Dartmouth bound: Two Newmarket seniors get Ivy League acceptance

NEWMARKET – Not one but two Newmarket High School seniors will be heading to Dartmouth College in the fall.  

Zoe McGuirk and Taylor Kenison were both accepted as part of the Ivy League school’s early admissions program. 

How hard is it to get into Dartmouth? The college accepted just 8.7% of its 22,033 applicants to the Class of 2022.

The two Newmarket seniors have similar interests, in politics and international relations, and similar career focuses. But they selected the school through different paths.

McGuirk, ranked eighth in her class, at first wanted something different from Newmarket, New Hampshire and New England. 

"I brushed her off," she said of her mother who was pushing for her to look at Dartmouth. "When she talked about Dartmouth. I was dead set on moving across the country and going to school in a big city."

That changed junior year when McGuirk got her license. She took off on day trips, she said, and on her own discovered a new appreciation for New Hampshire, New England and nature. She began researching schools closer to home, such as UVM, Champlain College, Sarah Lawrence, Clark University and Boston University. She did consider a couple of colleges across the country, Colorado College and Reed College in Oregon. But that one visit to Dartmouth changed everything.

McGuirk ticked off the school's advantages: it has a strong study abroad emphasis, it's well-respected in its political science program, a strong interest of hers, and the student/teacher ratios are similar to Newmarket. 

Kenison, third in the Class of 2021, also has a strong interest in public service, with an international flavor. 

"I always knew I wanted to go to a school with a strong focus in international relations," she said. Dartmouth has one initiative, the "D Plan," which offers students more flexibility toward studying abroad, and this intrigued her. 

"I wanted to make sure I had those opportunities to explore outside the classroom," she said. 

She applied to other schools, including a couple in Scotland and some in Washington, D.C., to further her interest in government. But Dartmouth was Kenison's top choice.

Her father wanted to be there when she heard the news, but he wasn't able to. 

"I was with my mom in our study and opened the portal. I was shocked - I didn't expect it to happen," Kenison admitted.

She and McGuirk each had to write essays specific to their Dartmouth applications, in addition to their basic essay for the Common Application. In her first Dartmouth essay, Kenison explored the idea of cultural and academic exploration. In her second she explored how study at Dartmouth would help her reach her goals. She's been a steady participant in Newmarket's Model UN program, and discovered a "passion for fighting human trafficking." A few Dartmouth professors have studied economic policy in relation to human trafficking, and she knew her interests would be a good fit.

The pandemic has made Kenison more aware of "how we are all connected," and she wanted to explore that connection with study abroad. 

She has been involved in student leadership since middle school, and that was the subject of her Common Application essay. "I talked about the Model UN experience and the kind of leader I am. I'm not loud or outspoken, I like to work behind the scenes."

The Model UN, she said, "opened my world." She's already started making a difference, forming a tutoring program with another student to help children affected by COVID-19 and remote learning. 

Kenison is laser-focused on her career. 

"I want to study international relations and economics, attend law school - possibly at Georgetown - and became a human rights attorney at the UN," she said.  

McGuirk is also a Model UN participant and wants to study political science. She has been involved in campaigns, including for Sen. Elizabeth Warren, and is a member and officer with the New Hampshire High School Democrats. She interned with the New Hampshire Democratic Committee. In student government, she's been on the student council since middle school, served as NHS student body president, was her class's historian and secretary sophomore year, and class president junior year. She's already talking with the Dartmouth Democratic Committee, she said.

She said she wrote about her work on the Warren campaign and in her Dartmouth essay, she discussed health care and the pandemic. 

For her second Dartmouth essay, she riffed on a quote from Daniel Webster and talked about the school's passion, inclusion and opportunities. 

Like Kenison, McGuirk was at her desk when she learned of her acceptance at Dartmouth. "I freaked out," she recalled. "I ran downstairs.”

McGuirk said she may run for office after school - or during school. 

"I think I'll run for state rep. while I'm at Dartmouth," she mused.