Does Duke take legacy status into account during RD or only during ED?
Legacy status is a consideration for both . Pre-covid, there were alumni-children college application programs in June ( I believe they still have virtual conferences on the same topic), and any alum is welcome to reach out the alumni relations folks at any time. The consideration of legacy in both rounds is a frequently discussed topic at these sessions. In fall of 2019, the head of alumni admissions relayed to us that the overall ED acceptance rate was 20%, whereas for legacies it was about 25%, and for RD the overall acceptance rate was 6% and for legacies was 9-10%. Per a different source, Fall 2020 ED was only a 19% acceptance rate for legacies (16% was the overall rate), so a much tougher year due to the huge applicant increase. So legacy is not an overwhelming factor by any means, at Duke, but it helps some in both rounds. The harsh reality is the vast majority of legacies are rejected: I have many good friends whose kids have gotten rejected ED or RD, one more memorable one was an RD triple legacy, donor family, Valedictorian, highest SAT in the school, etc. Duke’s loss, I suppose!
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