Interested in Duke ED for Computer Science. Have a few questions.

Colleges and Universities A-Z Duke University
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Hi,
I’m a rising senior in CA who’s looking to submit an early decision app to Duke. Looking to major in Comsci and I have a few questions.

  1. How accurate was the financial aid calculator for you? Right now I'm looking at ~35k at 100k income, which will be manageable, but if they raise it significantly it might be a bit sketchy. My parents filled it out 100% accurately if that helps.
  2. For any comsci people out there, what were some cool opportunities/clubs/internships you found at Duke? I've done a lot of googling but it'd be awesome to see something at a more personal level.
  3. My boss at my internship knows me relatively well, we talked a lot about college and my future aspirations. He got into Duke as well but ultimately chose MIT. He said he was happy to write me a letter of rec. As I understand it, Duke only requires 2 teacher recs, so do I still get him to write one for me? I read a reddit thread where someone was pretty adamant about sticking to the requirements and not doing extra. Pretty sure he can write a very strong rec for me.
  4. This one might be kind of a stretch, but were any of you accepted to both Berkeley and Duke for comsci? I am reasonably confident that I can get in, nearly two dozen a year from my school end up going. A lot of my friends would probably go, whereas no one in my school in the last two years has ended up choosing to go to Duke. Not to mention the amazing opportunities being so close to silicon valley would have. Do you think I will ever regret not going to Berkeley/(insert top cs school here)? I did see this thread, http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-california-berkeley/1875797-uc-berkeley-vs-duke-university-p2.html, but I was wondering if any of you would be willing to add your own opinion.

I apologize if some of the questions are unclear. I would really appreciate any replies.

Here is a brief overview of myself if any of you are interested:

Demographics: Asian Male. Competitive SoCal public. ~100k total income.
Intended Major(s): Definitely Computer Science. Can’t decide between econ or computer engineering as a second major.
Academics:
ACT: N/A
SAT: 2370 (770M) PSAT: 1500
SAT II: Math II: 800. Physics: 800. Chemistry: 800.
UW/W GPA: 3.95/4.5
Class Rank: ~5% (school doesn’t rank)

Coursework:
5’s on Physics B, Physics C E & M, Chemistry, Calc AB + BC, Statistics, Computer Science A, Psychology, APUSH.
Senior courseload: Multivariable Calc, AP Bio, AP Lit, AP Gov
Awards: uhhhh…
I guess National merit semifinalist
Small regional awards. Nothing big

Extracurriculars:
Science Olympiad Coached middle schoolers (100 hrs)
Cybersecurity Club
Math Club
Violin at youth symphony
Volunteering at local library for chess club(50 hrs)
Taught basic competitive math class to high achieving elementary school kids (50 hrs)
Worthless membership to CSF
Paid Internship at local startup, had a lot of fun with this, learned a ton and was able to contribute a lot. (Related to computer science)
Schools: Would really like to go to Duke, but I don’t really have great Ec’s or hooks. Berkeley and UCSD are appealing because in state tuition.

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Two dozen (24) students per year from your high school end up going to Duke? That means they must have accepted approx 40-50 students per year from your high school.

That doesn’t sound right to me.

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Two dozen was referring to the number of kids from my school that end up at Berkeley. A handful from my school are accepted to Duke. Sorry that was unclear!