<p>1) Many people have been asking "Chances plssz!" but I haven't heard the other side of the story. What exactly does Duke look for? Strong ECs more than GPA? How high of a GPA? Leadership positions? Internships?</p>
<p>This is somewhat of a mystery and nobody knows for sure...but....Duke emphasizes taking the most difficult courseload available to you in high school and doing well in them. If you have a 4.0 and your school offers a plethora of AP courses but you only took 2, it will be looked down upon. They want to see that you've challenged yourself. ECs are also obviously important - they're trying to see what you can contribute to the Duke community. There's no set GPA level, but most people are close to 4.0, but it varies on the courses you took and the school you attend.</p>
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2) When does one have to declare a major?*</p>
<p>At the end of sophomore year.</p>
<p>3) Is it relatively painless to transfer from Pratt to Trinity (or the other way around)?</p>
<p>Yes, transferring is very easy. Pratt to Trinity is as simple as checking a box. Trinity to Pratt you have to plan a bit more in regards to prereq courses, but it's still easy if you've taking the necessary courses (e.g. math, egr53).</p>
<p>4) I want to do something with biomedical engineering, but I also want to double-major in psychology in case the BME field isn't as promising as it sounds, and go on to become a psychiatrist. Seeing as BME is one of the most rigorous programs (am I correct in deducing this?), would I be able to do this? What about BME and physics or BME and ME?</p>
<p>Yes, you can easily double major in BME/psychology. I was actually a BME major with a psych minor (5 courses). Psych major requires 9 courses, so you won't really have many courses to choose from outside Psych/bme curriculum, but it's definitely possible. You'll probably have to overload (5 courses) a couple semesters or take summer school. BME is rigorous, but doable. Double majoring in BME/ME is honestly just as easy as having a single major in BME. They require the same number of courses, just you have to take courses in both departments. BME majors are required to take BME 83, 100, 101, 110, 153, 154, 207, thee elective, and a design. BME/ME majors are required to take about half of those and replace them with the required ME courses. So, you get a flavor of both. BME/physics is also doable, but requires some planning to major in both since BME only requires 2 physics courses.</p>
<p>5) How much "social life" is given up by Pratt students in comparison to Trinity students (esp. in first year)?</p>
<p>Uh, depends on the person. Pratt probably has more work, but there are Pratt students who party just as hard as Trinity students. Just have good time management skills, and you should be fine.</p>