Dartmouth asks three things: a 100-word "why Dartmouth" answer, one of two 250-word prompts about who you are (the environment you were raised in, or an introduction of yourself), and one of six 250-word prompts that range from "What excites you?" to celebrating your nerdy side.
Dartmouth says the supplement helps it see how you and Dartmouth might be a good fit for each other. With only 600 words in total, each answer must show a different side of you.
Dartmouth's questions at a glance
| Question | Limit | Who answers it | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Why Dartmouth | 100 words | Required | Why this college |
| Let your life speak | 250 words | Choose 1 of 2 | Background and identity |
| Introduce yourself | 250 words | Choose 1 of 2 | Creative prompt |
| What excites you? | 250 words | Choose 1 of 6 | Intellectual curiosity |
| A life of purpose (Dolores Huerta) | 250 words | Choose 1 of 6 | Community |
| Insight from reading (Matt Haig) | 250 words | Choose 1 of 6 | Intellectual curiosity |
| A difficult conversation (Jane Goodall) | 250 words | Choose 1 of 6 | Disagreement and dialogue |
| Celebrate your nerdy side | 250 words | Choose 1 of 6 | Intellectual curiosity |
| How difference is part of your life (Kermit) | 250 words | Choose 1 of 6 | Background and identity |
How to plan the Dartmouth supplement
- 1Pick your two choice prompts together so they do not overlap: if you introduce yourself through your family in prompt 2, use prompt 3 for an idea, a book or an impact.
- 2Write the 100-word why-Dartmouth answer last, when you know what the other two already show.
- 3100 words is four or five sentences: one or two specific reasons, each tied to you.
1. Why Dartmouth
Dartmouth's wording · 100 words · Required“As you seek admission to Dartmouth's Class of 2031, what aspects of the college's academic program, community, and/or campus environment attract your interest? How is Dartmouth a good fit for you?”
What it is really asking. In 100 words: which parts of Dartmouth's academics, community or campus attract you, and how Dartmouth fits you.
How to approach it
- 1Pick one or two specific things, not five.
- 2Tie each to something you do or want.
- 3Skip the warm-up: start with the reason.
Mistakes to avoid
- A first sentence about Dartmouth's history or rankings.
- Naming outdoors or small classes without saying what you would do with them.
Full guide: How to Write the 100-Word "Why Dartmouth" Essay
Required of all applicants: respond to one of the following prompts in 250 words or fewer.
2. Let your life speak
Dartmouth's wording · 250 words · Choose 1 of 2“There is a Quaker saying: Let your life speak. Describe the environment in which you were raised and the impact it has had on the person you are today.”
What it is really asking. The environment you were raised in and its impact on who you are now. Dartmouth frames it with the Quaker saying "Let your life speak".
How to approach it
- 1Choose a few concrete details of the environment: a room, a street, a routine.
- 2Show the impact through a choice or habit you have now.
- 3Keep the focus on you, not the place.
Mistakes to avoid
- A travel-guide description of your town.
- Only hardship, with no sense of what it built in you.
Full guide: How to Write Dartmouth's "Let Your Life Speak" Essay
3. Introduce yourself
Dartmouth's wording · 250 words · Choose 1 of 2“"Be yourself," Oscar Wilde advised. "Everyone else is taken." Introduce yourself.”
What it is really asking. Introduce yourself (Oscar Wilde: "Be yourself; everyone else is taken"). The open form is the test: what you choose to say first.
How to approach it
- 1Choose one surprising angle on you rather than a summary.
- 2Use a form that fits you: a list, a scene, a set of rules you live by.
- 3Make sure a reader learns something real by the end.
Mistakes to avoid
- A résumé in sentences.
- Being quirky with nothing underneath.
Full guide: How to Write Dartmouth's "Introduce Yourself" Essay
Required of all applicants: respond to one of the following prompts in 250 words or fewer.
4. What excites you?
Dartmouth's wording · 250 words · Choose 1 of 6“What excites you?”
What it is really asking. What excites you: a direct invitation to show energy and curiosity.
How to approach it
- 1Pick one specific thing and show yourself in it.
- 2Explain why it excites you, which is what readers remember.
Mistakes to avoid
- A list of passions.
More on this kind of question: Writing about a topic that captivates you
5. A life of purpose (Dolores Huerta)
Dartmouth's wording · 250 words · Choose 1 of 6“Labor leader and civil rights activist Dolores Huerta recommended a life of purpose. "We must use our lives to make the world a better place to live, not just to acquire things," she said. "That is what we are put on the earth for." In what ways do you hope to make—or are you already making—an impact? Why? How?”
What it is really asking. How you hope to make, or already make, an impact, and why and how (Dolores Huerta's "life of purpose").
How to approach it
- 1Show one impact you have made with specifics.
- 2Explain the why, then the next how.
Mistakes to avoid
- Big promises with no current action.
More on this kind of question: How to write the community essay
6. Insight from reading (Matt Haig)
Dartmouth's wording · 250 words · Choose 1 of 6“In an Instagram post, best-selling British author Matt Haig cheered the impact of reading. "A good novel is the best invention humans have ever created for imagining other lives," he wrote. How have you experienced such insight from reading? What did you read and how did it alter the way you understand yourself and others?”
What it is really asking. Insight from reading: what you read and how it changed the way you understand yourself and others (Matt Haig on novels).
How to approach it
- 1Name the book and the moment in it.
- 2Show the change in how you see someone in your life.
Mistakes to avoid
- A book report.
- Choosing a book to impress.
More on this kind of question: Writing about a topic that captivates you
7. A difficult conversation (Jane Goodall)
Dartmouth's wording · 250 words · Choose 1 of 6“The social and family interactions of wild chimpanzees have been the focus of Dame Jane Goodall's research for decades. Her understanding of animal behavior prompted the English primatologist to see a lesson for human communities as well: "Change happens by listening and then starting a dialogue with the people who are doing something you don't believe is right." Channel Dame Goodall: Tell us about a moment when you engaged in a difficult conversation or encountered someone with an opinion or perspective that was different from your own. How did you find common ground?”
What it is really asking. A difficult conversation or a different perspective, and how you found common ground (Jane Goodall: listen, then start a dialogue).
How to approach it
- 1Show the listening before the talking.
- 2Name the common ground precisely.
Mistakes to avoid
- A debate you won.
More on this kind of question: Writing about a belief you questioned
8. Celebrate your nerdy side
Dartmouth's wording · 250 words · Choose 1 of 6“Celebrate your nerdy side.”
What it is really asking. Celebrate your nerdy side.
How to approach it
- 1Go deep on one nerdy thing with real detail.
- 2Let the joy show.
Mistakes to avoid
- Apologizing for being nerdy.
More on this kind of question: Writing about a topic that captivates you
9. How difference is part of your life (Kermit)
Dartmouth's wording · 250 words · Choose 1 of 6“"It's not easy being green…" was the frequent refrain of Kermit the Frog. How has difference been a part of your life, and how have you embraced it as part of your identity, outlook, or sense of purpose?”
What it is really asking. How difference has been part of your life and how you embraced it in your identity, outlook or purpose (Kermit: "It's not easy being green").
How to approach it
- 1Show difference in one moment.
- 2Then show how you embraced it, in action.
Mistakes to avoid
- Only the difficulty, with no embracing.
More on this kind of question: How to write the diversity essay
What our grader checks in your Dartmouth answers
Every answer is judged against a checklist for its kind of question plus one check written for Dartmouth's own wording. Each area comes back Met, Partly or Missing, and those verdicts (with the word limit) set the answer's readiness: Ready, Nearly there or Needs work. There is no score out of 100.
| Question | Dartmouth's own check |
|---|---|
| Why Dartmouth | In 100 words, names one or two concrete aspects of Dartmouth's academics, community or campus and says why they fit the applicant. |
| Let your life speak | Describes the environment the applicant was raised in and its impact on the person they are today. |
| Introduce yourself | An introduction only this applicant could write: specific, personal, not a résumé. |
| What excites you? | It does every part of what Dartmouth's question asks, in the college's own terms. |
| A life of purpose (Dolores Huerta) | It connects the answer to Dartmouth's community and does every part of what Dartmouth's question asks. |
| Insight from reading (Matt Haig) | It does every part of what Dartmouth's question asks, in the college's own terms. |
| A difficult conversation (Jane Goodall) | It does every part of what Dartmouth's question asks, in the college's own terms. |
| Celebrate your nerdy side | It does every part of what Dartmouth's question asks, in the college's own terms. |
| How difference is part of your life (Kermit) | It connects the answer to Dartmouth's community and does every part of what Dartmouth's question asks. |
The type checklists are on the supplemental essay grader page.
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