My son has been accepted by Duke (no Aid) andMiami (Singer scholarship provides tuition and he’ll be a Foote fellow as well). He’s having hard time deciding. He liked both schools and I know he’ll do well in either setting. Any advice from those who’ve had similar opportunities?
Duke is consistently rated in the top 10 of every national college survey (US News #9, WSJ #5, Forbes #8), is in the top 10 of selectivity based on an 8% acceptance rate, #1 economics department per various surveys, #7 in Bisiness Digest survey of salaries 10 years post graduation, and tied with Harvard for #1 valuable degree post grad from WSJ.
U Miami is a great school near the beach.
Congratulations on his being accepted to Duke! It’s quite an accomplishment and is an amazing school. As @Nocreativity1 points out Duke is ranked higher than U Miami on many lists However, U Miami also offers a lot of great opportunities and there is something to be said for graduating with no or little debt from college. I think the finances are what should really help make the decision (plus it’s not a bad thing to go to school near the beach! LOL)
Did I mention Duke had a decent basketball team?
I didn’t mean to be harsh and U Miami is an excellent school. Duke’s peer group based on selectivity and academic reputation places it with lower Ivies (Dartmouth, Cornell, Brown) and as part of the Ivy “extendeds” of Stamford, MIT, and U Chicago.
While cost is clearly a very important criteria the doors that a Duke name will open and the quality of the students with whom you will share your collegiate experience should bias the decision towards Durham if financially feasible in my opinion.
Thank you for the feedback. Basketball isn’t a factor for my boy as he is a member of the BBN- Go UK! I know all the stats and we are well-acquainted with Duke as my brother-in-law is an alumni. That said, I can see my son being happy at either. Miami is a first-class city and he was impressed with the quality of the students he met there. And Duke, the campus is impressive, the students inquisitive, and Durham has its own great vibe. He just came home from a trip this evening and said he’s leaning towards Duke, so now I just wait patiently to see what he decides.
If you can afford Duke, then Duke, imo
If you can afford Duke then it’s really a no brainer.
I would choose Duke if it is financially affordable.
Does your son have any idea of what he’d like to study? Miami is a great school, and in many fields - oceanography, music, communication, etc. - it’s as good as Duke if not better.
If he’s aiming for an expensive graduate degree like medicine or law, it makes a lot of sense to keep costs down for undergrad.
Depends on what his goals are, I’d say. If he wants to do business (like IB), Duke would be worth extra expense. If he’s going to go to grad school, I don’t think it matters, and you’d have $ for grad school. He’s obviously a very bright and driven student and will thrive at Miami (which is no slouch in the academic department either). We toured Miami and were very impressed (S received invite to Scholar day but couldn’t go). Husband went to Duke (which he loved, mainly due to BB! and graduated summa cum laude), then to his state med school, and he doesn’t think undergrad, as expensive as it is today, is worth it. S didn’t apply. Just one person’s opinion.
Go where you think you’ll thrive. Be happy and post great grades. If I went to u Miami it might be too tempting and beautiful out to spend the days in the library or study hall necessary. But I love fishing and the beach. 
What are his goals?
I agree that goals matter a lot.
Is full freight at Duke really worth passing up covered tuition at U Miami (especially if the goal is grad school afterwards)? Plus, Miami >>> Durham
Duke does make a resume jump out for a lifetime but plenty of U Miami grads will be the ones reading the resume.
Duke would probably cost over $280,000 for four undergraduate years while the University of Miami would cost about $56,000 for four years.
What does your son plan to study ?
And what are the benefits of being a Foote Fellow at U. Miami ?
Also, what would $224,000 plus interest do for your son or your family ? Buy a Duke MBA or a Duke law degree ?
@Publisher is making a very wise observation above.
Foote Fellows at Miami get additional courses with other Foote Fellows & mentoring that can be significant for one contemplating graduate study. Special advising regarding graduate fellowships & grants. Also, imagine the type of recommendations one can get for graduate schools and/or prospective employment.
with graduate school likely, I agree with others above that money talks. If it were my kid liking both schools I’d help him lean toward UMiami.
Hard to pass up Duke IF money is no object, and no loans are involved. But I wouldn’t bankrupt myself to put a kid thru Duke. My son is doing well at Miami, although I am a little suspicious of his mentor - spends a lot of time introducing my son to fine dining and gourmet coffee and the intricacies of ordering sushi, but was no help at all in securing an internship this summer, or even pointing him towards the alumnae network at the career center.
Duke alum here. There are a few fields where the caliber of undergrad college makes a huge difference (finance, IB, consulting, etc). If your son is interested in these fields, then a Duke degree is probably worth it.
But if he is planning on going into a field that needs a higher degree (Law, Medicine, MBA, PhD, etc) then the graduate degree typically is more important. In this case I don’t think its worth spending $270K for a Duke degree. Better to save your money for graduate school. $70k per annum x 4 compounded annually earning 7% will earn $417K after a 6 year period.