what are your favorite and least favorite things about duke?
One of my favorite things about Duke is its collaborative, enthusiastic environment. We’re driven and intelligent, but also supportive, with group work and collaborative learning being things we, the students, are really invested in. From what I’ve learned from professors and graduate students who attended Ivy Leagues, we’re unique in this way.
I’ve heard stories from Ivy League students of homework disappearing, as well as unhealthy community attitudes towards mental health. The Duke community encourages conversation about things like mental health and sexuality, and it’s a conversation Duke students are often willing to have.
One of my least favorite things about Duke is its aggressive party scene. For many, an important part of student life is Wednesday night Shooters and Thursday night Devine’s. Despite this, you DO NOT have to participate if you don’t want to. Duke is big enough where it’s easy to find friends that share your interests. If you, or anyone else wants to find friends, I recommend doing a pre-orientation program or a retreat (DAP/Duke Authenticity Project, is a great one).
Here’s a run down of pre-orientation programs:
P-Waves: the kids who party hard and want to be seen running around in their bathing suits.
P-Arts: the artsy kids, including theatre geeks, dancers, visual, and musical artists
P-Build: Generally kind people interested in community service
P-Search: Not as many do this one, so I’ve heard less about it. They’ve been described to party very hard.
P-Wild: (Coming back in 2018), similar to P-Waves, except less on the beach. Supposed to be very cool; I know little about it.
Good luck! I hope this helps.