<p>I narrowed my list to Duke and William and Mary (in-state).</p>
<p>Duke has been one of my dream schools since I started high school, and I cannot tell you how happy I felt when I got the acceptance letter. I've heard positive experiences or comments about Duke. Last summer, I visited it, and I was in love with it. Beautiful campus, great student body, strong academics, and the list just goes on and on. But, I don't deserve to get in Duke. If I attend there, I would feel inferior to other students. My stats, in fact, are not as superior as others'; my SAT is in 1300s while my GPA is 3.8. I'm worried that if I go to Duke, I would not succeed.</p>
<p>I really like William and Mary. I recently visited its gorgeous campus and fell in love with it. Classes are small, professors are willing to help their students, and the school focuses on the undergraduate program. It is only one hour away from my home-not too close like UVA or too far like Duke. I even got the Scholar Award that will cover my in-state tuition and fees. So, it will be FREE if I enroll. However, I am worried about the existence of grade deflation. I want to go to an excellent medical school--maybe Duke or Stanford, I don't know, still too early to think. High GPA and MCAT score are what medical schools are looking for. I've heard that they will be typed in the computer, and if they do not meet the minimum, humans won't read your application. This really concerns me because many graduates from William and Mary have received low GPAs. Will medical schools add more weights to W&M GPA because of its grade deflation?</p>
<p>I understand Duke and William&Mary are excellent schools. They are nationally respected as well as successful in placing students into top graduate schools. They have strong science departments. Their campuses are both beautiful.I want to be challenged but don't want to study 24/7--> Duke. Yet, I want small classes and be comfortable to ask professors for help-->William and Mary. </p>
<p>Any advice? Please don't use prestige into an account. Also, money is not an issue for my family. Will Scholar Award and full scholarship at W&M impress medical schools?</p>
<p>Hmm, well I'd pick Duke over W&M in a heartbeat, but that has to do more with a personal grudge than anything else. :p</p>
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But, I don't deserve to get in Duke. If I attend there, I would feel inferior to other students. My stats, in fact, are not as superior as others'; my SAT is in 1300s while my GPA is 3.8. I'm worried that if I go to Duke, I would not succeed.
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<p>The admissions committee obviously thinks you can succeed here, so I wouldn't worry too much about that. </p>
<p>Beyond the intro courses, class sizes at Duke are really not that big. Most professors are also extremely approachable - in fact many wish their students would come to them more often. </p>
<p>Duke med school placement is excellent; I don't know what the stats are for W&M. I also can't comment on grade deflation/inflation. A high GPA at either one of these schools is not going to come easy.</p>
<p>This is an easy one. If you like the feeling you get at W & M, and think you could be happy there, sign up. Perhaps your affection for Duke is based on a dream that means less today than when you fell for the school four years ago. That is to say, maybe you like the idea of the dream, but that is not necessarily the reality. If you like W & M, and it is the right distance from home and academic/social mix, what the heck: go to school for free and save your cash for graduate school. No contest. Spend the summer in Europe. Send your folks to summer camp. Buy a car! Buy a condo! If you can get a first class education in a place you'll be happy at little or no cost it makes a lot of sense to do it. I have a friend on a med school admissions committee and it is her opinion that an undergrad degree from any tier 1 school is equivalent to another. Good luck.</p>
<p>I would choose W&M with or without a scholarship. I say this because W&M has better rapport with most graduate schools. It also has a more serious academic environment. That other school has a reputation built on sports and its medical school.</p>
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I say this because W&M has better rapport with most graduate schools.
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<p>Going to have to disagree. Duke does extremely well in grad and professional school placement. </p>
<p>But then again, your assertion that Duke's rep is built on sports should be a big enough hint that we shouldn't take you all that seriously. You really think Duke has such success in post-graduate placement (see WSJ feeder rankings) because admissions officers look at an application and go "Wow, they have a good basketball team?"</p>
<p>haha I guess macsuile got rejected or something...</p>
<p>anyway... I'm sorry you wont be joining us, but I think you'll be happy with your choice. I mean it sounds like you really love W&M so if it is on even standing with Duke for you then Duke isn't worth the extra $$$.</p>
<p>I just thought this was funny, from macsuile's previous posts:
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I would go to W&M. It's nicknames are "The College of Knowledge" and "Boot Camp of Academia." It has an amazing intellectual environment and is the most selective public US university.
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William & Mary is the most selective public university
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William & Mary is the most selective public US university. Higher SAT scores than Berkeley. Third highest in the South after Duke and Rice.
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Some facts on William & Mary. It is the most selective public university in the US
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William & Mary is the most selective public US university. SAT scores are higher than Berkeley or UVa.
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William & Mary is the most selective public US university. SAT scores are higher than Berkeley.
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I'm a W&M grad and am appalled by some of the comments above. At any rate, W&M is the most selective US public university
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<p>Its even better because close to none, if not none, of these threads asked about its selectivity rating. All this with only 26 posts so far.</p>
<p>macsuile, aren't you that nut that tried to rank universities by the number of presidents they produced?
Never mind that W&M hasn't produced one in 150 years...</p>
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Wow. I brought the Dookies out of the woodwork!
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<p>You brought us out of the woodwork? You do realize you are on a Duke board, right?</p>
<p>In any case, use of Dookie = automatic proof of being a troll. I'm sorry you resent the basketball team, but your baseless claims about Duke's reputation do the high schoolers here a disservice. I've already proven that it can't be based on sports and the med school in another thread. Now if you have nothing else to add, which you obviously don't, please go back to the W&M board, since that seems to be a school you are more qualified to post about.</p>
<p>I didn't name this thread ("Duke or full scholarship at W&M?"). ETI-6 is looking for serious remarks from both sides of the aisle. You can't split a thread and the histrionics are unconstructive.</p>
<p>your right... he is... if you have some serious remarks you could share them... but making baseless claims about Duke's reputation being due to their athletics and med school is laughable... not serious.</p>
<p>According to the State Council for Higher Education in Virginia (SCHEV), W&M has an 85-90% medical school placement rate as of 2003. This is the highest in Virginia. Also, a recent NCAA study shows that only William and Mary and Stanford University reported student-athlete SAT scores of at least 1,000 in eight categories based on gender and sport. These stats should help cement the school's academic and intellectual credentials.</p>