<p>I'm a rising high school senior, class of 2012. I have been a die-hard Duke basketball fan since I was a little kid. I visited Duke last summer and absolutely fell in love with the campus and the school in general. I love the school pride, the academics, the commitment to service (DukeEngage), and basically everything about Duke except for the distance. I live in northeastern PA, and it's about 9 hour drive to Durham. My Mom does not want me to go that far, even though it's really not too far. If I had it totally my way, I'd apply ED. </p>
<p>I also love UPenn. It's only two hours away, Philly is great, and I love what Penn has to offer. I want to major in politcal science/ econ, and Penn has the PPE (philosophy, politics, and economics) major which seems awesome and perfect for me. They also have a semester in DC program which allows one to study and intern in DC. </p>
<p>Both schools have about a 3x higher early acceptance rate vs. regular acceptance rate. </p>
<p>I'm also interested in schools like Georgetown, BC, and Notre Dame, to which I could apply early action, but I don't want to pass up the opportunity to have a much higher chance of getting in at Duke and Penn--by far my top two schools.</p>
<p>Assuming cost is not an issue and you don’t need to compare financial aid offers, a 9 hour drive shouldn’t prevent you from attending your dream school. Many people are a *lot *farther away than that. It’s certainly more than doable. Your mom will get over the distance at some point and she’ll be fine. Based on what you said, I’d advise you to apply to Duke since you stated it’s your #1 choice. Duke and Penn are peers, so you simply should choose based on fit. Good luck.</p>
<p>Duke. You haven’t convinced me that Penn is where you really want to be. 9 hours is nothing, and if you get in early your Mom will have time to get used to the idea of you being in Durham. She will be happy if you are happy.</p>
<p>I did a summer in DC, pretty much any school will offer it. Penn isn’t better than Duke at all in any of the areas (pretty much any social science). Go to Duke, if you went to Penn because you thought it was “better” for you, you’d be mistaken. </p>
<p>You won’t lose anything by going to Duke. It sounds like you will gain a lot.</p>
<p>Of course Mom wants you close to home. If academics is a coin flip then proximity trumps all else for her, tenting and Duke-UNC non withstanding. But go. She’ll survive and still love you. Follow your heart and good luck from an old timey Duke alum whose drive to Durham was 15 hours.</p>
<p>Hey I agree with everyone else follow your heart and go to Duke. They are peer schools in all respects Duke has better athletics and IMHO a more beautiful campus. Penn has Philly.</p>