This group consisted of Maria Angelino ’23, Ross Parrish ’24, Nick Hepburn ’24, Carson Reich ’22, Ben Keeter ’22, Leonard St. Gourdin ’24, and Una Westvold ’22.

We interviewed five people each (35 total) about different freshman fall traditions, but the focus was on the DOC trips and Homecoming Weekend. The range of our interviewees was people from the class of 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022, and alumni of Dartmouth College.

We found that most of the folklore we collected fit the category of ritual or customary practices. The folklore is designed to make the freshman class feel connected and force students to meet friends. It also creates commonality between older classes and the freshmen class because they have similar experiences. Dartmouth’s traditions are unique because of the isolated environment and the age of the institution. These freshman fall traditions, which are similar to initiation rites, are unlike any others found in other American colleges.