Updated February 11, 2025

Dartmouth University Acceptance Rate 

Do you have a crunchy granola side? Are you looking for intense academics with a side of stunning New Hampshire nature? If you want to go to school at a New England Ivy League college with small classes and a surrounding natural landscape, Dartmouth might be for you.

One unique aspect of Dartmouth is the “D-Plan,” an academic calendar with three terms of ten weeks (fall, winter, and spring). This allows students to take more classes and expand upon their interests, but it means classes wrap up much more quickly than in a typical 15-17 week semester.

Set in rural New Hampshire, Dartmouth is well-known for its beautiful setting in the Upper Connecticut River Valley. Dartmouth’s students can access the outdoors just by leaving class — and they can also access resources like the Dartmouth boat dock, observatory, mountain, lodge, pond, and even a ski slope. Plus, the Appalachian Trail runs through Dartmouth’s campus, so you have easy access to hiking trails.

Dartmouth University has one undergraduate college, Dartmouth College. It takes a liberal arts approach to education, with small class sizes, interdisciplinary courses, and core requirements in distributive and world culture, language, humanities, writing, and physical education. Dartmouth also has one especially unique graduation requirement — a swim test.

With easy access to swimming, hiking, skiing, and boating, Dartmouth students can keep their minds and bodies active.

Dartmouth College Admissions Statistics

As an Ivy League school, Dartmouth’s admissions are competitive, with the acceptance rate at just 5.3% last year.

At 17.1%, the acceptance rate for early decision applicants is higher than that of regular decision at 3.6%, but note that Dartmouth’s early decision process is binding. If you apply through the early decision process, you will be required to attend Dartmouth College.

However, Dartmouth notes that although they guarantee to meet 100% of demonstrated financial need, in the event that the Financial Aid Office and family “cannot reach an agreement regarding appropriate aid”, the student will not be required to enroll. You can read more about the different application options on Dartmouth’s website.

Admission CycleNumber of applicantsNumber admittedAcceptance rate
Early Decision3,55060617.1%
Regular Decision28,0331,0053.6%
All Applicants31,6571,6855.3%

Dartmouth College Acceptance Rate History

YearNumber of applicantsNumber admittedAcceptance rate
2023-2024 (Class of 2028)31,6571,6855.3%
2022-2023 (Class of 2027)28,3361,8086.4%
2021-2022 (Class of 2026)28,3561,7506.2%
2020-2021 (Class of 2025)21,3921,9729.2%
2019-2020 (Class of 2024)23,6501,8757.9%

Dartmouth emphasizes that “there’s no one Dartmouth story.” Their admissions offers details about the holistic admissions process and even includes a glossary of admissions terms and answers to FAQs.

A blog post on Dartmouth’s site also lists these characteristics as important factors in the admissions process:

  • Students who take challenging classes and succeed in them
  • Intelligence, love of learning, and willingness to challenge yourself
  • How you spend your time outside of school
  • Students who will thrive in Dartmouht’s unique atmosphere 

You can demonstrate your unique perspective through your essays, academic profile, teacher recommendations, and activities. You may also have the opportunity to interview with Dartmouth alumni.

Other colleges you may be interested in:

College NameNumber of applicants (Class of 2028)Number admitted (Class of 2028)Acceptance rate (Class of 2028)
Brown University48,8812,5215.2%
Williams College15,4111,1597.5%
Amherst College13,7431,2389%

Wondering how to get into Dartmouth University? PrepMaven can help you along the way. Whether you’re looking to boost your test scores, write a killer personal statement, or improve your GPA, we can be a helpful resource. With tutors who are graduates of top universities, valedictorians, National Merit Finalists, and National AP Scholars, we’re here to help you no matter what step you’re at in the admissions process.

Give us a call at 609-945-2264 or fill out our website form to learn how our flexible packages can work for you.


Alexis

Alexis is a tutor, writer, and producer. She graduated from Columbia University with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature. As a tutor, she loves to help students explore their unique stories and share their personal journeys through impactful essay writing.

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