<p>I just recently found out that duke is a Methodist-affiliated school; how strong is the influence if any at all? i would have never thought it to be a religious school, so i am just curious to know if there is a large Methodist student body/religious vibe?</p>
<p>Founded Methodist, I think still has Methodist chaplain but no real religious feel. Side note: many private schools, including ivies were founded by religious institutions.</p>
<p>oh, okay thank you!</p>
<p>^exactly. Not a religious feel at all. Although they have a huge church looking building in the center, there is definitely not an overwhelming religious vibe, frankly there really isn’t one at all. There are so many different religions represented.</p>
<p>It’s “Methodist-related,” not “Methodist-affiliated.” The Methodist Church has no governance and Duke is not religious at all. It’s the same as Methodist-related schools like Northwestern, Syracuse, Vanderbilt, or the University of Southern California, which all have roots in the Methodist Church, but aren’t actively affiliated or governed by it. But certainly the founding of Duke and some governing principles at the onset where dictated by prominent Methodists, so Duke simply honors their history and their influence on the founding of the university. Duke certainly wouldn’t be the same institution it is today without these founders, but, yeah, it’s not actively religious or anything.</p>
<p>Here’s an article about it:
<a href=“http://library.duke.edu/uarchives/history/duke-umchh-basic.html[/url]”>http://library.duke.edu/uarchives/history/duke-umchh-basic.html</a></p>
<p>Ok! Its not really an issue, its just my parents really wanted me to apply mainly to catholic schools since im very religious in that sense. They were a bit worried when they saw in us news or something that its methodist and that there would be a religious presence not of my own denomination, but now they will be ok!</p>
<p>If you are looking for Catholic-Notre Dame is great. But it’s not like they will be forcing Methodist-ness on you. There are people of every denomination- I am sure there are plenty of Catholics, and probably several Catholic clubs/organizations. Dont worry.</p>
<p>notre dame is actually on the top of my list, but it’s so cold up there! duke is my number one and now i am even more confident that it is a good fit, since the whole methodist bit was always a slight drawback, but it seems like the methodist influence is minimal. thanks for the input everyone!</p>
<p>You could go to the most Methodist school in the land–whatever that might be–and it still wouldn’t be much of a problem for you.</p>