Dartmouth undergraduate admission · 2026-27 first-year applicants

Answers

For every question: which parts of an applicant's background to use, how they connect to what the question tests, and the points to hit - not a script. See it for our sample applicant, or upload your Common App and get it for yours.

Make it yours. Upload your Common App and get these answers from your own background: which of your stories fit each question, the angle to take and the points to hit.

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In the Common App, open Review and submit, then Preview, and save the PDF. Or upload your essays and activities as Word or text. For every question we show you which parts of your application to draw on, how they connect to what the question tests, talking points, and what's missing - not a script to memorize. Nothing is invented. We read your file once and don't keep it. Your guidance is saved to your account, so you can come back to it on any device, and you can upload again anytime to replace it.

Sample applicant: Wren. A 2027 graduate-to-be of Lester River High School in Duluth, Minnesota, applying Regular Decision to Dartmouth College for 2026-27. She has spent three winters measuring the ice on St. Louis Bay with a hand auger and homemade sensor strings. She also works dawn shifts at a bakery, waxes skis for her Nordic team, and wants to study Earth Sciences.

Wren is fictional, and so are Lester River High School, Harbor Light Bakery, the St. Louis Bay Ice Log, Amity Ridge Nature Center and the Arrowhead Lakes Monitoring Collaborative; the application was written for this sample. Every answer below uses only what's in the application, the way your own will. Read Wren's application (PDF).

Opening

So, tell me a little about yourself. Sample applicant

Based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant - not on you. Upload your Common App to get this from your own background.

Material

St. Louis Bay Ice Log: 9 fixed points, 41 measurement days, about 600 readers, the $38 temperature string lost through the ice in March 2025 It's the thing you'd most want him to dig into next, and it shows drive without anyone asking you to do it.
Harbor Light Bakery 4:30 a.m. Saturday shift, opening alone since June 2025, plus driving your brother to hockey four days a week Gives a quick picture of the reliable, show-up person your 'Let your life speak' essay describes, without retelling it.
Boundary Waters trips with your dad, including planning the 62-mile route in 2025 Rounds you out beyond science and connects to who you are outdoors.

The angle

You're a Duluth kid who turned an argument about ice thickness into three winters of real data, and who also gets up before the snowplows to laminate croissant dough. Leading with the ice log tells him where your curiosity comes from, and adding the bakery and family driving shows the steady, caring side Dartmouth looks for. He designs piers for ice loads on the North Shore, so he will likely follow up. Give him a short opening he can pull on, not the whole story.

Talking points

Start with Duluth and Lake Superior in one line: where you live and why the lake matters to you
Name the ice log briefly: 9 spots every Sunday, now about 600 readers, and leave the snow discovery for him to ask about
Add the 4:30 a.m. bakery shift and driving your brother, to show what a normal week looks like for you
Mention the canoe trips with your dad and planning the 62-mile route
Stop after about a minute, and let him choose what to ask about

To think about

What do you do just for fun, when nothing needs measuring or doing? He'll learn more about you from one honest detail there.

Avoid: Don't recite your personal essay from Uncle Pete onward. He may have read it, and a retold essay sounds rehearsed. Keep the Gary message and the lost string for follow-ups. Also don't list all eight activities in a row.

From: Wren's application · the question and its sources

What's important to you in a college?

A preview, based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant. Upload your Common App to preview your own.

Material

Your 7 a.m. AP Chemistry help sessions after the C+ and redoing every missed question by hand Shows you value professors you can actually reach, which fits Take Your Professor to Lunch and the first-year faculty advisor.

The angle

Talking points

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Why Dartmouth, and what you'd study

Why Dartmouth? Sample applicant

Based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant - not on you. Upload your Common App to get this from your own background.

Material

Supplement: Institute of Arctic Studies, Earth Sciences Stretch, D-Plan off-term on a Minnesota lake or in Greenland Your specific academic hooks, already tied to the ice log.
Dartmouth Outing Club and First-Year Trip, plus canoe trips with your dad (62-mile route you planned in 2025) Shows the community side is about people you trust, not an 'outdoorsy vibe'.
Lost Arduino string, March 2025 Shows why you need real training: your measurements hit a limit.

The angle

Your interviewer is a Thayer engineer, DOC member and First-Year Trip leader who thinks about ice loads on piers, so generic snow talk will fall flat but your ice data will not. Show that Dartmouth is where your Sunday measurements stop being amateur: Arctic Studies, the Stretch, and off-terms give you the training and fieldwork your pickle-jar string couldn't. Picture yourself using it, not just being there.

Talking points

Start from the limit you hit: seven weeks of data, then the string went into the bay
Name Institute of Arctic Studies and the Stretch, and what you'd want to learn there that you can't teach yourself
Explain the D-Plan off-term idea: back on a Minnesota lake, or Greenland with a faculty project
Bring in First-Year Trip and DOC through planning the 2025 Boundary Waters route and portages
Ask yourself: is there an Earth Sciences professor or project whose work you could name?

To think about

Which specific Dartmouth faculty member, course or research project on ice or lakes have you actually looked up?

Avoid: Reciting your 100-word supplement word for word, and leaning on 'small and cold' as a reason; he knows it, give substance instead.

From: Wren's application · the question and its sources

What are you interested in, academically? What might you major in, and what do you see yourself doing after? Sample applicant

Based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant - not on you. Upload your Common App to get this from your own background.

Material

Introductory Geology through UMD and AP Environmental Science this year Current coursework you can talk about with real detail.
Arrowhead Lakes Monitoring Collaborative, summer 2026: 14 lakes, Secchi readings, the wrong lake ID since 2022 Shows you've done professional-style data work and care about data accuracy.
Science Olympiad Dynamic Planet (glaciers and lakes), 3rd at regionals Shows depth in the exact topic you want to study.

The angle

You say Earth Sciences and Environmental Studies; make it concrete as lake ice and freshwater systems, and show you know what scientists in that field actually do because you did a slice of it last summer. Dartmouth doesn't make you declare until sophomore year, so it's fine to be open about careers, but be clear about the question that drives you.

Talking points

Name the question from your essay: why ice grows and why it fails where it does
Describe something from Intro Geology or APES this year that connects to it
Use the lake monitoring summer: what catching the wrong lake ID taught you about data
Be honest about career: unsure, but which jobs have you seen (lake monitoring staff, engineers like your interviewer)?
Mention you're open to the first-year advisor outside your field

To think about

What careers have you actually pictured, and have you talked to anyone doing them?

Avoid: Claiming a fixed career you haven't explored; also don't lecture an ice-load engineer on ice, ask him instead.

From: Wren's application · the question and its sources

Where does that interest come from?

A preview, based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant. Upload your Common App to preview your own.

Material

Uncle Pete, the singing ice at age eleven, and the two guesses four inches apart The true origin of your curiosity.

The angle

Talking points

Unlock to read the rest, for every question.

What club or activity would you want to be part of at Dartmouth?

A preview, based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant. Upload your Common App to preview your own.

Material

Dartmouth Outing Club and First-Year Trip Named in your supplement; your interviewer led a trip.

The angle

Talking points

Unlock to read the rest, for every question.

Your classes, projects and activities

What's been your favorite class in high school, and why? Sample applicant

Based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant - not on you. Upload your Common App to get this from your own background.

Material

Introductory Geology (College in the Schools, UMD), senior year Your intended field, taught at college level, and it connects straight to your ice questions.
AP Chemistry: C+ first semester to B+ Shows how you learn when it's hard: the 7 a.m. sessions and redoing every missed question.

The angle

The question is how you learn, so pick the class that changed the way you think, not the one with the best grade. Geology lets you show how classroom ideas meet your Sunday measurements on St. Louis Bay. Chemistry, if you choose it, shows honesty and a habit you still use, which Stuart, an engineer, will respect.

Talking points

Name Introductory Geology through UMD and what makes it feel different from a high-school class
Pick one idea from the course that changed how you read the ice at your nine spots: which one?
Optional turn: AP Chemistry C+, the memorizing trap, redoing mistakes by hand
Tie back to wanting to stop being an amateur with an auger

To think about

Which specific lesson, lab or rock in Geology made you see something new?

Avoid: Don't drift into retelling the whole ice log here; save it for the project question.

From: Wren's application · the question and its sources

Tell me about a project, paper, or lab you were especially proud of, and why. Sample applicant

Based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant - not on you. Upload your Common App to get this from your own background.

Material

The $38 Arduino temperature string, lost through the ice in March 2025 A project you designed, built, lost, and still learned from.
Seven weeks of data: ice grew fastest on clear, still nights after wind cleared the snow The real finding, which shows zest for figuring things out.
Second string tied to a shore post with 100 feet of line; regional science fair honorable mention Shows you fixed the failure.

The angle

Stuart designs for ice loads on Lake Superior piers, so the technical detail of your string is your strongest ground with him. Pride here should come from the snow-insulation surprise, not the award. Let him ask follow-ups; he'll want to.

Talking points

Describe the build: eight sensors, Arduino, battery in a pickle jar, frozen in January 2025
The March southwest wind, the lead you didn't predict, the string gone
What the seven weeks showed: snow insulates, clear still nights matter
The fix: second string, shore post, 100 feet of line
What would you measure next if you had better gear?

To think about

What would you change in the design now, and what do you still not understand in your data?

Avoid: Your essay already tells this story; add detail not in it (wiring, sealing, data analysis) instead of reciting it.

From: Wren's application · the question and its sources

Geek out for me: what's something that has sparked your curiosity in the past few months? Sample applicant

Based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant - not on you. Upload your Common App to get this from your own background.

Material

Summer 2026 Arrowhead Lakes Monitoring: Secchi readings on 14 lakes Fresh, recent science outside class.
Lake logged under the wrong ID number since 2022 A real puzzle about data quality you noticed yourself.
Science Olympiad Dynamic Planet (glaciers and lakes) Topics you study for fun beyond school.

The angle

This tests energy outside assignments, and your most recent spark is this summer's lake work. The wrong-ID lake raises a genuine question about how much shared data can be trusted, which links to your forum readers arguing with you. Show excitement and a question you haven't answered.

Talking points

Start with the 14 inland lakes and what a Secchi disk reading tells you
The lake with the wrong ID since 2022: how you spotted it
Why it bugs you: what four years of mislabeled data does to conclusions
Connect to learning to record where you drilled, not just what you found
Is there something newer from the last few months you've been reading or wondering about?

To think about

What have you read, watched or asked about lately on your own, not from a job or team?

Avoid: Don't make it sound like a resume item; talk about the question, not the volunteering.

From: Wren's application · the question and its sources

Which of your extracurriculars have been most important to you?

A preview, based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant. Upload your Common App to preview your own.

Material

St. Louis Bay Ice Log: 41 days, ~600 readers The activity that is most yours.

The angle

Talking points

Unlock to read the rest, for every question.

What's an accomplishment you're proud of?

A preview, based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant. Upload your Common App to preview your own.

Material

Planning the 62-mile Boundary Waters route for the 2025 trip, including portages An accomplishment not in your essays, with real planning behind it.

The angle

Talking points

Unlock to read the rest, for every question.

Tell me about a time you contributed to a group or team.

A preview, based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant. Upload your Common App to preview your own.

Material

Wax technician for the 34-skier varsity team; 6th in the 2026 section relay Contribution that makes others faster, not you.

The angle

Talking points

Unlock to read the rest, for every question.

Tell me about a time you went after an interest on your own.

A preview, based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant. Upload your Common App to preview your own.

Material

Starting the ice log in tenth grade with Pete's borrowed auger and a tape measure Self-started with no adult telling you to.

The angle

Talking points

Unlock to read the rest, for every question.

Character and how you see yourself

How would the people closest to you describe you? Sample applicant

Based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant - not on you. Upload your Common App to get this from your own background.

Material

Wax technician for the 34-skier Nordic team Shows how teammates see you: the quiet person who takes the job nobody wants.
Driving your brother to hockey four days a week The people closest to you includes family, and this shows reliability at home.
'Slow to ask for help' line from your Let Your Life Speak essay Gives you an honest weakness, which is exactly the introspection he wants.

The angle

You already named your strength and your flaw in the supplement: reliable in the background, slow to ask for help. Give him people's views rather than your own: what your teammates, your brother, or your bakery boss would say, then admit the flip side and what you're doing about it.

Talking points

Pick one person close to you: your brother, a teammate, or the Harbor Light owner who trusts you to open alone
Give their likely word for you and the proof: waxing 34 pairs of skis, opening the bakery since June 2025
Name the flip side: slow to ask for help
Show what's changed since the 7 a.m. chemistry sessions
What would your closest friend tease you about?

To think about

What would a friend your own age, not family or a coach, actually say about you, and has anyone told you directly?

Avoid: Don't just restate the supplement's 'reliable is a kind of kindness' idea. Use a fresh example and let other people's voices carry it.

From: Wren's application · the question and its sources

What's something you struggled with and had to push through? Sample applicant

Based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant - not on you. Upload your Common App to get this from your own background.

Material

C+ in first-semester AP Chemistry A real struggle with a clear turnaround to a B+.
Redoing every missed test question by hand The specific habit you built and still use.

The angle

The chemistry grade is your best story: you were memorizing equilibrium problems without understanding them, then went to 7 a.m. sessions twice a week. Tie it to your weakness about asking for help, because the hard part wasn't the chemistry, it was walking into the room.

Talking points

Name it plainly: C+ in AP Chemistry, memorizing equilibrium without understanding
Say why it took so long to go for help
The fix: 7 a.m. sessions twice a week, redoing missed questions by hand
Result: B+ second semester, and where you use the redo habit now, maybe the Science Olympiad Dynamic Planet prep or Intro Geology?

To think about

Where have you used the redo-your-mistakes habit since? Which class or project?

Avoid: Keep it short and don't make the B+ sound like a triumph. Spend more time on the moment you decided to go to that room than on the grade.

From: Wren's application · the question and its sources

What was a big challenge, or a really good moment, for you in school?

A preview, based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant. Upload your Common App to preview your own.

Material

Losing the first temperature string through the ice in March 2025 A real setback that turned into a discovery about snow insulation.

The angle

Talking points

Unlock to read the rest, for every question.

How do you want your classmates to remember you?

A preview, based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant. Upload your Common App to preview your own.

Material

Leading about 25 snowshoe walks for second-graders at Amity Ridge Shows how you treat people younger than you.

The angle

Talking points

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How do you think you could contribute to Dartmouth, and to society?

A preview, based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant. Upload your Common App to preview your own.

Material

St. Louis Bay Ice Log: 41 days, 9 points, about 600 readers Shows you'd start things and share data that keeps people safe.

The angle

Talking points

Unlock to read the rest, for every question.

Closing

Do you have any questions for me? Sample applicant

Based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant - not on you. Upload your Common App to get this from your own background.

Material

Supplement: Earth Sciences Stretch, Institute of Arctic Studies, D-Plan off-term in Greenland Your Why Dartmouth names these; asking how they really work shows you've thought past the brochure.
Supplement line about the Dartmouth Outing Club and First-Year Trip Stuart was a DOC member and Trip leader, so he can answer from his own life, not hearsay.
Ice Log essay: ice failing where it does, the lost Arduino string He designs piers for ice loads; a question about how engineers think about ice links your curiosity to his real work.

The angle

Your questions should show the same things your file does: you measure, you're curious about ice, and you care about the people you carry a canoe with. Stuart is a Duluth coastal engineer, Thayer grad and Trip leader, so ask him things only someone like him could answer. That makes it a real two-way conversation, not a quiz.

Talking points

Ask about his First-Year Trip leading: what he saw happen to first-years, since your supplement says canoe partners are the people you trust
Ask how Earth Sciences and Thayer overlap, given he did Engineering Sciences and you care about why ice fails
Ask something about the D-Plan: did he use an off-term, and would a field term like the Stretch or a Greenland project fit an Earth Sciences student
If time, ask what surprised him about Hanover winters compared with Lake Superior
Which of these do you genuinely not know the answer to? Keep only those

To think about

Which one thing about Dartmouth have you not been able to find out online, and that you actually want to know?

Avoid: Don't turn it into a show of your research or quiz him on ice engineering to impress him. Two or three real questions, then listen and follow up on what he says.

From: Wren's application · the question and its sources

If I could write one or two sentences to the Admissions Committee about you, what should they say?

A preview, based on Wren, our fictional sample applicant. Upload your Common App to preview your own.

Material

Essay ending: writing numbers down is a way of looking after people (Gary and the four-inch reading) It joins your science and your kindness in one idea, the core of you.

The angle

Talking points

Unlock to read the rest, for every question.

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