<p>Hello all,
I've been studying chemistry as a freshman at the Imperial College of London for the past year, and am trying to figure out as fast as I can (hopefully before I have to dole out the 200 dollar deposit for Duke) where I want to be next year.
Sometime around November, it occurred to me very suddenly that I needed a break from chemistry. Actually, what I needed badly was variety - British schools focus on one topic, which means fast degrees (masters in 4 years is standard, and that's including a year of research) but, regrettably, not much in the way of novelty. As it is, I have roughly 22 hours of class a week, all chem. Needless to say, that can get to your head pretty quickly.
Anyway, I decided that, just on the off chance I would want to transfer to the US (I'm a citizen, but I haven't lived there since I turned 3), I would submit a few apps. Literally, I applied only to UNC and Duke (my mom has an apartment in the triangle area, I figured it would make things easier, and give me a place to go when (/if) I need some peace and quiet) and got into both. I found out about UNC around the end of March, and I just found out about Duke last week. I visited both during my spring break, because I'm fairly certain at this point that I will indeed be transferring.
I visited UNC first, and liked it very much right off the bat. It helped that the two tour guides I had were young and enthusiastic girls, who both adored the place. Then I visited Duke, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little disappointed. On the other hand, my tour guide was quite lethargic and apathetic. I'm positive this affected my perception of the school.
So where do I go? I have absolutely no idea what I want to study anymore. I've been convinced for quite a few years that chemistry is what I wanted. It may still be, and I plan on trying out at least one chem course in the US to see how the teaching approach compares, but beyond that, I don't know what I intend to major in.
Financially, UNC is giving me a laptop and $15000 worth of grants. I'm still waiting on Duke. Assuming I get a package that lets me even consider Duke (which would have to be at least $25000 in grants), I'm still torn about how much importance I should give to the school's academic ranking. I know Duke is considered more prestigious, but I'm also a bit worried about the kind of people I would meet there. If only 40 percent of students there require aid, that says something about the social status of the other 60. I don't know that I would feel comfortable surrounded by that much money.
I would be very appreciative if some of you could provide relevant comments to my situation, especially if some of you have had to make the same choice as I am faced with now.</p>
<p>Well both of them are great schools and you can't really make a wrong choice.</p>
<p>It's hard to tell you which would be better for you in purely academic terms since you don't know what you might do (I sympathize) so part of it is figuring out the experience. Duke is a good bit smaller than UNC and would give you a more personalized experience... UNC is a top state university. They are different experiences.</p>
<p>Also, as far as the $$$ at Duke: there definately is more money at Duke than at UNC... but remember that 40% is just Duke need based aid... Duke doles out a decent amount of merit aid and I'm sure many students bring in outside scholarships.</p>
<p>Oh and I forgot one other important difference for you: Geographical diversity... UNC is over 80% North Carolinians I believe, while at Duke North Carolina students make up only about 15% of the student body (which they still have to give them slight priority to fulfill)... So at Duke you would have a more national student body instead of a bunch of groups of North Carolina kids that went to school with 20 other people going to UNC.</p>
<p>First off, congrats (both on Imperial and your transfers). You have two great choices. I chose between them, so I'll add my $0.02. One thing you MUST keep in mind is that Duke and UNC Chapel Hill both have distribution requirements. Since your credits are mostly in chemistry (unless you have lots of credit from A-levels), you'll have some catching up to do. The students are actually somewhat similar, but I do think UNC has a bit more of a down-to-earth student body. Both have very nice campuses, great sports, and relaxed atmospheres, but there are major differences. </p>
<p>UNC is in Chapel Hill (aka "Chapel Thrill"), which is a good college town. Franklin Street is great, and the entire area is pretty safe. Duke has Durham, which is not really as bad as people make it out to be, but it's still not that great. UNC is excellent in chemistry. Duke is good in chemistry, and has great research opportunities. However, a go-getter with a strong chemistry background (like you) will be able to find these opportunities at UNC as well. Freshmen at Duke live on East Campus, which I liked a lot. Freshmen at UNC live in dorms on the main campus, and the dorms vary in quality (my friends in Hinton-James like it a lot, for example). Food at Chapel Hill is a bit better than the food at Duke, but we're getting a new food company this year, so hopefully it will improve.</p>
<p>Do NOT worry about the perceived difference in prestige between the two. Both are excellent schools and can get you into a good grad school. It is a bit easier to get good grades at UNC, which helps in getting into a good grad school. The students at both are highly intelligent and diverse individuals.</p>
<p>So the students at UNC are more down-to-earth, but very North Carolinian?</p>
<p>In terms of requirements, I didn't do a-levels, but an International Baccalaureate, with 7s all around, which should get me a fair bit of credit when combined with the chem. at Imperial.<br>
I'll call Duke tomorrow and try to find out what my aid package is.
Thanks for the replies.</p>
<p>UNC is more fun. Duke is more prestigious. Just my opinion.</p>
<p>I guess if "very North Carolinian" is defined by over 80% from North Carolina, but from ALL OVER North Carolina, and still a very diverse group of people.</p>
<p>I would suggest (I know, broken record, but hey, it's a good one) that no matter which school you go to you see if there are classes at the other one that you'd really want to have and take advantage of the Inter Institutional Agreement (UNC, NCSU, and Duke allow people at one school to take classes offered at another if not offered that term at the home institution) and the Robertson Bus (which is a free periodic bus between UNC and Duke). You'll get to see a broader perspective that way by actually taking classes on both campus and surrounded by both student bodies.</p>