I am planning which university to apply to ED. Which would be the best for an URM (black) female studying biology?
The only sport I can actually watch is Basketball (which happens to be big at Duke)
I’d love to be in the city (Columbia)
I plan to major in Biology (Pre-med)
School spirit and diversity is important to me
Want amazing opportunities offered (free events internships, etc)
ED is binding. This is a decision that you need to make with your parents. Both schools are excellent but different.
You should first talk to your parents about finances- can they afford to make the binding commitment for ED?
My advice would be to read about the schools from student perspectives (unigo and niche are sites that offer student reviews). Columbia is strong in the sciences, but so is duke. Columbia is in the city, so you’re probably going to have more offered to you there. There is definitely school spirit at Columbia, and diversity by virtue of being in the city. I would recommend Columbia over Duke, just based on the short info you gave us here.
I would consider your level of interest in Columbia’s Core.
I also have the impression that Columbia students are a tad more stress out than Duke. Columbia can be brutal, and I am sure that is especially true in premed. It depends on the environment you prefer. You should try to visit both, if you can.
@TACOBOO in terms of opportunities and academic quality you won’t find much of a difference especially in your area of interest. a point to consider is that Columbia is more intense than Duke and has more grade deflation (although Duke is by no means lenient on grading either). For pre-med that is an important consideration.
As far as school spirit I think Duke has a stronger one, but Columbia has greater diversity.
However we measure intensity, I would think that at most schools it tends to vary from program to program.
On gradeinflation.com, 2009 is the most recent year showing an average GPA for both Duke and Columbia.
In that year, both schools had exactly the same average (3.46) and the trend was up not down. Maybe another source is available for more recent average GPAs?
@twogirls I know ED is binding… Both of my parents are supportive of whatever college I choose and are included in the process.
Really, there’s not enough information here for us to help you make that decision, I don’t think.
Both Duke and Columbia are quite racially/ethnically diverse as well as diverse in other ways - moreso than other elite schools of their caliber. Both are good places to be pre-med. Duke likely has more school spirit in the traditional sense because of their big sports teams; at Columbia sports don’t necessarily matter as much but students have pride in being Columbia students in other ways. Columbia has got the advantage of being directly in a large city; Duke is in Durham and nearby Raleigh but neither is as large as New York. Both have great internships, free events, and other opportunities for undergrads.
I agree that if you are going to apply ED you should visit first. It’s not a decision to be made lightly.