High school students will come to the Dartmouth campus this summer not just to participate in debate or volleyball programs, but to seek a leg up in the for the increasingly competitive college admissions process.
Dartmouth will play host this summer to an 11-day program called College Admissions Advantage, put on by Academic Study Associates. The program is not associated with the College, but its arrival comes to the chagrin of the admissions office.
"I don't know much about it, but I don't particularly look favorably on these programs in general because they provide services to a population that is already advantaged by the [admissions] process," Dean of Admissions Karl Furstenberg said. "It goes against what we're really trying to do, which is level the playing field."
CAA executive director Marcia Evans presented a different image of the program, as an opportunity for those who aren't as fortunate.
"We offer an educational program to explain to many students who can't go to a private educational consultant," Evans said. "Our goal is the demystification of the admissions process, so we provide experts to help explain the process."
The camp's students will be housed in Dartmouth dormitories, an arrangement made by the College's conferences and events office.
"It's a program we wish didn't exist," Furstenberg said. "All sorts of groups use Dartmouth facilities, and I'm sure this group is reputable, but I'd just prefer they weren't using the campus and starting that association."
ASA first offered the college admissions camp at Amherst College and Pepperdine University last summer. After the success of last year's programs, ASA decided to open up their third camp at Dartmouth this upcoming summer from Aug. 3 to Aug. 13. The cost of the program is $2,695.
Spots in the camp are first-come first-serve, and will be capped at 35 rising high school juniors and seniors, according to Evans. The camp offers SAT prep, essay-writing classes, and workshops and seminars on aspects of the college admissions process.
The SAT prep, totaling 30 hours of lessons, will be taught by the Princeton Review. Students will receive two hours of personal essay writing and instruction, in addition to five hours of personal counseling sessions with college counselors. A student to faculty ratio of nearly five to one points to lots of individual attention, but Evans isn't offering any promises.
"We don't guarantee if you come to us we'll get you into a better college," Evans said.
ASA also offers a Northeast college tour run by College Visits that spans August 13-19, costing $995.
As the Dimensions of Dartmouth weekend approaches, at least one accepted student Dartmouth scoffed at the need for a college preparatory camp such as ASA.
"They're pointless," said potential '08 Chris Knape, of Grand Rapid, Mich. "With just a little common sense, some practice, and any advising at all you can figure out the process. There is no need to go to camp for it; it is just a waste of money."
