<p>I will be an engineering student at Duke this fall. I've researched 'exploring the mind' and 'engineering frontiers' and I've decided that I like them equally. Are there any students out there who have an opinion on either, or can say how focus has influenced a friend's course load as an engineer? thanks</p>
<p>FOCUS is a great program, but I'd only recommend it to engineer really passionate about the program. You have a more limited supply of electives as an engineer so you want to make sure you spend them wisely.</p>
<p>would focus use up all of my electives freshman year?</p>
<p>By no means will it use up all of them, but you are using two of them and if you want to double major/are pre-med/want to study abroad, you may face some difficulties or decide to go to school in the summer. I did FOCUS this year and in all honesty, it was a good experience, but I don't think that I would do it again. I think I could have just taken one class in the area of my FOCUS (Athens in the Golden Age) and felt intellectually satisfied. After last semester, I'm kind of burned out on the Classical Age and probably won't taken any more of those classes. There are so many different classes you can take a Duke, and I would probably spend my electives taking a variety of them. However, if you love the subject and are passionate about it, go for it, but don't settle for your third choice if you are applying for Genome, Exploring the Mind, Power of Ideas, or Global Health.</p>
<p>Well with focus you still have one elective first semester left... and it doesnt effect anything second semester. Also, you knock out your writing and seminar freshman requirements.</p>
<p>don't do focus - there's a lot you don't know about focus that they don't tell the students who participate because they don't want to make them feel bad :P</p>
<p>^like what? using up electives, being stuck with a topic you don't like...</p>
<p>alex thinks FOCUS is designed especially for kids who aren't ready for college. Seeing as I've got a good chance of maintaining my 4.0 this semester in non-FOCUS classes, I'm inclined to disagree.</p>
<p>hmmm how so? I mean it involves more writing than taking a normal freshman first semester would require? Just because of the "comfort" you could get with having a decent amount of classes with the same 30 people?</p>
<p>Eh, you won't really get to know everyone in your Focus. I had about four people with me in all three classes, and a good number of people in no classes (IDC really doesn't count). It definitely is more writing, and that can be a good or bad thing, depending on the prof and depending on the student. I know people who loved FOCUS and people who hated it. I know people who got all A's and people who didn't do so well. It really depends on a variety of things, and so it's really hard to generalize over the FOCUS program as a whole.</p>
<p>I think you'll get to know every single member of your FOCUS because you live with them, have classes with them, go to discussions with them....it's pretty hard to avoid people in your FOCUS so if you don't like the people in it, you may have miserable experience. As mentioned earlier, I did FOCUS, and I met some of my best friends and a few people that I really don't talk to anymore. In general, most people get pretty high grades and the amount of work depends on the FOCUS.</p>
<p>thanks for the replies</p>
<p>I understand we will live together in the same dorm as other FOCUS students and go to the same classes with them, etc, but since most FOCUS programs are only one semester, we would still stay in the same dorm for the spring semester correct, also, our roommate would not be from the FOCUS program right?</p>
<p>Also, does the FOCUS seminars/classes count as credits towards your major? I plan to double major in PPS and PoliSci, I am interested in some of the FOCUS programs such as Global Americas and Forging Social Ideals, but at the same time they are not exactly so related to my planned majors and while I find the classes extremely interesting, I would feel much more comfortable taking most of the described classes when I've fulfilled a good part of requirments for my major. </p>
<p>I'm debating on whether to apply for the program or not because I am afriad it will sort of box me into one specific group of people and I will not have the full oppurtunity to interact with other students since I won't be attending any classes with non-FOCUS students. THe first couple of weeks in college are so crucial to beuildling relationships and I don't want to miss out on that because of FOCUS.</p>