<p>both my parents went to duke and last year we went down there for their 30th reunion.
I was a sophomore then and I walked around the campus for several hours and their seemed to be nothing going on, no parties, no social events on both Friday and Saturday night. </p>
<p>My parents told me that Duke was such a fun school to go to, with plenty of parties and social activities going on constantly, and I was surprised when I saw nothing going on then. </p>
<p>Is Duke no longer a fun place to go to? are there a lot of parties to go to during the week and weekends? I had always been a blue and blue growing up but the lack of the social scene was very disheartening to me. </p>
<p>If anyone can shed light on this topic, that would be gerat.</p>
<p>Well, let’s just say that a few things have changed in 30 years since your parents were students ;)</p>
<p>For instance, the drinking age in North Carolina in the 1970’s was probably 18 or 19. I know was raised to 21 in the mid 1980’s. Also, the Administration of the University (President Keohane in particular) changed several rules about large on-campus parties, and I understand that most parties now are on the weekends. At one time, there were parties at different fraternities every night during the week.</p>
<p>The reunion weekends are usually held in mid-April, which is usually a very busy time for Duke students, because exams are at the end of April. You might have seen plenty of students if you had gone to Perkins library! So don’t judge the social scene based on a single weekend.</p>
<p>This year’s reunion weekend was literally the weekend before our last week of classes (we had 3 days left). For most students, this was a stressful weekend! Most people I know had their last papers and tests before finals, and were finishing everything up before LDOC (which is the biggest party of the year!).</p>
<p>In general, frat parties are back within the quads as well, and people tend to keep things pretty much inside with the exception of some of the bigger first semester parties, so it’s no surprise it seemed to be pretty dull around campus. Plus during second semester the freshmen have found their niches and don’t walk around in giant groups looking for the weekend’s best parties anyway. </p>
<p>Duke is still a fun school. Between tailgate, shooters, LDOC, and frat events, there are awesome parties every weekend. Senior year I learned that you can definitely find a party any night of the week. Believe me…you will not be bored and will have some great times…your parents are right!</p>
<p>I’d say out of the top 10 schools, Duke has one of the best social atmospheres. SO much school spirit for basketball, there are always parties (just need to know where to go), activities going on, etc etc</p>
<p>I’m going to be a freshman in the fall, so I don’t have much experience with Duke’s social scene yet, but I can tell you from the admit weekend that you couldn’t go 5 minutes without seeing something going on. Granted, its when the school is putting on a “show,” but I think its really just about visiting at the right time and being in the right place. Also, I don’t think Duke is alone in not allowing huge parties on a daily/weekly basis out in the open. They’re usually in secluded places, dorms, bars, etc, which you probably didn’t see with your parents. I wouldn’t worry about it though- of the top schools out there, Duke is still rumored to have the best social atmosphere. Definitely one of the reasons why I chose to go. I mean, I want to get a great education, but I don’t want to be miserable doing it.</p>