<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 impress medical schools?</p>
<p>Grade deflation would not be a concern for someone who's enough of a stud to get into Stanford or Duke med. Seriously. The average GPA of students at Duke is slightly higher, but their students are slightly better. I'd go to W&M.</p>
<p>Lol. Maybe I shouldn't post this thread in W&M and Duke threads because people are biased. People here say W&M and others in Duke thread say Duke.</p>
<p>I'm incredibly biased...as a incoming WM freshman and a person raised to think that all things Dook are hideous and disgusting (go Heels!)...but I'd say you should take the money at WM and run with it. Thats a GREAT opportunity.</p>
<p>BTW...grade deflation would probably be a concern about both schools, since they're both known for their rigorous academic standards. </p>
<p>Finally! After spending a lot of time researching, thinking, and getting advices, I finally decided where I will attend next year. Thanks a lot for your help!</p>
<p>I had this same decision too, but I hadn't received a full scholarship from W&M. For me, it all boiled down to the people: do I want to be around a fun, intellectual, and drugfree crowd at W&M or do I want to be around a rich, preppy, partying crowd at Duke. I was pulled off the waitlist at Duke, and quite honestly I did not think I deserved to get in either.</p>
<p>I would take W&M with or without a scholarship. In fact, the statistics for out-of-state entering freshmen at W&M are higher than those for Duke. Yes, grade deflation is an issue but things have been getting better lately since the average W&M GPA has crept up from ~2.9 to 3.2 in recent years. Also, most of the students at W&M are from Northern Virginia so they aren't exactly poor...</p>
<p>Macsuile, stop lying to the people on these boards...entering freshmen at W&M are not statistically higher than Duke, no matter how you measure it.</p>
<p>Thanks, not that I dislike WM, but I think spreading disinformation is a disservice to people</p>
<p>Most recent stats indicate that W&M's midpoint SAT scores are 1390 on the 1600 scale. It is common knowledge at the school that out-of-staters have to aim 50 points above the midpoint which equates to 1440, a score that is above Duke's average. I'll find a webpage reference if you need one.</p>
<p>Duke has a more robust athletics program which means it has to really scrape the bottom of the barrel for people to round out teams. That brings it down. Duke also has a relatively huge endowment, more resources, and a better peer assessment score in USNews than W&M.</p>
<p>I wouldn't consider US news to be a good basis for making my choice personally. As a matter of fact, many of the Duke alumni I've spoken with have suggested that the education they received from there was probably less than the one that one would receive at WM</p>
<p>I mentioned the peer assessment score, not the specific ranking. I don't care what individual Duke alums have told you - - it's irrelevant. Duke is a fine school and W&M trolling will only go so far. Don't kid yourself.</p>
<p>Trolling? It's the slick Durham marketers that have gone "trolling" for unsuspecting Yankee dupes. Money and media have definitely perverted accurate perceptions of school quality, especially in the South. Apparently, it is not an information efficient market...</p>