<p>everybody saying duke is so much better than brown for premed is just being ridiculous; the two schools are exactly the ****ing same in terms of academic prestige, and having a large medical school isn't going to give you a leg up on admissions (how do you think LAC grads do so well?). also, as someone from nc and going to brown, I can say that the biggest difference in social scene is basketball--although as a UNC fan I wish we had a team, the parties here vs Duke are almost exactly the same in nature (that is to say, neither compare to a state school and actually largely attract similar personalities). you'll honestly have a similar social experience at either, although at Duke there's just a larger greek scene. brown has more performing arts types for sure, and is probably somewhat more liberal, but nobody takes the real nutjobs seriously and they're probably made fun of more than any other group</p>
<p>nice job collegeboy--you won't regret it!</p>
<p>I just visited both and i'm choosing duke!!! thanks for all of your input.</p>
<p>smart choice! I love both colleges - I really do - but I think Duke has a slight edge on Brown.</p>
<p>i chose duke over brown.
i'm about to graduate from duke, and cannot imagine life had i gone to brown.
as for whoever mentioned brown having more "prestige" because of its ivy league name and cited a sister who attended the lse abroad, and a chance that brown students could get into graduate programs easier because of an ivy name -- that's not true. i have plenty of duke friends who studied abroad at the lse (and oxford) and when i was making my decision, a lot of objective sources (guidance counselors, primarily -- not boards like this) were telling me the opposite about grad school placement. brown might be affiliated with the ivy league (which, let's face it, is a football conference and a not very exciting one at that -- that's not to say that duke's good at football, but at least acc/d-1 is fun), but because of their academic "structure" and concentrations and lack of requirements, very often it puts you in a worse position when applying to anything. (and by worse i mean "not as amazing")</p>
<p>you need to be a certain type of person to thrive at brown academically, and honestly, i think i'm really well fit for that environment (even though, i run counter to their theory -- that their students are smart and inquisitive enough to take courses across the disciplines, so they will, and i would've avoided anything sciencey or hard math) and could've been successful, i just wasn't feeling it. and i didn't think the student body was right for me. i had a lot of people telling me to look at brown, not too many telling me to look at duke, but when i got in, everyone looked at me like i was insane for even still considering brown given the two choices.</p>
<p>^Haha, even though Brown is an Ivy, Duke has more laymen prestige, even in the Northeast. </p>
<p>I remembered being told how random college admissions must be since I got into Duke but not Brown.</p>
<p>Duke > Brown socially, in terms of post-graduation placement, in terms of admissions to top professional schools, etc.</p>
<p>If you are interested in anything related to business, political science, and want to party in college than Duke is where its at. Brown is really artsy, not that pre-professional, a lot of the kids are weird and probably have trouble adapting to the real world. I chose Duke over Brown so obviously I'm biased.</p>
<p>I'm commenting on this thread not for my own benefit, or to try to argue with the ill informed, but to perhaps give those actually making a decision perspective</p>
<p>I'm not going to comment on the academic quality of Duke, because I haven't been there. But what I can say is that Brown's is exceptional, and that those at Duke simply cannot claim the academics at Duke to be harder or better because they have not attended. Likewise, I cannot say that Duke's are worse. </p>
<p>The same applies to the social scene. The quality of a social scene is not measured by how many parties, but the kind of parties and if they fit you. I used to attend Tulane, which was dominated by bar drinking, clubs, and preppy frat parties, the latter of which is not my scene whatsoever. Thus, I think Brown's scene of funky bars, clubs, and house and co-ed frat parties far more enjoyable. I also find there to be a much better balance of academics and partying in people's priorities and interests.</p>
<p>The claim that Brown's open curriculum makes it easier, or that Duke's requirements make it harder is utterly baseless. Brown's open curriculum exists so that students can craft their own education and explore. I know neuroscience and art majors. I know english majors taking multivariable calculus. And the s/nc system is not a cop-out, it is to enable people to explore with a focus on learning and not on GPA. Same with the ability to drop. It's a nice thing to have everyone in your class want to be there. </p>
<p>Conclusion? Both schools are great, but different. Don't give me this crap about one being superior to the other because different does not mean lesser or bad, just, different. So pick the one that fits you.</p>