When you were trying to figure out your college situation, you probably saw the gorges of Ithaca, ventured across Cambridge Square and almost got mugged in New Haven. But after all that, you ended up at one certain Ivy League school whether it won you over, you were rejected from Harvard or you ended up here by chance. Maybe you went to Dimensions, maybe you had an awesome recruiting trip or maybe you just happen to look good in green. However your decision-making process went,
Dartmouth was the Ivy that stuck with you in a sea of higher education options.
So what is it about this Ivy that made it stand out to each of us? And how do we feel we compare to our more heavily talked about peers?
When comparing the Big Green to other Ivy League schools, many students attributed its unique appeal to the general atmosphere on campus. Meg Guard '14 cited the overall sincerity of the College and its student body.
"Dartmouth seemed to be the only one that stood out to me based on the community aspect," she said. "The people I met here seemed to be genuine."
She was especially struck by the contrast she saw at our peer schools.
"The people at Columbia, Yale and Harvard seemed to be over-polished," she said. "I didn't feel like I'd fit in in that perfectionist environment."
Other students agreed with the notion that Dartmouth is more laid-back than its Ivy League counterparts.
"Cornell felt disjointed, and Princeton felt like a country club," Bobby Arao '13 said. "Dartmouth was the only school I visited where I felt like I was at home, and people around me were excited for me to be here."
Many students said that Dartmouth has the friendliest atmosphere within the Ivy League. This quality does not only manifest itself in welcoming prospective students, but also in the classroom setting, according to Eileen Chen '15.
"We're definitely not as competitive," she said. "It's hilarious that even in classes that are graded on a curve, we help each other."
Dartmouth's social scene also differs from many other Ivies in a lot ways. While several other Ivies also have Greek systems, Dartmouth has by far the highest percentage of affiliated individuals. A comparable system, Harvard's Finals Clubs, sees membership of less than 10 percent of eligible students. In addition, Princeton's eating clubs boast price tags of up to $8,000 per year, which makes our slush funds seem like pocket change.
"The College organizes itself in a more inclusive way," Bukola Badipe-Hart '15 said regarding our more structured social scene, which is organized by a pretty large administrative office. "Other Ivies are more exclusive."
Aside from the atmospheric and social aspects that make the College unique, Dartmouth is similarly unique in its academic emphasis, with some areas ranked stronger than others. In 2009, U.S. News and World Report ranked Dartmouth as "Best in Undergraduate Teaching," calling Dartmouth professors "true exemplars of the phrase teacher-scholar.'" And yet, we still aren't quite up to par with HYP, Penn or Columbia in our overall ranking. Maybe one day we'll catch up, but we're clearly hindered by our small number of graduate schools, limited endowment and reduced overall enrollment.
In contrast to her positive academic experience at Dartmouth, Charlene Minaya '15 cited her experience sitting in on an English class at Columbia as "horrifying,"
"The differences between the [academics at Dartmouth and Columbia] were glaringly dramatic," she said. "The professors here seemed more qualified, and we have so much more access to them."
Outside of the classroom, the D-Plan provides students certain opportunities in exploring opportunities and gaining early job experience. A 2011 U.S News and World Report ranked Dartmouth as third overall and first among the Ivies for having the most number of students participating in internships during their time at the College. But the D-Plan is a bit of a double-edged sword, too how many times have you returned home on break, only to find that none of your friends are around? Grim. Just wait until next Fall, when you're done in November and have weeks of solitude to contemplate your college decision.
While it might be frustrating for students to be separated from our friends for months at a time, the benefits of the D-plan seem to outweigh the costs. In addition to enriching cultural experiences and valuable research opportunities, when it comes down to it, Dartmouth grads are making bank. In the PayScale 2008 Education and Salary Report, Dartmouth alumni were named as having the highest median salary, $134,000, 10 to 20 years out of school (unfortunately, we dropped to sixth in the 2011-2012 report here's looking at you '10s and '11s!).
Overall, we might not have the lowest acceptance rate or the highest endowment, but we all know that what our school has to offer is not easily summarized on a page of The Princeton Review. While we'd like to think that Dartmouth is quite obviously the best of the Ivies (because it is), the reality is that when you're comparing schools of such caliber, they all look pretty good on paper.
To our rivals and peers, we'll at least give you that.
