<p>I'm currently applying to Duke through Common App. Under the "academics" section, it asks for your top 3 choices for academic programs at Duke. I was looking through the list and found both a "medicine" program and a "pre-med" program. Could someone explain the difference to me? I'm assuming they are both undergraduate programs, but I could be wrong. Also, are either of the programs majors? Or are they just pre-med/medicine tracks? What school would the programs fall into, Trinity or Pratt? And under the "general" section of the "question" section of the application, it asks for the "student status". The choices are Trinity and Pratt. If I put academic programs/majors from both Trinity and Pratt down as my top 3 interests in the academics section, would I just choose the school that affiliates with my top choice? Sorry for all the questions, and thanks for your time!</p>
<p>Virtually every question you have asked is succinctly answered on Duke’s Undergraduate Admissions site. Perhaps it might be wise --and expeditious – for you to review that information first and only then pose questions.</p>
<p>Rest assured, that’s exactly what I did. I have gone through the four menus at the top of [Duke</a> Admissions](<a href=“http://admissions.duke.edu/]Duke”>http://admissions.duke.edu/) as well as each individual subcategory under those menus, yet I can’t seem to find any information on a program called “Medicine” or a program called “Pre-Med.” However, on Common App, when they ask for my top 3 academic program choices, those two are on the list. I just tried looking again, but did not find any new information. If you know anything that could help me with the questions I originally posed, that would be great! Thank you!</p>
<p>1) Duke does not have an undergraduate pre-Med or Medicine major (please see: [Majors</a>, Minors & Schools - Duke Admissions](<a href=“http://admissions.duke.edu/education/majors]Majors”>Academic Possibilities - Duke Undergraduate Admissions)) per se. Rather – and frequently with extensive help from the Pre-Med advisory team – undergraduates major in a variety of disciplines that superbly qualify them for Medical School. I speculate that the Common Application’s “three academic selections” are generalized and may not be specific to Duke (or to any other university).
2) Admissions candidates apply – and potentially are admitted – to either Trinity or Pratt. Once matriculated, they may be able to take courses in either “college.” In fact, I know a few Dukies who received an undergraduate engineering degrees (BSE) from Pratt and from Trinity (BS) after for years in residence.</p>
<p>^ one quick clarification on the above; those students <em>only</em> received a <em>degree</em> from Pratt; undergraduates can only receive one degree, and if they are planning on having any of their majors be in engineering, it has to be a BSE from Pratt. Many students end up satisfying the departmental requirements for a major, minor, or certificate in Trinity but they do not earn a BS along with it. We will on occasion have students trying to wear multiple tassels at graduation and have to correct them on that - the only folks who can generally legitimately do that are the MD/Ph.D. candidates :)</p>
<p>Doc: How long has this been true? I have a very good friend (whom I have mentored for more than a decade – two summer internships and his initial post-Duke job all with Lockheed Martin), who received BOTH a BSE from Pratt (Computer and Electrical) and a BS from Trinity (Physics) in 2002.</p>
<p>^Your friend would have needed to take around 68 classes for that to be the case, I’m afraid, since courses are not allowed to double-count for degrees. Most likely, that person satisfied the Physics <em>departmental</em> requirements for a BS in Physics but graduated with a BSE. To get a BSE and a BS, a person would have to satisfy all of Curriculum 2000 (as it was called then) to get the BS and all of the Pratt requirements to get a BSE.</p>
<p>This is purely an academic curiosity on my part being an MD/PhD student myself (not at Duke though), but my impression has always been that strictly speaking the rules regarding academic regalia specifies that under no circumstances can the academic dress or elements thereof of 2 different degrees be worn together as a whole or mixed even for combined degree candidates at their graduation. One is free to choose one or the other but not both even if the graduation confers both degrees. If the PhD has already been conferred, then the MD dress is worn as the ceremony confers mainly the MD degree. On subsequent occasions the dress of the higher degree (PhD being a research doctorate vs. MD being a professional doctorate) is general worn unless the circumstances call for a specific degree’s dress.</p>
<p>^true, true. The small exception is bringing (though not wearing) the additional hood. Duke’s law school instructions cover it pretty well and I think can be extrapolated: “If you’re receiving a second, non-law degree (e.g. MD, PhD, MBA): It is improper to wear two hoods at the same time. At the Hooding Ceremony, you should wear your law gown and tassel. If you so choose, you may drape the hood for your other degree over your left arm. For the University Graduation Exercises, you should wear the full academic apparel (gown, hood, and tassel) of the degree with which you choose to sit. You may drape the hood for the other degree over your left arm and stand a second time when that degree is called during the ceremony.”</p>
<p>I like how Harvard deals with this in the case of double doctorates - the color of the crow’s feet emblems on the front of the robe indicates the degree; Ph.D. recipients have blue for philosophy, MD’s green - and in the case of MD/Ph.D., one is blue and one is green. They do wear the research doctorate gown.</p>
I have gone through the four menus at the top of [Duke</a> Admissions](<a href=“