Hi so I have a question about how Dartmouth might view an additional recommendation (aside from the one they already recommend from a peer). Would it be ok for me to submit a recommendation written by a club adviser in the other recommendation portion of Common Application if I already have one coming from a peer? The person I’m looking to have write a recommendation for me is a teacher who taught me only my freshmen year but has known me extensively outside of school since my one year in his class (I participate in two of the clubs/organizations he runs, one of which I have been president in for two years, and he was the chaperone for when I went on a school trip for about a week and a half to Guatemala). Would having this additional recommendation along with the four others required/recommended already (two teacher, counselor, and peer) be too much for the admissions office? I feel like five recommendations being submitted might come off as weird/desperate/idk to the person reading my application? Any input would be greatly appreciated!!!
@reinian18 IMHO, I think you are asking the wrong question. You already know that Dartmouth requires 3 recs (2 teacher, 1 counselor) and strongly recommends a peer rec. In addition, they allow you to submit one rec from an arts instructor and one additional one. That’s a total of 6 that you can submit.
What you should really be asking yourself is…“Does each one of my recommendations add something to my application?” If you have four recommendations that all say reinian18 is a really smart, diligent student who loves helping people, kittens and soft serve ice cream…then why would you submit a fifth one that says the same exact thing? It would add nothing to your application. Ideally, the five recommendations should work together to craft your story. They should also work with the rest of your application as well (e.g. your essays, course load, extracurriculars, and so on). Once you figure all of this out, you should be able to answer if five recs is too many.
Thank you!!!