🏠 Dartmouth College — Parent Guide

Helping parents understand dorm options, safety, accessibility, and what to expect at Dartmouth College.

💡 Tips for parents reviewing dorm options:

🏠 How housing selection works at Dartmouth College

Dartmouth guarantees on-campus housing for all four years and requires all undergraduates to live on campus unless they are commuting from a parent's home. Housing is managed through .

Freshman Year:All first-year students are assigned to dormitories, primarily in the East Wheelock and Gold Coast clusters. Assignments are made by using a lifestyle questionnaire. Students indicate general preferences (quiet vs. social floors, etc.) but do not select specific rooms.

Upperclass Housing:Dartmouth uses a Dartmouth-specific academic calendar (D-Plan) with 10-week terms. Students on campus in a given term participate in housing selection for future terms. The process uses a lottery system with class year seniority — seniors select first, then juniors, then sophomores.

Clusters & Houses:Dartmouth's housing is organized into six geographic clusters: East Wheelock, Gold Coast, Choates, North Park, River, and Each cluster has its own with affiliated faculty and programming.

Special-Interest Housing:Options include Substance-Free Housing, Language Houses (French, German, Spanish), and various affinity and theme communities. Applications are separate from the general lottery.

As of May 8, 2026

📍 Location

Hanover, NH

🏛️ College Type

Private Research University

👥 Enrollment

6,670 total students

🏠 Housing

29 dorm buildings reviewed on DormScouter

📊 Dorm Comparison by Safety & Cleanliness

DormOverall ★Safety ★Cleanliness ★ReviewsFeatures
Lord Hall ★5.0 ★4.0 1
Massachusetts Hall 0
East Wheelock Residential College 0 🍽️ Dining Hall
Graduate Housing 0
Andres Hall 0 🛗 Elevator
McCulloch Hall 0
Morton Hall 0
Zimmerman Hall 0
Ripley Hall 0
Smith Hall 0
Woodward Hall 0 🛗 Elevator
Brown Hall 0
Little Hall 0
North Massachusetts Hall 0
South Massachusetts Hall 0
New Hampshire Hall 0
Richardson Hall 0
Topliff Hall 0
Wheeler Hall 0
Bissell Hall 0
Cohen Hall 0
Gile Hall 0
Streeter Hall 0
Butterfield Hall 0
Fahey Hall 0
French Hall 0
Judge Hall 0
McLane Hall 0
Russell Sage Hall 0

🔗 More Resources

🔗 Dartmouth Residential Life

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🔗 Housing Selection

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🔗 First-Year Experience

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🔗 Undergraduate Housing

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🎓 Class-Year Housing Guides

Year-specific advice for Dartmouth College dorms — what changes from freshman to senior year:

🎓 Freshman Guide📚 Sophomore Guide📖 Junior Guide🎉 Senior Guide

🔍 Filter by Amenity

Looking for something specific? Browse Dartmouth College dorms filtered by amenity:

❄️ with Air Conditioning🍳 with Shared Kitchen🛗 with Elevator♿ ADA-Accessible🏳️‍🌈 LGBTQ+ Friendly🚿 with Private Bathrooms🛁 with Semi-Private Bathrooms🧼 with Communal Bathrooms♀ All-Female