I Didn't Visit. So Why Dartmouth?
If you didn't physically visit campus before choosing Dartmouth, how did you make the decision to enroll? What factors influenced your decision?
That's a great question! Thank you! Between you and me, I always feel like I'm one of the 5 people who committed to Dartmouth without ever seeing the campus, which makes sense because the natural beauty of the Dartmouth campus is definitely one of its main selling points.
Now this has nothing to do with your question, but let me let you in on a secret. Part of the reason I chose Dartmouth without ever physically visiting the campus is because, well, I applied early decision by accident. So when I got in, given that I've never visited, and had to live here for the next four years, I should have been terrified
I wasn't scared because I knew that, no matter how I would feel about the campus itself, I knew that I would fall in love with the spirit of the school. Dartmouth is a school with a sense of humor, one that doesn't take itself too seriously. Just Google "Dartmouth mascot" and you'll see exactly what I mean. But even before I knew that, I knew Dartmouth was the school for me as soon as I saw Conan O'Brien's 2011 commencement address, which in my opinion is the greatest commencement address, ever.
I could go on and on about how hilarious that speech was, and how it was the fastest 23 minutes I've ever had. But what strikes me is that once you watch the video, and look behind Conan, the former president Jim Kim is dying laughing. The man looks like he's about to fall out of his chair. Which strikes me as odd, because when you think of university presidents you think of these old men in suits and horned glasses who look mean all the time, forever. And yet here I saw Conan O'Brien delivering jokes making fun of President Kim, and Kim was just wiping away tears. It was so refreshing to see a university president like that laugh so freely, even at himself.
And it's not just the president, it's every aspect of Dartmouth life. I'm part of the school's humor magazine, the Dartmouth Jack-O-Lantern, and we're the organization who designed the mascot I mentioned above, and where Dr. Seuss first used the name "Dr. Seuss." And again, that's not even mentioning flair, which is an excuse for Dartmouth kids to dress up in the stupidest things they find imaginable.
Overall, I can go on and on about how amazing the academics are here, how abundant the research opportunities, whatever. But the underlying idea is that the spirit of the school is just so refreshing to be around. One where you're free to pursue whatever you want however you choose to because, at the end of the day, it's just more fun that way.