Dartmouth College's Deferral Process
Dartmouth College, an Ivy League school, boasts of a high Early Decision acceptance rate of 21% for the year 2021. However, this number can be misleading as it includes recruited athletes and legacy students. Out of the 21% accepted, 4.62% were recruited athletes, and 2.73% were legacy students. This means that only 13.65% of ED applicants who were not athletes or legacies got accepted, which brings the realistic ED acceptance rate to under 14%. Although the school has not published how many of the remaining 86%+ of students who were not accepted were rejected or waitlisted, they do report that only 5-10% of deferred students will eventually be accepted. Therefore, deferred students should take action if they want to improve their chances of admission.
Dartmouth welcomes brief updates on recent notable academic, extracurricular, and personal accomplishments uploaded through the student's portal. However, students should not send multiple updates as it might annoy the admission committee. Instead, it should be concise, clear, and impressive. The admission committee also allows students to submit new test scores, but they only need to do so if they have improved since their initial application.
Students who have been deferred from Dartmouth should also review their overall college list and pursue other options since only 5-10% of deferred applicants are accepted during the Regular Decision cycle. Additionally, students should not let their grades drop during the application process. While working hard is essential, taking care of oneself is also crucial. Students should give themselves some breaks and find time to relax.
In summary, while Dartmouth's 21% Early Decision acceptance rate seems high, it is crucial to consider the number of recruited athletes and legacy students included in this statistic. Deferred students should take action by submitting updates and new test scores, reviewing their college list, and continuing to work hard while also taking care of themselves.
