<p>Can somebody compare and contrast these two schools? Academically & Socially?</p>
<p>Ok, I'm no expert on either school but I'd think they're completely different schools. I'm a Duke hater so my assessment of Duke might be slightly biased to say the least.</p>
<p>Duke is incredibly snobby, incredibly wealthy and the students I know who go there are the types who are incredibly grade concious but have little to no intellectual curiousity. Wesleyan I'd imagine is totally different in that regard. You have to like a small liberal arts school enviornment, though, and it's a school I didn't consider (although I like the sound of it) because it's just too small. </p>
<p>The one advantage to Duke...Their incredibly annoying but admittedly strong basketball team.</p>
<p>My son is at Yale, but he wishes he were at Wesleyan. He said the people there are more interesting, more quirky, more laid back. I see you're from SoCal, Duke is a bit more formal, more traditional and may lead to a bit of culture shock.</p>
<p>I think that it may be a culture shock but then again it may not. I am scared for that if it does happen.</p>
<p>rich, frat-boy culture is sort of generic across all regions. If you could be happy at USC or UCLA, you'll do okay at Duke. Wesleyan's a very special place, too. SoCalers generally like the old buildings (much older and more authentic than even Duke's), and the stark, flinty New England seasons (bring a good winter coat.)</p>
<p>Duke and Wesleyan would both be a culture shock coming from California, unless if you went to fancy prep schools.</p>
<p>Do you want your entire social scene to be determined by basketball and frat parties? If so, go to Duke. If the idea of "ranking" your social status based on which frat/sorority you're in sounds horrible, come to Wesleyan.</p>
<p>Weslyan: have a lotta school spirit like Duke?</p>
<p>It has its own kind of school spirit. People take a lot of pride in the long tradition of educational innovation (they were experimenting with non-traditional grading systems and minimal requirements long before they were fashionable) and progressive politics (people say, that the term "politically correct" was invented at Wesleyan.) And, everyone -- alum, students, the administration -- circle the wagons when the media treats it unfairly. People still brag on how West College (a self-governing dorm) charmed and guiled a New York Times reporter into writing an article about the existence of a "Naked Dorm" -- on the front page of its morning edition.</p>
<p>All in all, Wesleyan throws a lot of weight for such a small place.</p>
<p>Sports is not overly huge, but, NESCAC competition is probably the closest thing there is to an Ivy League for small colleges. I think secretly people take some pride that such a small university boasts -- not just one but, two -- current NFL coaches among alum. Lacrosse is a pretty big deal.</p>
<p>moviefreak,
There is great pride among the students and alumni of both colleges, but Duke is just a more visible place and so you probably hear about it more. The Wesleyan folks love their experience, but it is quite a bit different from what you will find at Duke. Socially, Duke is going to be more active and also interacts to some degree with the goings-on in Chapel Hill (8 miles away) when things get slow on the Duke campus. </p>
<p>Athletically, this would be like comparing UCLA to Pomona. Which one would you prefer? </p>
<p>Have you ever been to either school and what drew you to these two in the first place?</p>