Looking for Dartmouth Ski Patrol's website? Or are you a '26 looking to join? Head to patrol.host.dartmouth.edu for current info.
The Dartmouth Ski Patrol was formed more than 60 years ago by students at Dartmouth College who recognized the need for first responders to serve the growing number of winter sports participants at the College. Today, the patrol serves the college’s own ski area, the Dartmouth Skiway, located in Lyme, NH, 20 minutes by car from campus.
As an organization, our goals include Safety, Rescue, and Education.
Safety - We work to promote safe practices at the Dartmouth Skiway. The patrol works with ski area staff to mark obstacles, maintain trails, and to provide service to the Skiway's customers in order to promote a safe and enjoyable experience.
Rescue - Dartmouth Ski Patrol is responsible for the rescue and emergency care of customers, employees, and visitors to the Skiway.
Education - Dartmouth Ski Patrol serves as a key component of its members' Dartmouth education, providing real-world experience in medicine, leadership, business, and more.
All Dartmouth patrollers are members of the National Ski Patrol and are certified as Outdoor Emergency Care (OEC) Technicians. OEC is based on the standard EMT-Basic Curriculum. Most Dartmouth Ski Patrol members are Dartmouth undergraduate students who work as unpaid volunteers. A number of Upper Valley residents and Dartmouth alumni also volunteer. A handful of members work full and part-time as paid patrollers each year. Dartmouth patrollers not only service the Upper Valley community but also form a tight-knit community with the other members.
New members of Dartmouth Ski Patrol participate in our Apprentice Program. Through this program, Dartmouth students learn CPR and OEC, as well as toboggan handling and other snow skills in on-hill training. Apprentices aid vested patrollers on calls, participate in patrol-wide training as mock-patients, and receive on-the-job training under the direct supervision of experienced patrollers. Dartmouth patrollers undergo an average of 200 hours of training before they are qualified for first-response to emergency calls. The process to become a Dartmouth patroller is competitive and challenging.
In light of Covid-19 and first-year students being off-campus this winter, we are doing everything we can to adapt our apprenti process and new-member training so that Dartmouth 24s will be able to join DSP. Importantly, 24s will have an opportunity to join DSP! We have tentative plans for how 24s will be able to join us, and we outline these plans on our “How to Join” page on this site. If you have any questions, please reach out to us at pipermollyliaisons@gmail.com. We can’t wait to meet all of you!
About Us
Meet DSP
Our Student Leaders
Charlotte Driscoll '21
Denver, CO
Director
Everett Magnuson '22
San Francisco, CA
Treasurer
Christina Schoeller '21
Concord, MA
Assistant Director
Blake Daugherty '22
Dallas, TX
Administrative Officer
Colin Fennely '21
Warren, VT
Training Officer
Nick Schoeller '22
Concord, MA
Equipment Manager
Sophia Kocher '21
Dover, MA
Assistant Training Officer
Catie Stukel '23
Seattle, WA
Assistant Training Officer
Molly Wilson '23
Newton, MA
Apprenti Liaison
Piper Stacey '23
San Francisco, CA
Apprenti Liaison
How to Join
In light of Covid-19 and first-year students being off-campus this winter, we have needed to adapt our new-member process for the 24s. Importantly, 24s will have an opportunity to join DSP! We have tentative plans for how 24s will be able to join us, and these plans are outlined below. However, please know that our plans for the 24s may change due to the state of the pandemic and the College’s and CDC’s policies.
Winter 2021
While only some 24s will be on campus this winter and we will not begin our new-member process until the spring, we will try to use the winter to give you a better sense of what a shift at the Skiway looks like and what the responsibilities of a Dartmouth patroller involve (we may even livestream some shifts for the 24s to watch!). Be sure to check your emails throughout the winter and check out our instagram @DSP_for_24s for more info.
We are also asking that, if possible, those who are interested in joining DSP submit a video of them skiing or snowboarding at some point this winter. We recognize that many of you may not be skiing this winter for various reasons. We want to make it clear that regardless of whether or not you are able to submit a ski video, you will still be able to join DSP and we will simply need to assess your skiing ability by discussing your skiing experiences and learning more about your skiing background. Most importantly, we do not want anyone to feel pressured to ski this year if they were not already planning on doing so. Not submitting a ski video will not count against you in the selection process.
For those who are planning on skiing this year, we are looking for 20-30 seconds of you skiing, preferably on blue or black terrain. You can send us multiple short clips of you skiing the same terrain over and over if that’s all you have access to, or a few clips of you all over the mountain. In addition, we would love to see a separate clip of you in a side slip and a “pizza” because these are important maneuvers when handling a toboggan with an injured patient. If possible, please also include a 15-30 second clip of you skiing in which you start in a pizza, transition to a side slip on one side, transition back to pizza, transition to a side slip on the other side, and then transition back to a pizza while moving in a straight line down the slope. A steep, groomed run would be ideal for this clip, but whatever you have access to will work.
For those who are snowboarders, here are three things that we are looking for: 1) A video with you starting in a heel side snowplow and then transitioning to a toe side snowplow. (Preferably this would be done on steeper terrain if you have access to steep terrain) 2) A video of you boarding a blue with emphasis on carving. 3) A video of you boarding a black, with an emphasis on moving quickly / getting down the hill quickly while staying in control.
If you happen to live in a snowy place but will not be going to any resorts this winter, we will happily take a video of you skiing down a sledding hill or golf course. Or if you happen to have videos of you skiing from previous years, feel free to send those along as well or instead. We know that this is an unusual year and ski season, and we will be flexible and understanding when it comes to ski videos!
If you are able to submit a ski video, please share your footage with us some time between now and March 29th (the first day of spring term)! The best way to share this footage with us will be to upload your videos to a google drive folder and share the folder with us (pipermollyliaisons@gmail.com). Please make the title of the folder “Your Full Name - Ski Videos.”
Spring 2021
We plan to run a hybrid Outdoor Emergency Care course for the 24s this spring. However, doing so is dependent on Covid-19 campus restrictions staying as they are or becoming more relaxed by spring. During the first few weeks of the spring (most likely during the initial quarantine period), we plan to hold Zoom interviews for those who are interested in DSP. After these interviews, we will select a cohort of 24s to join DSP. As long as all members of this cohort do well in the OEC course and meet our expectations once we start patrolling, these members will become patrollers and we intend to complete our selection process during the first few weeks of the spring.
Fall 2021
Right now our priority is to find ways for all 24s who are interested in patrol to have an opportunity to join DSP. Next fall (2021) we plan to run an OEC course for the 25s and for any 24s who were not on campus during Spring 2021 or who were unable to participate in our apprenti process during the spring. Through offering OEC for the 24s during both Spring 2021 and Fall 2021, we hope to give all 24s an opportunity to join Dartmouth Ski Patrol regardless of their ability to be on campus during one specific term. Also, in the scenario where we are unable to run an OEC course during Spring 2021, we will need to push back the apprenti process for all 24s and 24s will likely take OEC during Fall 2021.
Please reach out to us with any questions about this process or for more information!
Frequently Asked Questions
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Can I patrol as a snowboarder?Yes! We welcome skiers, snowboarders, and telemark skiers.
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Do I need to be pre-med?Not at all! We welcome any major with any career interest and most Dartmouth patrollers are not pre-med.
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Do I get paid?In general, no. Dartmouth Ski Patrol is a volunteer organization. With that said, some Dartmouth patrollers may choose to do “paid patrol” for a season, meaning that they patrol for at least 20 hours a week and are paid for their hours. Most Dartmouth students who are acting as paid patrollers for a term will not take classes during that term.
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What’s the time commitment of a Dartmouth patroller during the winter?Every patroller is expected to work two shifts per week throughout the winter. Each of these shifts consists of 4 hours patrolling at the Skiway and about 30 minutes of travel each way (approximately 10 hours total per week). Patrollers are able to choose their own shift schedule so that patrolling does not interfere with their academic commitments.
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What’s the time commitment of a Dartmouth patroller during the other seasons?Dartmouth patrollers are expected to complete a full-weekend Outdoor Emergency Care refresher course every fall to maintain their Outdoor Emergency Care certification. Dartmouth patrollers are also expected to spend one week at the Skiway before the start of their sophomore season for a training week, as well as to patrol for one week of spring break after their junior season.
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What's the time commitment of an "apprenti"?"For some context, DSP refers to our new members as "apprenti" or "apprentices." For 24s, the new member process ("apprenti process") will likely begin this spring when we hold interviews and run an Outdoor Emergency Care (OEC) course. For those taking OEC, the weekly time commitment usually ends up being about four hours of class time and 2-4 hours per week of independent studying to prepare for these classes. In previous years, the OEC schedule has usually consisted of class on Tuesdays and Thursdays from either 6pm-8pm or 8pm-10pm, with 1-2 hours of studying to prepare for each class. While taking OEC is not quite the same as taking an extra academic class, OEC is a significant time commitment. However, earning your OEC certification is a necessary step to becoming a patroller anywhere, and an OEC certification is also helpful in other contexts besides DSP (see "Is an OEC certification helpful even if I don’t end up joining DSP?"). Many patrollers also really enjoy the OEC course, and taking OEC is a great way to make friends and learn some very useful new skills!
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If I join DSP how many seasons do I need to commit to?All Dartmouth patrollers are expected to be on campus for all 4 winters and are expected to patrol every winter.
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Can I play a sport and be on patrol?Because of the large time commitment of shifts during the winter, we recommend patrollers don’t play varsity sports that compete during the winter. However, we do have a few patrollers on varsity teams. Additionally, we have many members on club sports teams. Feel free to reach out to us if you are committed to playing a sport and want to talk about whether patrol is a possibility for you!
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Do I need previous patrolling experience?Absolutely not! All you need is skiing/snowboarding experience and an interest in learning how to become a patroller.
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Do I need to join DSP as a freshman?Check out our "How to Join" page for more info.
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Can I join DSP as a transfer student?Unfortunately we are unable to accept transfer students as new members. As an organization, we are responsible for promoting safety and providing emergency care at the Dartmouth Skiway, and to do so we need to ensure that we have enough members who are qualified to respond to emergencies at the Skiway. Dartmouth patrollers spend their first two winters in training, and patrollers are only able to independently respond to emergencies during their junior and senior winters. Therefore, new sophomores and juniors would not be able to respond to calls until their senior year, at best, and this puts a strain on other members of Dartmouth Ski Patrol and the organization as a whole.
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How good of a skier/snowboarder do I have to be?You need to be a controlled, safe, and confident skier/snowboarder. Because we are responsible for keeping the customers of the Dartmouth Skiway safe, you need to be a strong enough skier/snowboarder that you can provide aid to injured skiers anywhere on the mountain. We are not looking for anything fancy in terms of skiing. You do not need to be the fastest one on the mountain or landing crazy jumps! We are simply looking for strong, confident, and reliable skiers/snowboarders. Check out this video to get a better sense of what we are looking for.
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Do I need any medical certifications?Nope! During our apprenti process, we certify all of our new members in Outdoor Emergency Care and in Basic Life Support CPR.
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How many new patrollers do you take each year?We generally take about 15 new members each year who are selected based on their skiing/snowboard ability and their comfort with the Outdoor Emergency Care material.
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Is Dartmouth Ski Patrol only for Dartmouth students?DSP is made up of mostly Dartmouth students but also includes a few members of the Upper Valley community and the Dartmouth alumni community. These community/alumni patrollers are an integral part of Dartmouth Ski Patrol.
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What is the timeline of joining DSP for 24s?See our "How to Join" page for information.
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If I am already an EMT or have previous ski patrol experience is there a different process for joining DSP?Typically, all new members of Dartmouth Ski Patrol go through the same process for joining DSP. However, this is usually determined on a case-by-case basis. Feel free to reach out to us at pipermollyliaisons@gmail.com to talk about your previous experience.
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What does DSP look for in future patollers?Above all, we look for people who are eager to help others. We work long (and sometimes very cold) shifts in close quarters with other people and, because of that, we also look for new members with good attitudes who are willing to learn how to better serve the Skiway's customers. Additionally, we require our members to be competent skiers/snowboarders. If you can ski/snowboard well and are enthusiastic about being outdoors and helping others, we are very interested in having you be a part of patrol!
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Is an OEC certification helpful even if I don’t end up joining DSP?Not every candidate that goes through our apprenti process ends up as a member of ski patrol. However, those who complete our apprenti process and pass their OEC exams still gain an OEC certification even if they do not ultimately join DSP. An OEC certification can be very helpful even if you don’t put it to use at the Skiway! You’ll be trained to patrol almost anywhere! All National Ski Patrol organizations use the OEC certification to ensure their members are able to respond to emergencies on the mountain. You can be a part of Hanover’s Upper Valley Wilderness Response Team! You can become an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) through a short OEC-to-EMT bridge course. See The Kane Schools for more information. You’re certified to be a safety lead through the Dartmouth Outing Club’s First Year Trips program or could provide medical assistance for their student support Croos. You’ll have general medical training in case of emergency and you will be prepared to keep yourself and friends safe on outdoor adventures!
Sign up with your Dartmouth email to receive emails about DSP events and updates!
For more information, check out:
Dartmouth Ski Patrol website: https://patrol.host.dartmouth.edu
Dartmouth Skiway website: https://sites.dartmouth.edu/skiway/
Don't forget to follow us on instagram!
@dskipatrol & @dsp_for_24s
