Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, is so prestigious, Otago Girls' High School pupil Shirley Zhang (18) ran around the house screaming at the top of her lungs with excitement when she received the acceptance letter.
It is the kind of place scholars apply to study at after they have studied elsewhere, she said.
''If you're an international student, it's very hard to get in because they have a quota.
''It's very competitive and all the students that apply are all really amazing.''
Alumni from the college include some of the most influential people of the past two centuries.
Shirley, a 2014 Otago Daily Times Class Act award winner, was dux of Otago Girls' High School this year and has maintained a perfect record of excellence endorsements in all her NCEA level 1 and 2 subjects.
She has also worked hard for her fellow pupils and the community, serving on the school's council, Save the Children Child and Youth Council, United Nations Youth Delegation and New Zealand Youth Declaration Conference.
She ran regular quiz nights and bowls tournaments at Yvette Williams Retirement Village.
As a result, she won the TrustPower Youth Community Award and the Otago Zonta Young Woman in Public Affairs Award this year.
This work, and her academic excellence, have also earned her scholarships to three New Zealand universities, but she said she would be crazy to turn down an opportunity to study at Dartmouth.
Although the college does not provide study scholarships, she said her $US60,000 tuition fees would be heavily subsidised.
Shirley hopes to study computer science and possibly international relations.
The university year does not start until next September, so in the meantime she plans to travel to China, where she will teach English, and travel around Asia.
She is now awaiting her NCEA level 3 and New Zealand scholarship results. john.lewis@odt.co.nz
