<p>Hey! I'm very interested in Duke, and especially Duke's Focus Program, however, i have some questions! </p>
<p>For me, personally, I find the "perk" about this program the immediate community and connection with the professors. If I'm not too interested in the courses themselves, but rather the overall experience, will this bore me? If I'm put in a Focus that I'm not interested in, would these relationships completely worth it? Or should I stick with courses I like, without this community? </p>
<p>Secondly, I already have an idea of my interests and I want to take as many courses in my subject as possible, would doing this program limit me from taking these courses? and how many courses does focus require? </p>
<p>If someone could explain a bit more about the program and how it relates to the courses taken, that'd be great! Thank you! :) </p>
<p>@Langgirl2: I won’t try to provide a general Focus explanation; rather, please permit me to address your second paragraph. I believe the “overall experience” will likely be VERY worthwhile. More important, however, if you’re fortunate enough to attend Duke (or a university like it . . . and there aren’t many), you really should deeply capitalize on their near-limitless opportunities for personal growth and intellectual exploration (essentially, squeezing every drop of juice from the lime). This is in and beyond the classroom, with faculty but also with peers, community members, alumni, and many others, in Durham and around the globe, and so forth. While you currently believe you’re “not too interested in the courses themselves,” PLEASE enter Focus – and everything else, for that matter – with a thoroughly open and highly inquisitive mind. You’re probably seventeen, therefore it’s completely reasonable and entirely expected that you really have no firm idea what will eventually inspire and/or fascinate you. Exploit opportunities like Focus to discover that – due to professors, fellow undergraduates, the experiences/instruction Duke provides, and MUCH more – that “not too interested” course may just become a lifelong passion. </p>
<p>I suggest you consult the Focus website at duke.edu, since individual “area” requirements are altered frequently and I don’t want to mislead you with dated information. </p>
<p>hey @Langgirl2 I’m in focus right now and i absolutely love the relationships and the sense of community that it brings with it. as of right now, you have to take 2 focus courses during your first semester at duke. in total, your first semester is composed of 4 classes, 2 of which you are free to choose. this is a little restricting, especially if you want to try out a lot of classes in different subjects while still fulfilling prereq. 101 courses (if you have some idea of what you want your major to be…but you don’t have to, you have plenty of time!!) overall, i think the focus program is a great way to get to know more people at duke. even if you end up not really connecting with the subject of a specific focus cluster, you’ll end up loving it anyways because of the people. </p>
I’m in focus right now and i absolutely love the relationships and the sense of community that it brings with it. as of right now, you have to take 2 focus courses during your first semester at duke. in total, your first semester is composed of 4 classes, 2 of which you are free to choose. this is a little restricting, especially if you want to try out a lot of classes in different subjects while still fulfilling prereq. 101 courses (if you have some idea of what you want your major to be…but you don’t have to, you have plenty of time!!) overall, i think the focus program is a great way to get to know more people at duke. even if you end up not really connecting with the subject of a specific focus cluster, you’ll end up loving it anyways because of the people. </p>