Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College Featured Rankings
- #1 New Hampshire's Best Online Master's Degrees
- #1 Best Colleges in New Hampshire 2022
- #1 Best Grad Schools in New Hampshire 2022
- #1 Most Influential US Universities by State
- #1 Best Private Colleges in New Hampshire 2022
- #1 Best Research Universities in New Hampshire 2022
- #4 Best Consulting MBA Programs
- #18 Best Undergrad Research Universities 2022
- #18 The Fastest Traditional MBA Degree Programs
- #19 The 20 Best Business Schools for Earning an MBA Ranked for Students
- #19 English Research Universities
- #19 Most Influential Colleges in Lacrosse Today
- #19 Sociology Research Universities
- #20 Best Undergrad Private Colleges
- #20 Political Science Research Universities
- #20 Earth Sciences Research Universities
- #21 Best Private Grad Schools 2022
- #22 Philosophy Research Universities
- #23 Economics Research Universities
- #23 History Research Universities
- #24 Best Undergrad Colleges 2025
- #24 Anthropology Research Universities
- #24 Religious Studies Research Universities
- #24 Computer Science Research Universities
- #26 The Best Traditional MBA Programs
- #31 Best Grad Schools 2025
- #32 Best US Universities 2025
- #81 Best Universities World 2025
About Dartmouth College
Despite the word “college” in its name, Dartmouth is a full-scale, PhD-granting, private, research university. Indeed, it is an official member of the Ivy League, and is the fourteenth-oldest university in the US, founded only five years after Brown and 15 years after Columbia.
Located in the small town of Hanover in the far western part of central New Hampshire, the Dartmouth campus abuts the Connecticut River, which forms the entire border between New Hampshire and Vermont.
The university was founded by Eleazar Wheelock, a Congregationalist minister who was involved in missionary work with the Native American population. Already in 1754, Wheelock had founded a school in Connecticut—known as Moor’s Indian Charity School—whose purpose was to educate Native American boys as Congregationalist missionaries for future work among their own tribes.
Wishing to expand this school, Wheelock began a fund-raising drive to which the British statesman, William Legge, 2nd Earl of Dartmouth, was a major contributor (along with the American-born educator, Dr. John Phillips, who would go on to found Phillips Exeter Academy).
In spite of the success of his fund-raising endeavor, Wheelock found that it was difficult to recruit enough Native American children to justify a large additional investment in the school. For this reason, he revised his plans and decided to use the money for a new college for the white population. Because of difficulties in securing a charter from the Colony of Connecticut, he also decided to build his new school in the neighboring state of New Hampshire, instead.
Ironically, although Wheelock named the new college “Dartmouth” in honor of the 2nd Earl to recognize his generosity, the latter was in fact quite opposed to the diversion of his money from its original purpose of benefiting the native population.
Consistent with its history as the brainchild of various individuals interested in furthering the education of non-white populations, Dartmouth began admitting black students almost immediately (in 1775), although not in large numbers. By the advent of the Civil War, some 20 African Americans had graduated from the university.
On the other hand, Dartmouth long remained an all-male school; women were only permitted to attend the university in 1972.
A large number of distinguished Americans have been connected with Dartmouth. For example, in the nineteenth century, we may mention three leading statesmen:
- Thaddeus Stevens, US Representative from Pennsylvania, prominent abolitionist, and fierce advocate for African Americans during Reconstruction
- Daniel Webster, US Senator for New Hampshire, prominent critic of President Andrew Jackson, and Secretary of State under President Millard Fillmore
- Salmon P. Chase, Governor and US Senator for Ohio, Secretary of the Treasury under President Abraham Lincoln, and sixth Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court
In addition, the well-known entrepreneur, George Bissell, who helped develop the early US oil industry in western Pennsylvania during the 1860s, was a Dartmouth graduate.
Distinguished twentieth-century individuals connected to Dartmouth include:
- Edward Everett Just, an African American biologist who revolutionized our understanding of the cell surface
- Edward Lorenz, a mathematician, meteorologist, and chaos theory pioneer
- Celebrated poet, Robert Frost
- Novelist, Louise Erdrich
- Noted historian and law professor, Annette Gordon-Reed
- Architect, Michael Arad
- Children’s author, Theodor Geisel (“Dr. Seuss”)
- Children’s television host, Fred Rogers (“Mr. Rogers”)
- Robert Holbrook Smith (“Dr. Bob”), co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous
- Author and filmmaker, Dinesh D’Souza
- Television hosts, Laura Ingraham & Mel Robbins
- Television journalist, Jake Tapper
- Actors, Meryl Streep, Michael Moriarty & Josh Pence
Among the many Dartmouth-linked public servants who have served during the twentieth century, we may mention:
- Nelson Rockefeller, Governor of New York and Vice President of the US under President Gerald Ford
- Henry Paulson, banker and Secretary of the Treasury under George W. Bush
- Timothy Geithner, banker and Secretary of the Treasury under Barack Obama
- Robert Reich, economist, author, commentator, and Secretary of Labor under President Bill Clinton
- Kirsten Gillibrand, sitting US Senator for New York
Finally, three individuals affiliated with Dartmouth have won the Nobel Prize:
- Owen Chamberlain — physics
- K. Barry Sharpless — chemistry
- George Snell — physiology or medicine
According to Wikipedia, Dartmouth College is a private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although originally established to educate Native Americans in Christian theology and the English way of life, the university primarily trained Congregationalist ministers during its early history before it gradually secularized. Emerging into national prominence at the turn of the 20th century, Dartmouth was considered to be the most prestigious undergraduate college in the United States in the early 1900s. While Dartmouth is now a research university rather than simply an undergraduate college, it continues to go by "Dartmouth College" to emphasize its focus on undergraduate education.
Dartmouth College's Online Degrees
Dartmouth College Admissions, Retention, and Graduation Information
Annual Applications | Acceptance | Graduation Rate | Median SAT Score | Median ACT Score |
---|---|---|---|---|
28,336 | 6% | 95% | 1540 | 34 |
How Much Does Dartmouth College Cost To Attend?
Tuition (in-state) |
---|
$62,658 |
Income | Average Net Cost |
---|---|
0 - 30K | $2,438 |
30K - 48K | $4,073 |
48K - 75K | $5,903 |
75K - 110K | $17,440 |
110K+ | $55,770 |
How Much Do Dartmouth College Graduates Make?
If you graduate from Dartmouth College, then you can expect to earn an average of $110,200 per year. You also have a 91% chance of being employed after 10 years.
Dartmouth College's Demographics
Demographic data is for full-time, on-campus students.
Student Body | Under-Grads | Graduates |
---|---|---|
7,256 | 4,869 | 2,387 |
Where is Dartmouth College?
Dartmouth College is located at 207 Parkhurst Hall, Hanover NH 03755-3529
How Safe is Dartmouth College?
Hanover has a violent crime rate of less than .01% and a property crime rate of less than .01%.
What Is Dartmouth College Known For?
Dartmouth College is known for it's academic work in the following disciplines:
- Business
- Literature
- Computer Science
- Political Science
- History
- Earth Sciences
- Medical
- Economics
- Mathematics
- Religious Studies
- Philosophy
- Engineering
- Physics
- Chemistry
- Biology
- Psychology
- Sociology
- Anthropology
Dartmouth College's Top Areas of Influence With Degrees Offered
Who Are Dartmouth College's Most Influential Alumni?
Dartmouth College's most influential alumni include professors and professionals in the fields of Business, Computer Science, and Education. Here are some of Dartmouth College's most famous alumni:
- Joseph Campbell
- An American mythologist, writer and lecturer .
- Dr. Seuss
- An American children's author and cartoonist .
- Robert Frost
- An American poet. Robert Frost is 4x recipient of Pulitzer Prize for Poetry.
- Daniel Webster
- A 14th and 19th United States Secretary of State .
- Vincent Canby
- An American film and theatre critic .
- Robert Reich
- An American political economist.
- C. Everett Koop
- An American pediatric surgeon and public health administrator.
- Stuart Kauffman
- An American biophysicist.
- Jaegwon Kim
- An American philosopher .
- Robert Christgau
- An American music journalist .
- Michael Gazzaniga
- An American neuroscientist.
- Edward Norton Lorenz
- An American mathematician and meteorologist .
Who Are Dartmouth College's Most Influential Faculty?
Dartmouth College's most influential faculty include professors in the fields of Business, Computer Science, and Education. Here are some of Dartmouth College's most famous alumni:
- Brendan Nyhan
- An American political scientist.
- Rafael La Porta
- An American economist.
- Katherine Baicker
- An American economist.
- Tor Wager
- An American psychologist.
- Jennifer Richeson
- An American psychologist.
- Benjamin Valentino
- A Political scientist.
- Jeff Sharlet
- An American journalist.
- Michael Norton
- An American psychologist.
- Bruce Sacerdote
- An American economist.
- Diego Comin
- A Professor of Economics.
- Michael K. Dorsey
- An American environmentalist.
- Ana Merino
- A Spanish poet.