Dartmouth Essays 2025–26: Supplemental Essay Prompts with Examples
For 2025–26 (Class of 2030), Dartmouth asks for three pieces of writing:
One 100-word “Why Dartmouth”
One 250-word response (choose one of two)
One 250-word response (choose one of seven)
Write toward Dartmouth’s strengths: faculty mentorship, small seminars, the D-Plan’s flexibility, research-in-motion, and a collaborative, discussion-forward culture. Admissions emphasizes authentic voice and narrative—specific scenes, clear takeaways, and how you’ll contribute on campus.
Prompt 1 (Required, 100 words)
What aspects of Dartmouth’s academic program, community, and/or campus environment attract your interest? How is Dartmouth a good fit for you?
What to Do
Choose 2–3 specific elements that match your goals (labs, centers, programs, traditions).
Show mentorship + momentum: how close faculty access and the D-Plan help you do meaningful work.
End with a concrete contribution you’ll make on campus.
What to Avoid
Generic Ivy language or a feature dump.
Rehashing your resume; focus on what you’ll do next at Dartmouth.
Example Snippet
“Thayer’s small, hands-on labs are where I can keep refining my low-cost prosthetic with professors who stay after class. With the D-Plan, I’ll take an off-term at the Neukom Institute to test and iterate in a real research sprint. I’m drawn to how Dartmouth pairs close mentorship with flexible time so projects actually move.”
Prompt 2 (Required, choose one, 250 words)
A) “Let your life speak.” Describe the environment in which you were raised and its impact on you.
What to Do
Build around 1–2 vivid scenes from your environment (home, work, community).
Name the tools it gave you (habits, values, problem-solving) and show them in action.
Translate those tools to Dartmouth seminars, labs, or teams.
What to Avoid
Chronological autobiography.
Abstract traits without proof.
Example Snippet
“Our apartment sat above my mom’s tailoring shop, where listening came before fixing. I learned to read people by measuring tape: where fabric pulled, where patience would hold. That instinct—observe, then adjust—now guides my research questions and group projects. At Dartmouth, I’ll bring that stitch-by-stitch mindset to seminar debates and design reviews.”
B) “Be yourself.” Introduce yourself.
What to Do
Use a framing device (playlist, field notes, toolbox) to reveal one defining through-line.
Let your voice carry—diction, rhythm, and precise detail.
Close with how you’ll add to Dartmouth’s community.
What to Avoid
Lists of adjectives or accomplishments.
A LinkedIn-style summary.
Example Snippet
“Call me a ‘systems neighbor.’ I’m the person who rewires the club spreadsheet, translates at PTA meetings, and hosts porch office hours for algebra. I like seeing how small fixes ripple. At Dartmouth, I’m excited for discussion-heavy courses where that neighbor energy—curious and helpful—pushes teams past good to generous.”
Prompt 3 (Required, choose one, 250 words)
A) What excites you?
What to Do
Start with the ignition moment (when curiosity sparked).
Show motion: questions pursued, experiments tried, people engaged.
Tie to specific Dartmouth avenues for more of it.
What to Avoid
“I love learning” without evidence.
Multiple topics—go deep on one.
Example Snippet
“The first time my river buoy pinged back turbidity data, it felt like hearing a stream speak. Since then I’ve hacked sensors, graphed runoff, and learned that water tells the truest story of a town. At Dartmouth, I want field-based research and small seminars where curiosity is a team sport.”
B) Dolores Huerta on purpose—impact you hope to make (or already make). Why? How?
What to Do
Name a specific problem, your leverage point, and measurable steps.
Explain why this matters to you.
Map to Dartmouth resources that help you scale.
What to Avoid
Vague “change the world” claims.
Service as charity rather than partnership.
Example Snippet
“When our trailer park’s leases went English-only, I built a text-line that translated notices and timestamped repair delays. Data in hand, we won fixes. Purpose, for me, is infrastructure for dignity. At Dartmouth, I want to study policy design and keep building tools that outlast my presence.”
C) Matt Haig on novels—what did you read, and how did it change your understanding?
What to Do
Choose one work and reference sparingly.
Show a before/after in how you see people or problems.
Connect to how you’ll read and discuss at Dartmouth.
What to Avoid
Plot summary or name-dropping.
A book you barely recall.
Example Snippet
“The Overstory made me notice who isn’t centered in our stories—trees, yes, and people we edit out of the frame. After finishing it, I mapped our town’s shade: where heat islands choke, where old oaks cool. At Dartmouth, I want to test how narrative can move policy’s needle.”
D) Jane Goodall on dialogue—describe a difficult conversation and how you found common ground.
What to Do
Set stakes and pressure; show the listening move you made.
Share what changed for you, not just others.
End with a principle you’ll carry onto campus.
What to Avoid
Villainizing the other person.
Pretending full consensus if there wasn’t.
Example Snippet
“Our robotics team split over facial-recognition. I invited our equity club to a design review and we rewrote specs: opt-in logging, no default retention. I still wanted the feature; I left willing to earn it. At Dartmouth, I’ll argue less for victory and more for designs everyone can live with.”
E) Celebrate your nerdy side.
What to Do
Choose a delightfully specific niche and let your joy show.
Translate it into a habit of mind (pattern-finding, tinkering, patience).
Point to Dartmouth spaces where it belongs.
What to Avoid
Self-deprecation that shrinks your substance.
Generic “STEM is cool.”
Example Snippet
“I annotate grocery receipts—for fun. Price elasticity became a Saturday game, then a Python scraper that predicts our weekly bill. Numbers feel like conversation when the dataset fights back. At Dartmouth, I’d bring this tinkering to energy–food systems work and seminar debates where curiosity meets consequences.”
F) “It’s not easy being green…” How has difference shaped you?
What to Do
Define difference on your terms (identity, role, viewpoint).
Show how it shaped choices and how you build belonging.
Keep focus on agency and impact.
What to Avoid
Trauma-as-spectacle.
Overexplaining your identity to a presumed outsider.
Example Snippet
“As the only girl on our debate exec board, I tracked speaking time. Patterns emerged; I redesigned practice—time caps, randomized first speeches, a debrief on silences. Difference taught me to fix the room, not myself. I’ll bring that habit to Dartmouth teams.”
G) Mindy Kaling Theater Lab—tell a story of failing, revamping, and going from bad to good.
What to Do
Own the flop (what failed, why).
Show the iteration loop: feedback → changes → result.
Tie to Dartmouth’s arts/creative or design-build culture.
What to Avoid
Euphemisms for failure.
Endings that skip the process.
Example Snippet
“Our sketch set died on silence. We scrapped cleverness, kept truth, and rebuilt beats from reactions we’d ignored. The next show landed because we listened first. At Dartmouth, I want spaces where experiments can fail loudly—and get smarter on the second draft.”
Writing Notes for Dartmouth Essays 2025–26
Audience-first: write so a Dartmouth reader who hasn’t met you can name clear takeaways.
Lead with a scene, end with meaning and a Dartmouth tie-forward.
Voice over polish: avoid “adultified” prose or AI gloss; sound like your best academic self.
Identity if you choose: include lived experience when it explains how you think and contribute.
Brevity is a value signal: the 100-word “Why Dartmouth” is a paragraph with purpose—pick a lane and go deep.
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