Hello!
Following the recent trend in unsure posts about Duke, I have concerns over how I would manage in Duke’s social environment as an undergraduate. For a few years, Duke has meant a lot to me and has been almost a dream school, especially for its outstanding academics and opportunities. However, as I sit down and actually consider the next 4 years of my life, I am growing slightly paranoid of if I’d actually fit in at Duke, or if I should go to Tufts instead. And while I know this is the Duke category, so I will likely see some bias towards Duke and little about Tufts, I’d just like to know a bit more about Duke and where I belong.
Off the bat, I am not interested in greek life. While I am fine with trying new things and exploring, my personality probably wouldn’t fit in a fraternity (not to say I’m a loner. I love friends, but I tend to get along more with girls than guys) and I am introverted. The idea of “rushing”(?) to join somewhat exclusive groups and a strict hierarchy is very uncomfortable for me, since the type of person I would have to present to those groups would be a facade. I believe I fit best in small, tight-knit groups of friends like 4-8 people. So one big question I have is how have others that may not particularly thrive at these events reconciled with them?
Another thing is that I feel I may not find others like me at Duke. Although I am an asian male, I am also bisexual, first gen, and low-income. Meeting others radically different from me would be amazing, but if there are too few I can relate to then I am not sure I could manage 4 years. How have others in such categories adapted to Duke’s environment, and how was there experience overall?
To be clear, Duke by all means is superior statistically to me: academics and opportunities are top-notch. I already plan to join the quizbowl team, study hard, sleep harder (or was it play? bah, eventually I’ll collapse from partying so), and make the best of the next 4 years. I plan to do research and major in biochem, and I am familiar with the advantages Duke has. The reason I am considering Tufts is because they are decently strong in those fields as well, the climate is more agreeable (not as big of a factor, I can suck it up and melt in the heat), and the social atmosphere is geekier. Still, it’s very hard to justify dropping Duke over some paranoia (assume money is not a big issue btw), so I’d love to hear more from others. I know considerably less about Tufts than I do Duke, so I was already leaning towards Duke, but some confirmation would be nice to see that I don’t stress over the summer.
Cheers and thanks!
I’d personally pick Duke over Tufts.
Duke has a “work hard, play hard” reputation. While for the most part its true, there are also sides of Duke that you haven’t seen. For instance the selective living groups (SLG), which is made up of students who want to live together and share a common interest. Some of these SLGs are devoted to all sorts of non-greek interests.
https://studentaffairs.duke.edu/hdrl/duke-houses/house-descriptions
The Duke campus is also LGBT friendly, with an active student association.
Have you gone to Blue Devil Days? You can see for yourself. While there is a lot of rah-rah sports mentality, there are plenty of avenues for social engagement outside of these circles.
Hey thanks guys!
After visiting for Blue Devil Days and really exploring and talking with people (both students and faculty) throughout campus, I have proudly decided (and committed!) on Duke. Honestly, most of my worries were practically wiped clean when I was there, and the community and atmosphere was as welcoming and lively as I had thought. Looking back, it was sorta foolish to think that there would only be one sort of community, and I am glad to see that I was wrong. Blue Devil Days was an extraordinary event, and I can see myself fitting just fine at Duke. I am beyond excited to come back and attend in Fall 2017!
Dude, youll be fine. theres ALWAYS like minded people wherever you go. Just be willing to meet new people and explore and put yourself out there… Youll never meet anyone if you simply, stay home.
Welcome to our newest Blue Devil! Hope you enjoy your time at Duke!
I am a highschool senior who got into Duke. Let me tell you, if the social life was the only factor in my decision, I’d DEFINITELY chose Duke. However, because I have to incorporate academics too, I have to say that I will be choosing MIT . When I visited Duke, the social life was great, great party scene, everyone was friendly and inviting, and they treat their undergrads very well. So many different niches of people was visible in all the classes, and among the top schools I visited it was easily the most diverse. From one pre-frosh to another, I say I wish I could chose Duke based on socially. I am only NOT choosing Duke because I want to be an engineer.
If social is your only worry about DUke, you will be proven wrong the second you get there. Go to Duke. Live my dreams for me :’).
Disclaimer: I am not saying that the social life at MIT is bad. IN fact, I liked it a lot, to the point where I’m even choosing it over Stanford, even though I want to go into entrepreneurship, and their engineering programs are the same. MIT has a great social life. Duke is just clearly superior in social aspects.
Duke is pretty strong all-around academically; the campus is huge but you’ll learn to manage it; the career services are reputably awesome; and the social/sports scene is also apparently diverse, developed and awesome.
I’m a Wisconsin grad with no personal feelings for Duke.