<p>I'm currently deciding between Duke, Cornell, and Swarthmore. My prospective major is Physics and Cornell is fantastic in this aspect. </p>
<p>The "culture" of the schools is what I'm concerned about. One of my top choices was MIT because I absolutely loved the culture there. So my question is, how difficult would it be to find the "nerd" culture at Duke?</p>
<p>I'm not talking about the stay-in-your-room-and-never-come-out nerds. I'm a guy that prefers to play board games, debate white chocolate vs. dark chocolate, stay inside and watch movies, build neat gadgets with friends, discuss philosophy/astronomy/physics/the meaning of life. I would prefer being around other kids who are slightly "quirky" as well. Of course, I'm not the socially awkward type and can definitely see myself going to a few parties as well - but I don't want a huge focus of my college life to be on parties/dancing/drinking/etc.</p>
<p>I know that Swarthmore offers a culture very similar to this. How hard would it be to find this at Duke?</p>
<p>You would fit right in at Reed, haha. I’m currently trying to decide between Reed and Duke (strange decision, I know) so i’d appreciate an answer to this question as well!</p>
<p>Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I927 using CC</p>
<p>EDIT: If anyone else going to Duke next year has similar interests, PM me! Hopefully we can get to know each other before stepping on campus this fall.</p>
<p>You seem like you would fit well into a few of the SLGs on campus, two of which are . . . </p>
<p>The Nexus: This is a society at Duke dedicated to intellectual discourse. Their values include curiosity, positive discourse, imagination, non-discrimination, and gender equity. The Nexus is Duke’s first selective living group to allow for opposite-sex roommate pairs.</p>
<p>If you want a tad less intellectualism and more social life, consider Round Table.</p>
<p>Round Table: A student living group founded upon three pillars – Student (social), Community (service), and Faculty (interaction with professors). Events to establish these pillars include camping trips, broom ball games, hosting numerous guest speakers, and volunteering at the Ronald McDonald house.</p>
<p>From: [Current</a> Living Groups | Duke Student Affairs](<a href=“Duke Student Affairs”>Duke Student Affairs)</p>
<p>There’s definitely a niche for you at Duke. You fit the description of several of my friends.</p>
<p>My DS is planning on majoring in Physics at Duke. A very small number of students there major in physics, yet the department conducts amazing research in all areas of the globe. Just check it out…I am thinking super support from the professors because the department is so small.
Disclaimer - DS will study Physics because of interest, he is not planning on a grad school in Physics. He will double major while at Duke…</p>