There are both visible and invisible transformations that take Dartmouth by storm in the fall. The leaves change in a stunning and dramatic fashion, and the weather gets cooler. Under the surface, especially in the first couple weeks, campus is also wrapped in a powerful tension. Sophomores are preparing to — or are already in the process of — rushing their respective Greek houses of choice. By the end of week three, each respective fraternity and sorority will have a brand-new crop of members. As a member of a fraternity, this is an anticipatory time: It’s exciting to meet potential new members and work with my brothers to shape a class that we feel reflects both individual and house values.
Rush is one of the most significant markers in many Dartmouth students’ careers, but it also coincides with another notable timeline. As recruitment cycles move forward, most investment banks now begin their hiring process of new interns during sophomore fall, for positions in junior summer.
Because of this timeline, the rush process now shares a chronological comorbidity with many Dartmouth students’ sense of openness in potential future options. That is to say that students very rapidly pass two major milestones in their time here: they join a Greek house, often considered the backbone of one’s social life, and they get a job, the central goal that many students understand as the entire point of going to college. The parallels don’t stop at the shared timeline.
Students recruiting for an investment banking job will soon find that one of the key aspects is networking. Goldman Sachs, for example, received 315,000 applications for 2,600 internships in 2024. If you don’t have some kind of special in at the firm, it is very possible that you will become lost in the application pile. Luckily, incessantly reaching out to Dartmouth alumni who work at various banks can help you get referred for an interview, and eventually get a job.
One of my friends working for a top bank told me that when he called Dartmouth alumni who worked there, he didn’t even ask about the bank itself. He simply asked about peoples’ lives and background, relying on the rule that “people like to work with people they like.” After making countless calls and making it through a couple rounds of interviews, he landed one of the most desirable jobs in America.
The other interesting thing about rushing right before investment banking recruiting is that it gives many students a new network of alumni to contact for jobs. Now, one doesn’t just have the ability to contact Dartmouth alumni, but they also have a network of fraternity or sorority alumni that work at top banks, creating a powerful sense of shared experience, even if the student has only been affiliated for a month or two.
Many of the people I know who have gone through recruiting have told me that their Greek affiliation played a key role in their networking, and an important role in the eventual job offer they received.
It doesn’t take a visionary to point out the striking similarities between Greek rush and investment banking recruiting. Talking to a large number of people at an organization that you wish to be part of, hoping that you make a good first impression and eventually either receiving an offer or not. It’s almost like the Dartmouth social system is primed to train students to recruit.
I’m happy for my friends who have received job offers. They are excited about their future opportunities, and feel a sense of weight lifted off their shoulders. At the same time, I am grimly fascinated by the corpo-fraternity meat-grinding machine that seems to churn out the soft skills they need to get these jobs.
When you think about it, the student experience of fall isn’t dissimilar to that of a tree and the dramatic change of color that comes in the fall. A sense of future possibility in many students begins to wilt, but not without a dramatic and colorful final exhibition, represented by affiliation in a new social space sure to bring more parties and fun social experiences to the rest of one’s Dartmouth career. In death, a dramatic display.
To the ’28s rushing, good luck. I hope that you find a space that offers true fellowship, where you can make lasting memories. Just be aware of what this whole process might be doing to your mind, and your personal tree.
Opinion columns represent the views of their author(s), which are not necessarily those of The Dartmouth.
Eli Moyse ’27 is an opinion editor and columnist for The Dartmouth. He studies government and creative writing. He publishes various personal work under a pen name on Substack (https://substack.com/@wesmercer), and you can find his other work in various publications.
