<p>How intense is the workload, especially in science and mathematics? Is it impossible to get a good grade (At least a B)? How many hours do Duke students have to work to get a good grade? Are Duke's mathematics, biochemistry and psychology respected? Is writing course for freshmen really difficult? Is the atmosphere at Duke very competitive?</p>
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How intense is the workload, especially in science and mathematics?
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Well, I'm only a freshman, so I can't comment on upper-level classes. However, I'd say that the workload is difficult but definitely manageable. If you manage your time wisely, you'll have plenty of time left over after you get your work done. Engineers tend to work harder as a general rule, but even their workloads aren't unmanageable. </p>
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Is it impossible to get a good grade (At least a B)? How many hours do Duke students have to work to get a good grade?
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Duke has a bit of a reputation for grade inflation. This is not nearly as true in the sciences, but it's definitely true for the social sciences and humanities. Even in the sciences it's not impossible to get a good grade. With a great deal of effort I managed to pull off a B- in organic chem as a freshman, so it's not that bad. My other science and math classes so far don't seem to be terribly difficult. Again, I'm only a freshman.</p>
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Are Duke's mathematics, biochemistry and psychology respected?
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YES</p>
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Is writing course for freshmen really difficult?
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It varies greatly. Although the course is Writing 20, it's really about 20 different courses taught by different professors. Some are really easy, some are difficult.</p>
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Is the atmosphere at Duke very competitive?
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It depends. Some of the premed classes, like organic chem and cell biology, are extremely competitive. Most other classes are very laidback, though. As a general rule, Dukies compete more with themselves than with each other.</p>
<p>in terms of grades, a lot of the larger classes curve to B- or C+, which doesnt sound that bad until you realize that half of the people get C+ or worse</p>
<p>good question, hairy. Just what I too wanted to know.</p>
<p>I've always wondering what curving is like at top schools. With places composed almost exclusively of the top 1% academics-wise, it would seem that curving would send little seizures through once-perfectionists' bodies as they take home C-s and smush their chances at a decent grad school . </p>
<p>Warblers or any other Dukies- would you say that those scoring at or below the curve do so because of poor study habits, lack of motivation, poor preparation, limited intellectual abilities, or something else? Do they just not care?</p>
<p>nikeswooshguy- To answer your question...it can be pretty much anything. Seriously. I've seen people scoring below the curve because they party too hard/too often. Sometimes people don't do well because they don't learn to study correctly quick enough (because you learn that college is A LOT different from high school). Of course, sometimes you don't do well because you're not motivated in a certain subject, and that's ok. For me, I've always been a math/science person, and I didn't do very well in my econ class because I flat out hated it more than anything I've ever hated in my life. So that could be another reason...the subject just might not work for you. Really, it's what you make of it and there are a billion reasons why you might not do well in a class.</p>
<p>Anyway, in response to this post in general, as a math major, I personally think anywhere you go math is respected because it's a TOUGH major. I don't know too much about classes, but if you search for the right professor (because some I hear are a bit rough), you can definitely come out of a class feeling like you've learned a ton.</p>
<p>It's totally not impossible to get a good grade in these classes either. I'd say I work incredibly hard in my sciences classes, yet still have a good time, and I ended up with a B in Gen Chem (keep in mind I started off with a significantly LOWER grade). As long as you literally know what you're doing it's a totally doable task. With the math classes (I believe 31L, 32L, and 103), there's a block curve for the entire course, so if you get a good professor who prepares you well on the exam you're better off...so that's kind of a different story. But in general I've found with a good amount of work and a thorough knowledge of the subject you'll get what you work for.</p>
<p>Sorry if that isn't coherent...sometimes I just talk.</p>
<p>No,no, it's all very good.</p>
<p>Any experience with the Duke foreign language classes? Especially the Spanish for Medical Professionals course?</p>
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I have experience with some upper level science courses, and they can be hard. The chemistry department's policy is basically that the class is curved so that half the students get A's and B's... the other half doesn't. When you take into account the fact that all students here are smart and willing to work (there are exceptions, of course), that's a pretty hard curve. No premed wants a C on his or her transcript, and people work very hard to that end, but half of every class by definition will not succeed. I'm taking a class in biology that has the same exact curve.</p>
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That spanish class is only open to medical professionals, eg. doctors, not really undergrads, I'm pretty sure.
But I have taken foreign language courses here, and I'm very pleased.</p>
<p>so are the curves really rough? I mean, would the difference in raw score between an A and a C student be just a few points? Is the difference between an A and a C student in these courses pretty arbitrary?</p>
<p>The grading for the humanities classes isn't very strict, especially in history and lit (in my experience). You can probably get at least a B with a moderate amount of work, and A's aren't hard if you know how to write well. If you aren't majoring in science, there are some easier courses that are graded more generously. </p>
<p>Intro economics isn't curved, but tests are fair and most people (2/3) get in the A/B area. My psychology class this semester seems very fair with the grading, but I don't know if he will curve the grades later on. </p>
<p>There isn't that much competition, but Math 103 is very hard because some people who are particularly strong in math will bring the curve up. If you aren't a math genius, you will probably be happy with a B- in that class.</p>
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No, the tests are hard enough that the separation between grade levels is pretty clear. If you get an A, you will have beaten the average by a good margin on most of the tests, and if you get a C, then you didn't. But yeah, don't worry, this curve is not applied to most of the classes you will take here.</p>
<p>oh darn, math 103... I'll prob take that...</p>
<p>Say, will taking a course at a different time (i.e. math 103 during a summer term/2nd semester) allow the curve to work in your favor? My logic: freshmen math majors who completed Calc BC in high school will likely take 103 the first semester and compose a good deal of the 103 class. By second semester, they will be taking linear algebra. So, if I wait until second semester to take 103, the exam will be curved against the less ambitious, who either failed AP BC, or only took AB in HS, resulting in a sweeter curve, as less talented students take the class. Does that work? Anyone know the curves for 1st/2nd semester?</p>
<p>that's a good point. I'm in BC right now but I'm want to do FOCUS first semester so I'm going to take 103 second semester. I wonder if it would make a difference.</p>
<p>gosh, me too!</p>
<p><em>glares deeply</em></p>
<p>well, it may work out that way -- a kid down the hall from me is in 103 right now and an A on the first test was a 55%. i dont know much about his class though, it may be a lot harder (% wise) than mine was last semester. A's on tests in my class were more on the order of 80-85%</p>
<p>however, people in math 103 aren't close to stupid no matter when they take it. i know several people that didnt take credit for BC calc and started in math 32 -- calc 2, so that they could get a stronger background in calculus. once they take 103 they will be better off than they would have been before</p>
<p>hot darn! 55 vs. 85..... I'd assume the departments would try to make the tests roughly the same difficulty.</p>
<p>I don't think it's any easier in the second semester. In my first test, you needed to score in the high 80's for an A, and anything in the 60's was a C.</p>
<p>Yeah you definitely can't predict how 103 will be curved of ranything. bsbllallstr-my roommmate must be in the same class as that kid...lol. Anyway...I took BC and placed into 103, but am only talking it this semester becaues I rewarded myself for a job well done on the AP test...although I did get made fun of a lot for being a math major not in math. But anyway, my class is probably 50/50 with people who placed into 103 and people who took 32...and they're all incredible. 103's just tough.</p>
<p>The worst thing about 103 is that the entire department gives the same final, which screws over people who had less than stellar and/or easy teachers. Knowing that, I have some friends who held off on 103 until they had good registration windows, so they could get good professors. So there's another kink in predicting when super-smart people will take it.</p>
<p>I'm thankful I took 103 in high school and was spared all this. :p</p>
<p>overall, the department claims that they give 30% As, 40% Bs, and then whatever they feel is appropriate after that,</p>
<p>in reality, the curve was set at around 26% As, 35% Bs, and then w/e else.</p>
<p>mirror mirror on the wall, what's the 103 curve like after all?</p>
<p><em>response hazy, try again later</em></p>