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<p>It would only hurt you in the case where you don’t integrate well into a smaller, more tight-knight and intimate community. People often paint out the LAC experience to be fantastic and “cozy”, but for a lot of people, their personalities were just not made for the small school experience. Regardless, while Dartmouth does have the LAC feel, it still has a lot of graduate programs and quite a bit of research going on, so it really is more like a small university. This fact will afford undergraduates lots of opportunities to research in fields of interest, which is something you may want to consider. </p>
<p>If your interest is in the law, both schools have perfectly fine humanities and social sciences faculty. Of course, you don’t have to major in those fields to go to law school, but many students do as it is a genuine interest of theirs. Basically, applying to either school would, on an academic basis, be fine for you. Dartmouth has smaller classes on average, so perhaps you would be on better terms with more professors there, but as you reach higher level courses in your major, most classes will be quite small. </p>
<p>Honestly, it comes down to fit. If you’re applying ED, you’re willing to commit to the school, so make sure you’re fine with the big Greek scene at Dartmouth or the big Basketball following at Duke. The seclusion in New Hampshire or the small city in North Carolina. These factors are most important when deciding between the two schools.</p>