Dartmouth College's wording, checked October 26, 2026“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?”
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.
A structure that works
One way to shape this answer. It describes moves, not sentences: the words have to be yours.
- 1The strongest reason, in your first sentence, with the specific Dartmouth thing named.
- 2Why it matters to you, through something you have done.
- 3A second, smaller reason or how you would take part.
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.
The checklist our grader uses for this question
When you check your Dartmouth answers, this answer is read against these 5 areas. Each comes back Met, Partly or Missing with a quote from your draft as evidence, and together with the 100 words limit they set its readiness verdict.
| Area | What a reader looks for |
|---|---|
| Answers the question | The opening sentences answer what was asked, plainly, before background or a hook; every part of a multi-part question is answered. |
| Specific to this college | It names at least two concrete things that exist at this college (a program, course, research group, tradition, place, way of teaching) and could not survive a swap of the college's name. |
| Connected to you | Each thing named is tied to something the applicant has done, asked or wants, so the reader sees why it matters to THIS student, not why the college is good. |
| What you would do there | It shows how the applicant would use those things and what they would add (join, start, research, contribute), not only what they would receive. |
| Dartmouth's ask | In 100 words, names one or two concrete aspects of Dartmouth's academics, community or campus and says why they fit the applicant. |
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Questions
More on Dartmouth and this kind of question
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- Brown: Your approach to the Open Curriculum · 150-250 words
- Cornell: CALS: what draws you to CALS · 350 words
- Cornell: Engineering: why Duffield · 200 words
- Duke: Why Duke · 250 words