Hi,
I’m interested in Duke for BME and I had a few questions regarding the general campus vibe, since I can’t visit.
How is the majority of the student population? I grew up on the West Coast so…will I be able to fit in? I come from a middle class background- and I’ve had experience with going to school with a lot of rich kids, and didn’t like it, at all.
One big problem is the drinking- I don’t drink, and don’t want to start in college. Will I feel left out? How is the Greek scene?
Are people friendly and collaborative?
Also, how is Duke’s uni curriculum? What does it emphasize on? Is it easy or difficult to double major?
How is the FA at Duke?
oh, and how is it to be a premed at Duke? Are things super stressful- is Duke the ‘play hard work hard’ types? To give an indication of what I’m like- I applied to Rochester, Tufts and thinking of applying to Brown as well- so does Duke fit with me?
thanks for considering duke! biomedical engineering is definitely one of the most popular majors at duke, and the pratt school is undoubtedly incredible.
everyone i’ve met here is absolutely incredible. where a person comes from honestly really doesn’t come into play - i have friends from literally all over america and all over the world and division by geographic region is practically not a thing. i also come from a middle class background, also from a school with a lot of rich kids, and it is zero problem at all. you don’t know who’s on financial aid, or who’s here on a full scholarship, and how much money you end up spending is entirely up to you.
many of friends don’t drink as well. if you want to party, it’s available for you (greek/slg parties), but if you don’t, it’s literally the same thing - you’ll have a great weekend nonetheless, and have as fantastic a social life.
it’s not difficult to double major - in fact, there’s a stat out there somewhere that basically says most undergrads at least double major or minor/something like that. there’s no particular emphasis, and you really do get a well-rounded experience through duke academically. they make sure of it.
and duke has a lot.of.money. anyone who needs financial aid will get it, no problem.
a lot of kids try out premed. work hard play hard is definitely real. duke students know to get their work done and have clear goals in mind, but we also know how to have a really really good time.
if you have any other questions feel free to message me! do some more research, but from the looks of it, duke is perfect for you 
I’m currently a sophomore at Duke. I have had a pretty vibrant social life, and even rushed a fraternity, whilst being a premed student - and I’ve yet to drink a drop of alcohol (and I don’t intend on doing so). I do believe that some people, despite not liking to drink, do so to try “fitting in” - but honestly speaking, I’ve never been reproached/looked down upon for not doing so. I’ve had plenty of fun just by going to events and parties with friends completely sober. Don’t worry haha -as cliche as this sounds - just be yourself
And yes, there are a lot of “rich” kids on campus - but honestly, don’t let that faze you. I come from a middle class background as well, and it hasn’t been a problem so far. Duke’s FA claims to meet all need, so I hope you will get a good offer.
Contrary to popular belief, premed culture at Duke isn’t “intense” - you definitely need to work hard for your grades, but the culture amongst the students is much more collaborative. There isn’t any jealousy between people. I’d initially struggled with some premed courses, to which many of my friends offered to help generously.
It is not too difficult to double major - but if you are an engineer with not much AP credit, you will need to plan out. I am a premed student, majoring in something that isn’t Biology or Chemistry (the typical premed majors) and I don’t have much AP credit, so I had to plan out courses somewhat, since my major has many courses that don’t overlap with the premed curriculum.
Lol Brown is perhaps the chillest top school you can apply to - it’s a great school, and I at one point considered attending - but quickly decided it wasn’t for me haha. Duke and Brown are both great schools in their own ways - it’s ultimately up to you to visit the schools, and make your own sound judgement.
Hope this helps!
Thanks! I’m actually also premed! (plan to be, at least) Unfortunately, I’ve had to leave out Brown, because its too far out, so my parents didn’t let me- not to mention that its not really known for science/engineering (not thats its no good there, its just not known very well in those fields)…I’m actually an int’l student (US citizen tho) so I have a question- I obv didn’t have AP courses at my HS, but I will be taking them independently. I took advanced courses in Physics, Chem, Bio, Maths. (Also English and 2nd Lang) Which APs do you suggest I take? I’ve already decided on Chem, Bio and Calc AB.
I know this is not the correct forum, but which schools are similar to Duke? In terms of academics, vibe etc?
Every school is unique so there’s not really a completely analogous institution in terms of academics and vibe. Having said that, if you look at what other institutions prospective Duke students apply to, and schools with a strong sense of school spirit and a good academics/social life balance, I personally would say Penn and Stanford are the closest. I think Duke and Penn have the largest overlap in applicants and are close in terms of people choosing one over the other. Stanford and Duke share nice weather and top notch athletics, among other things.
If you don’t like partying/drinking and still enjoy going out, I would say that the options are pretty limited. If you are fine with staying in with friends, playing video games (Duke just built a huge gaming room on West this year!) and watching Netflix, however, you will find plenty of people like you.
Georgetown and Stanford I would say have a similar atmosphere to Duke, with students generally into athletics and attending sport events.
There are plenty of rich kids here, some inevitably obnoxious about it. This would be true at any top privatr school. If you want a more diverse peer group, consider going to Berkeley or something.
It’s not hard to double major at all. 81% of the students in Trinity have at least a majot and a minor. If you are a BME/premed, however, you probably don’t want to get too ambitious. Chances are you’ll drop out of Pratt anyways to keep up the high grades for med school haha.