Dartmouth College
2026-27 · Common App
- Early Decision
- November 1, 2026
- Regular Decision
- January 1, 2027
Personal statement required (250-650 words), plus three supplements:
Required · 100 words
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?
Short answer. We review full-length essays only.
Required (choose 1 of 2) · 250 words
Question 2, option A. There is a Quaker saying: Let your life speak. Describe the environment in which you were raised and the impact it has had on the person you are today.
Review my draftRequired (choose 1 of 2) · 250 words
Question 2, option B. "Be yourself," Oscar Wilde advised. "Everyone else is taken." Introduce yourself.
Review my draftRequired (choose 1 of 6) · 250 words
Question 3, option A. What excites you?
Review my draftRequired (choose 1 of 6) · 250 words
Question 3, option B. Labor leader and civil rights activist Dolores Huerta recommended a life of purpose. "We must use our lives to make the world a better place to live, not just to acquire things," she said. "That is what we are put on the earth for." In what ways do you hope to make, or are you already making, an impact? Why? How?
Review my draftRequired (choose 1 of 6) · 250 words
Question 3, option C. In an Instagram post, best-selling British author Matt Haig cheered the impact of reading. "A good novel is the best invention humans have ever created for imagining other lives," he wrote. How have you experienced such insight from reading? What did you read and how did it alter the way you understand yourself and others?
Review my draftRequired (choose 1 of 6) · 250 words
Question 3, option D. The social and family interactions of wild chimpanzees have been the focus of Dame Jane Goodall's research for decades. Her understanding of animal behavior prompted the English primatologist to see a lesson for human communities as well: "Change happens by listening and then starting a dialogue with the people who are doing something you don't believe is right." Channel Dame Goodall: Tell us about a moment when you engaged in a difficult conversation or encountered someone with an opinion or perspective that was different from your own. How did you find common ground?
Review my draftRequired (choose 1 of 6) · 250 words
Question 3, option E. Celebrate your nerdy side.
Review my draftRequired (choose 1 of 6) · 250 words
Question 3, option F. "It's not easy being green..." was the frequent refrain of Kermit the Frog. How has difference been a part of your life, and how have you embraced it as part of your identity, outlook, or sense of purpose?
Review my draft
Deadlines around the same time
- Barnard CollegeED November 1, 2026
- Baylor UniversityED November 1, 2026
- Binghamton University (SUNY)EA November 1, 2026
- Brown UniversityED November 1, 2026