500+ on the SAT, get 700+ on two subject tests, and be active and engaged in your ECs