Hi all
Duke is currently my son’s top choice and he is considering applying ED. Everything about the academics and school seem perfect for him. I am wondering what the housing and fraternity situation is going to look like for the next 4-5 years. Any insight? Thanks!
I do not know about fraternities but as far as housing goes the first year students are assigned on-campus housing in the East Campus, while second year onwards the housing is on West Campus. There are buses every 15 mins or so that connect east and west campuses. They get assigned a roommate at random in the first year (based on a form they fill about their habits/preferences) and in subsequent years they can choose their roommate.
The rooms have decent space, are airconditioned, come with a raised/height adjustable bed (students tend to keep the bed high so they can store stuff underneath it), a desk, a bookshelf, a chest of drawers, and a closet/area for clothes.
They can keep a small microwave and fridge in their rooms.
The dorms also have a kitchen (usually one per floor) that students don’t seem to use much… but there will always be a few that use them I guess.
There is also a lounge with TV on every floor.
A youtube video on the dorms: DUKE UNIVERSITY DORM TOUR (EVERY SINGLE DORM) - YouTube
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The school rolled out a new housing system last year where freshman housing is linked to dorms on west campus for subsequent years. They’re trying to foster a more residential focused “house” system vs greek life. Many of the fraternities de-affiliated after Duke moved rush to sophomore year and no longer allowed on campus greek housing. Not sure what that will mean for greek life over the next 4-5 years, right now it’s still pretty robust.
The fraternities went off campus at CU, and aren’t official student organizations, about 20 years ago. Hasn’t slowed them down one bit. The houses were always off campus and owned by the individual chapters so to those just driving by, there are still big frat houses surrounding the campus. There are a few that are back to being official student groups, but only a few because they have a long list of rules they have to follow and most houses aren’t willing to follow those rules.
The sororities were always official student groups even though their houses are also off campus and privately owned.
TLDR; I don’t think it will change anything that frats are off campus.
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You can read about the new Residential system, QuadEx, online–just google it and there are many articles available mostly from the student newspaper.
Frats used to live together on campus; sororities never lived together, even off campus. Frat parties still happen but off campus: they are open to everyone especially Freshmen, and it seems most try it out to see what it is all about, but the issue is the focus of parties off-campus detracts from the campus community, and by most accounts leads to more off -campus drinking (which poses more problems and risks than on -campus drinking ). Back in the 90s, I was in greek life and spouse not, and we both enjoyed our time there, but the fun to be had was highly centered around greek especially the first 2 yrs, even though rush did not happen until second semester and then later was moved to second year. Many students felt they could not fit in without greek life back then. The primary goal is to have that separation and isolation no longer happen with shift to QuadEx /new plans.
I have a 2025 there: she and the vast majority of 2025s did not join a fraternity or sorority. She has a huge co-Ed friend group and none even considered joining. Most of them chose Duke because it is de-emphasized there. The 2024s and 2025s had less students join greek than pre-pandemic years(last year was essentially a normal year with masks and tests but in-person classes and indoor basketball games and parties etc, esp by second semester). This trend of greek life being actively downplayed is prevalent on all top-20 type tours we have been on, and seems amplified for D23s tours, compared to 2019-early2020 when we toured with our first. Duke’s new Res Life QuadEx plan makes it more in-line with peer schools who have robust residential housing systems and bonding outside of greek life. 90%of students live on campus, and that number has not changed now that the frats that still exist have disaffiliated and (some members) live off campus. Alcohol is now allowed on West campus again and the new Res life plan includes having alcohol/kegs at events (of course under 21 are not supposed to be served) and also having lots more on-campus parties/social events as part of QuadEx. There are plenty of nonalcoholic events still, too. (All-Freshman East campus is still technically “dry” in name, as in no sponsored parties with alcohol can be held there. This has been the rule since East became all -Freshmen in 1995).
TL;DR: Duke is a very fun campus with an intellectual vibe. If he has goals of a campus with a robust, large greek life presence at the center of the fun, Duke is not the place for him.
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Thanks!
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I’ll add some here. Agree with 2Devils about the new QuadEx program and it determining where you live beyond freshman year. Some additional info: you are required to live on campus for 3 years, which I am completely good with. Also, in addition to the QuadEx program freshman dorm placement determining where you live sophomore year, you will live in the same dorm junior year. Senior year you can move off campus or I assume a different dorm, or into one of the apartment style dorms for seniors/grad students. There are a few ways to get out of the QuadEx arrangement after freshman year, one I can remember is the Baldwin Honors Program (women only) - they live in one particular dorm, dont recall which one (perhaps Few Quad) beginning sophomore year, regardless of your QuadEx affiliation. I know there is also a SPIRE LLC which is a STEM living learning community Sophomore year. I do not know which dorm they live in. There may be others. West campus is beautiful, East campus different architecturally (and I still haven’t had much of a chance to see East Campus), but what I have seen also looks very nice.
In addition to QuadEx, after acceptance, students can apply to something called the Focus Program (you can find it on the Duke web) - this is an interdisciplinary learning and living experience with 16 clusters. Students in the program work together with faculty to apply multi-disciplinary perspectives on a common theme or topic within a cluster. Clusters include things like Neuroscience and Law, Ethics, Leadership & Global Citizenship, Science & the Public, Thinking Through Music & the Arts and 12 more. Based on the cluster you are accepted into, you are placed into a dormitory on East Campus to live with the rest of your cluster (not necessarily roommates). My D22 was placed in Trinity, which is the newest dorm on East campus, based on her Focus group. When you apply to Focus, you have to select 4 groups I believe, and you may not get your first choice - especially if you apply late. Acceptance is rolling. Trinity has large rooms with full size beds. There is also a big theatre room on the first floor and TV rooms on each floor as well as study rooms. Closets are small wardrobes.
Getting around can be a pain, but it probably depends on the student and their classes. My daughter has classes on East and West campus and some days she has to go back and forth between East and West campus in 30 minutes and that seems like it would be plenty of time, but it isn’t. Other students seem to not have to move around very much, so it isn’t an issue. The busses have been a bit of a problem so far, but we hear that they typically get better as the freshmen figure out their schedules more or find other things to do. Also, there may be a driver shortage at the moment.
As for frat life - i never understood the need for it. I went to a school in a northeast city. There were frats and sororities, but most of the student body ignored them. The social scene was fine and everybody was able to make friends just fine. That being said, from what I can tell, the Duke frats are still very active, just off campus and unaffiliated now. One frat is about 20 miles away from campus on a farm in the middle of nowhere. What could possibly go wrong with no rules and no regulations in the middle of nowhere?
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