<p>Duke and UNC are both very good schools. I am sure there are details only insiders can tell.
Can you guys share some, why I pay big fee for Duke instead of go to UNC Chapel Hill?</p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>I can’t think of a good reason to justify all that extra money, unless u are so wealthy that the money is peanuts</p>
<ol>
<li> COST:
It’s a serious mistake to assume Duke is more expensive than UNC-CH, especially for OOS students. Half of Duke’s undergraduates receive need-based grants (these are outright gifts, with no required repayment). The size of the grant is based on family income/assets (Duke guarantees every US undergraduate full – 100 percent – financing, which is a combination of need-based grants, merit-based scholarships (rare), loans, work study, and student/parental contribution). In essence, the smaller the family’s income/assets, the larger the “no repayment” grant (and, conversely, the greater family’s income/assets, the small the grant).</li>
</ol>
<p>You need to us Duke’s NPC (Net Price Calculator) (<a href=“Net Price Calculator”>Net Price Calculator) to ascertain what your family would actually have to pay and/or borrow (and you should do so for ALL “target universities”). While this tool can be easily used to obtain useful, rough numbers, it is very important that the official NPC data submitted to Duke be entirely thorough and accurate. Most significantly – and this is important – Duke essentially warrants the NPC-derived FA package, or even a slightly better one, if the data input is comprehensive, accurate, and current. </p>
<p>Before you begin NPC trial-runs, however, you’d be wise to carefully review these important Duke websites:
<a href=“http://admissions.duke.edu/application/aid”>http://admissions.duke.edu/application/aid</a>
<a href=“http://financialaid.duke.edu”>http://financialaid.duke.edu</a></p>
<ol>
<li> VALUE:
Without question, both UNC-CH and Duke are excellent universities. However, Duke’s stature simply is even better than UNC’s. To illustrate, among National Research Universities in U S News’ most recent assessment, Duke ranks #8 and UNC #30. I don’t believe any single evaluation is too important or meaningful; however, this is indicative of the considerable advantage that Duke enjoys in a wide variety of ratings. Is that important, will that matter for YOU? Frankly, only you can make that judgement. Clearly, there are fields and careers where it will not, but there are others where it is quite liable to be decisive.</li>
</ol>
<p>Another important metric, of course, is career/income. Payscale’s latest evaluation (<a href=“Best Universities and Colleges | Payscale”>http://www.payscale.com/college-salary-report/bachelors</a>) indicates that – at the Bachelor’s-only level – mid-career Blue Devils make 34 percent more than their Tar Heel counterparts (<a href=“Best Universities and Colleges | Payscale”>http://www.payscale.com/college-salary-report/bachelors</a>). In a similar evaluation, College Atlas ( <a href=“Top Colleges Ranked by Average Salary of Graduates”>http://www.collegeatlas.org/colleges-average-salary.html</a>) found that mid-career Bachelor’s-only level Duke graduates earn, on average, $116K annually; however, data for UNC was omitted, since only the top-twenty “income schools” were listed.</p>
<ol>
<li> MOST IMPORTANT:
It is my belief that – all numbers aside – the MOST critical determinant is YOUR happiness and “cultural fit.” Here, too, only you can make this judgement. A few days on each campus will do MUCH more than any research, any statistics, and any journalistic assessment can to let you know which school is better for you.</li>
</ol>
<p>Cost is certainly something that you should consider when looking at colleges and that is why I chose Duke. I am from NC and even with the in-state tuition at UNC, I would not be able to afford to go there. Duke offered me much more financial aid than UNC ever would have and as a result, for me at least, going to Duke ends up being cheaper than going to UNC. </p>
<p>Thank you very much for sharing. Are there any Duke activities we can participate and get more personal feelings about the school life both living and academic? besides the match of the blues 
</p>
<p>Yes, if you live near the Triangle (and it seems like you might), visit both schools several times, arrange to sit in on some classes, to spend a night or two in dorms, to “shadow” an undergraduate or two for a day, to grab a meal in the union with a random table of students, to go by the coffee shops in the library for a brief conversation, and to work out in one or more of the student gyms. These activities – and many others much like them in their “routine” nature – will permit you to gain a true appreciation for the "cultures " of these two excellent universities and how you would likely “fit.”. I know Duke will welcome this (I don’t know what UNC-CH’s policy is). You can arrange for such things through high school friends and classmates, now students at Duke, or more formally through Undergraduate Admissions (the student route is probably easier and better). </p>
<p>I believe this sort of pervasive, informal exploration is CRITICAL to making the best decision FOR YOU. After all, they are both fine schools (I’ll argue that Duke is decidedly superior in several key areas, but – to be completely fair – UNC is also excellent). What is vital is YOUR “cultural fit,” not rankings, or “prestige,” or cost (if both reach an acceptable level of affordability), or uber academics (at the Bachelor’s-level, few undergraduates will exhaust either schools’ resources), and so forth. How do you feel about being part of this campus community, what are its aggregate values, what is the academic, the intellectual and the social environment like, how open and welcoming are the students and the faculty, and numerous similar matters? These are VERY important decision metrics. </p>
<p>Really appreciate your reply, TopTier. I may have some specific questions later, but for now I will follow your suggestions and do some more homework. Have a great rest of the weekend.</p>
<p>@yangboys: You’re more than welcome. </p>