Duke University

“Duke turns down dozens of validictorians every yearFeb 19 2005Art & Design Department
Duke turns down dozens of validictorians every year. Being smart isnt enough. Duke students have personality. Taking a leadership pos. somewhere definately helps. Don't rely solely on academic stuff (ie chem team). I think the admissions office really tries to put together a socially well-adapted group. I would go for team captain or prom chair over french honor society... in addition to the grades etc. The essay should be articulate and intelligent (obv.), but be creative and show your contribution to the committee. The boring smart kids go to MIT or Brown. The smart kids that don't suck at life come to Duke.
SAT: 1320 Female

“Duke was not what I wanted it to beJan 13 2005Sociology
Duke was not what I wanted it to be. Why?

-minorities are shunned. if you aren't 'main-stream' you will be an outider. there is essentially no racial integration, and at meals, for examples, you sit with your race. Its like we were back in the 1800s...
- the social life here is extremely over-hyped. At many parties you have to already know people to either get in or have a good time. It is extremely difficult to meet people here.
-the dorms are same and limit social interaction
-the classes are HUGE. many are weeding-out classes for certain majors. the stats (like student to prof ratio) are really skewwed because only some of the profs teach.
-Way too preppy. If you don't like hanging out with kids who drive BMW's and who dress like their at a country-club everyday, you won't have many friend (probably none though actually)

There is more about Duke, but this is what I had really wish I had known before coming to Duke. If this interests you, apply, if it doesn't look elsewhere, because this is the real deal!
ACT: 10 SAT: 1130 Female

“College admissions is a crapshootDec 16 2004Undecided
College admissions is a crapshoot. I was lucky with my SATs, I worked hard in high school, and I was involved in a lot of extracurriculars. Other than that, unless you have connections, there's not much more you can do than express your interests and desire to attend Duke well in your application.
SAT: 1580 Male

“There were about five of us from my highOct 06 2004Public Policy
There were about five of us from my high school who wanted to go to Duke very badly, but I was shocked to be the only one who got in. You have to keep in mind that EVERYONE who applies has great grades, scores, backgrounds (in other words, if you don't have these to begin with, forget it). However, I can see that people who concentrated most of their spare time into doing one unusual thing very well in high school, as opposed to being in 500 clubs, are typically the ones selected by the admissions department. Good luck!
SAT: 1530 Female

“Nothing different from what u gotta do to getAug 14 2004Undecided
nothing different from what u gotta do to get into other elite schools
Male