qwertym

First, I'm not sure if this is the right place for this topic. Actually, it probably isn't, so if the moderator could just replace it - thanks.

I'm a college student from Europe and I am probably going to come to Dartmouth to attend the fall term of 2009 there, so I was wondering if someone could tell me what are the housing possibilities like? From what I understood, majority of students are in dorms? How are the dorms - one-bed or double-bed room?

And I'm kind of scared that Hanover is really, really isolated, and that everything is really deserted. Is that true?

Thank you so much!!

ohmadre

qwertym -

You have likely read posts that say Dartmouth is isolated, as it is many miles from any major city and is surrounded by nature. Hanover is a small charming town, not a deserted town, in which Dartmouth sits smack-dab. It sits in what is known as the Upper Valley, bordering the Connecticut River, and there are many small towns up and down the river on both sides. A major highway parallells the the River and Dartmouth is just off this highway.

Many programs and events take place at Dartmouth which attract both students and residents of Hanover and surrounding towns. Students are everywhere, all the time, and fall term is great term to be on campus. It may be rural, but it feels quite alive.

If you have not already looked at the Sights and Sounds on the college website, you might want to check out the image galleries and some of the videos there for a sense of the place - here are images from Fall: Dartmouth Image Gallery - Autumn at Dartmouth but there is more to be found on the website

qwertym

Thank you so much for the reply. Yes, I've heard that it's isolated (2-hours ride, if I'm not mistaken, to Boston), and that's been worrying me a little. On the other side, I think that may not be so bad, because I get to really feel the university life in America.

As regards the student life - does the campus get deserted on weekends? I mean, do students massively go home? I guess it's different than in Europe, I just wanna check.

How about food? Do students have to travel a lot to get some basic stuff?

I've heard about the fraternities. There are no fraternities in Europe, so I don't know if I should expect an "American Pie" kind of college (I mean no offense to anybody. It just came to my mind.) or to expect more a peaceful town like that small American town in that show Gilmore Girls Those two might be two extremes, but it may help me understand what kind of town Hanover is, and what kind of college Dartmouth is.

Thanks again for the help!

ohmadre

Well, in ambiance, Hanover far more resembles your notion of small town America. The campus does not get deserted on weekends - the vast vast (almost all) majority of students stay on campus on weekends. Try posting your questions in the general Dartmouth forum (rather than the 2012) - likely to get more responses from students.