Duke or Penn

I’m a sophomore transfer student whos lucky to have this option between universities. I’m a on the premed track and Im pretty convinced that ill be staying on it for the rest of college. I am also very interested in computational neuroscience and psychology, which i know are both subject areas that these two schools have a lot of resources for. I know that a big part of premed is GPA so I’m also worried about the natural sciences program rigor/competitiveness in both of these universities comparatively.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Any price difference?

Wow! Congratulations!

Academically, both general and in your Major, you cannot go wrong with either of those two. Well done!
Although they are stellar academically, the environments are night and day. Don’t underestimate the stuff outside of academia.

3 years of life will happen and you will remember those three years for the rest of your life.

Even though you will be studying most of the time, even something as small as the walk between classes affects you.
How do you envision that walk? What do you want to do when you have a chance to unwind?

City-school/college campus vibe, northern/southern feel, Ivy sports/ACC sports, quality of life, weather, real or perceived safety issues, you are considering a real “apple vs orange” contrast amongst these two elites.

Different strokes for different folks. You will be there 3 years. Do consider the day-to-day.

@TooOld4School Nah the price is about the same in both cases.

@bloomfield88 very true, sadly I don’t think ill have the option to visit either campus before I need to make a decision, which is very unfortunate.

Do you want really elite or really elite?

@privatebanker lol still trying to weigh the two outside of prestige

Not a dime’s worth of difference as far as academics and prestige, IMHO - but comparing things like the campuses, student life, sports, weather etcetera - Duke would be the rather easy choice for me in all those aspects.

I went to Duke for undergrad and spent a fair amount of time at Penn over the last several years for dissertation research. As you’ve no doubt realized, the two share many similarities, and I think the same student could very easily be happy at either school.

Do you have a preference in regard to campus setting? Penn’s campus is very nice, especially for an urban school, but it’s noticeably more compact than Duke, which has a sprawling, leafy campus that appeals to some and is too spread out for others. Durham has gentrified considerably over the last couple of decades, and it’s a great town for young people, but it’s obviously much smaller than Philly.

@warblersrule I think i would enjoy an urban school. I currently go to a big public school in the city (a short busride north of downtown), and cant say I dont enjoy the feeling of having the city so close to me and having so much to do/experience. My lin alg professor went to duke 7 years ago and said he would go again in a heartbeat. I have a good friend in penn too who’s absolutely in love with the school (albeit he is a type A personality kinda guy) so im having trouble weighing the options hearing positives from both sides.

I like the atmosphere at Duke a lot more. A bit more relaxed. A bit more joy. Penn a bit more strained.

But excellent choices. Just nuances and personal prefero

In terms of academics and prestige, Duke and Penn are equals for premed.
But they are very different schools- location, vibe, weather, Ivy preprofessional vs. traditional college experience with big sports focus.
Premed is tough and competitive at both schools, so you all have to work very hard. They both have hospitals nearby for clinical and research opportunities.
Even if you cannot visit, try to talk to students at both schools to get a better feel.
Some students have a clear preference after a visit.

Visiting Penn, I felt like the city was closing in on me from all directions. Duke provided the opposite feeling…it felt like the plentiful trees were protecting the campus from the outside world. If you can’t visit, then the decision would seem to boil down to the 2 most obvious differences: Duke has bigtime sports & a secluded feeling vs. Penn’s Ivy sports & urban vibe.

If you prefer an urban environment then go to Penn. Duke isn’t an urban environment even if the gov’t calls Durham a ‘city’.

If you prefer an urban school, go to the urban school. More importantly, if you prefer Philadelphia, go to U Penn.

Of the Top 20 national universities, Duke’s campus environment and school spirit would be in the top half of my list for sure. I also view college as, “Plenty of time to work/live in different cities, but won’t ever live with a bunch of early 20s in a real campus environment again.” I’ve lived in double digit cities around the world since undergrad on a real campus. Excluding Johns Hopkins, because I haven’t been on campus, UPenn would easily be in last place for my kids or me. However, that doesn’t matter.

For others UPenn’s location would lead them to their first choice.
That’s what makes the world go 'round.

I’ve lived in double digit cities around the world and they can be very, very different.
If you like Philly, go for it.

Is the OP familiar with Philadelphia, especially the University City area where Penn is located?

Does he/she realize that Penn, Drexel University and the University of the Sciences are all right there together - with a combined total of nearly 50,000 students squeezed into a very compact area?

Not to mention that much of West Philadelphia isn’t very safe. There are neighborhoods pretty close to the Penn Campus that you don’t want to stray into, even during the day.

I’m not down on Penn, I think it’s an outstanding university. But as far as campus, student life, safety, weather etcetera - Duke is the clear choice.

And no, I don’t have any ties to Duke.

These are two great schools. Choose the one that fits you best.

Penn is also about 50% larger (23K vs. 15k enrollment), with a top ranked medical school for both research and primary care. They also tend to accept a significant number of their own graduates into their graduate programs, if you have any interest in that.

The students at both tend to be quite sociable for elite school students.

A preference toward Northern or Southern culture may also make you lean toward one or the other.

Also, in addition to Philly, Penn is only about an hour by train from NYC.

If you are into pro sports, choose Penn. If you prefer college sports, choose Duke.

Duke has smaller class sizes and is ranked in the top 10 nationally in “Best Undergraduate Teaching”. Penn doesn’t even make the top sixty in the same category.

https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities/undergraduate-teaching

Penn is gritty.

This is hard when you can’t visit. My H went to Duke undergrad many years ago (premed) Chem major/English minor. (Chose over Penn, Brown, Cornell.). Since you have various interests, look into how many gen ed credits you have and how many classes are required for your intended major. One of the many things my H liked was that he got to take many courses outside his major. Also, because of the smaller classes, he had close relationships with professors, including Reynold’s Price (his favorite author at the time). Graduated summa cum laude. Duke BB reigns supreme in our home to this day.

I’m a Penn law grad, and loved my time there. I can’t comment on undergrad, but I feel that as an older student, I appreciated the city much more than I would have as an undergrad (and a busy premed at that). I lived near the art museum, not campus as undergrads do, so I could run and bike around the Skuykill River, staffed a clinic in north Philly, worked downtown at a federal clerkship - things I can’t see myself doing in undergrad. I felt immeshed in the city.

H says Duke weather is usually pretty nice. Philly can be harsh (summers and winters). Though I’d imagine summers at Duke would be just as hot and humid if not moreso.

You really can’t make a bad choice. Maybe reach out to some profs in your areas of interest at each school? Look at clubs. See where premeds at both do shadowing, etc.