This past weekend was the first in the series of three Dimensions of Dartmouth programs — sets of days for admitted students to visit the College before making a decision about which school to attend. Though no longer a single self-contained event as in years past, Dimensions still has an enormous potential to convince prospective students of the College’s merits. It is important, however, to sell Dartmouth in a responsible, reasonable manner. In my experience, we are not great at doing so.
It is perfectly understandable that many of us who have enjoyed and cherished our time at the College — faculty, administrators and students alike — would want to encourage others to invest time in Dartmouth as well. Obviously, there are many reasons why the College excels among its peers. We can and do point to our focus on undergraduate education, our extensive and robust alumni network and the unparalleled beauty of our campus as reasons to pick Dartmouth over other schools.
As a student body, however, we generally do what we can to sweep less successful areas under the rug — especially when one can tell that an issue is a sticking point for a prospective student. Current students and recent alumni often act as a resource for their younger friends and acquaintances. We provide a reference guide for high school juniors and seniors desperate for some real knowledge about how college works and how one school is different from another. But these younger students may not always realize that whatever information they are gleaning is heavily filtered through an individual’s worldview. If we love Dartmouth, we may present an optimistic view — and likewise, if we hate Dartmouth, we may present a pessimistic view. For me, this is a serious problem. We have to find some objectivity. We have to find some honesty, or we are doing a disservice to those who trust us. We must be realistic.
In some ways, Dimensions exacerbates this issue not merely because of the multitude of prospective students but because of specific Dimensions programming. For example, most prospective students stay with first-years during Dimensions, because many upperclassmen are either too busy or live off-campus. Younger students, however, do not have the same perspective on Dartmouth as older students. Of course, this is not to say I am objectively right because I am a senior and a first-year is wrong because she is a first-year. It is to say that inexperience is inherently limiting, that Dartmouth is more than the first nine months of living in Russell Sage Hall and loving your floormates. It is to say that it is problematic to convince a high school senior to commit to 12 terms in Hanover when you have only been here for three.
As for administrators, their job, by definition, entails celebrating and marketing the College. The dean of admissions and financial aid, for example, is not going to candidly discuss problems in the College any more than I am going to start off a job interview by mentioning my utter lack of experience. Prospective students expect a certain amount of spin from the faculty and staff they hear from at Dimensions events. It is a cost of doing business. Hearing from students, however, presents a markedly different and presumably more candid point of view. High school seniors relate more closely to Dartmouth first-years and likely trust their opinions. But Dimensions does not lend itself to nuance, and in my experience, those whose voice is most trusted gloss over the sticky, complex issues that the College faces today — or have been here too short of a time to really know the issues well enough to discuss them. We need to be honest about the stress and frustration of academics, Greek life, the competition to get into prestigious campus groups, high-risking drinking and sexual assault.
Dartmouth is great, and I believe Dartmouth will always be one of the finest universities in the nation. Yet the College is not for everyone, and we owe it to prospective students to attempt to achieve a level of objectivity in our discussions. We have to do a better job of presenting all sides of the College — even when to do so is somewhat uncomfortable, or when it means criticizing something you love or praising something you hate.
