<p>I'm trying to decide between the two for later on - perhaps Grad School? I like both of their generally large, exciting atmospheres - they're both great places to have some fun, while also being serious about academics.</p>
<p>Thoughts?</p>
<p>I suggest Penn State. Berkeley would be the best choice though.</p>
<p>No, I still think Duke wins. Let's trade one for one noobcake. :)</p>
<p>Reasons? The other Duke threads were very eloquent. I'm not too interested in Berkeley though.</p>
<p>It might have to come down being a financial situation (what type of aid package they each give you, Can you realistically afford Duke over Penn state, which is more financially sound for when you actually get into graduate school, you don't have a massive dent in your wallet)</p>
<p>What exactly does "decide between the two for later on - perhaps Grad School?" mean. You mean you haven't picked an undergraduate yet or are you looking into graduate schools right now as a highschool student. </p>
<p>What major do you plan to study?</p>
<p>You would be crazy to pick Penn State over Duke. No one considers them peers and the difference in what future opportunities await you are significant. Honestly no discussion needs to be done on this topic. But hey go with which one you like better (sarcasm)</p>
<p>I think for graduate school, Penn State has an edge over Duke, particularly in-state. </p>
<p>As far as undergraduate, the Schreyer Honors College at Penn State kicks duke's a**....</p>
<p>For graduate schools, it totally depends on your program. The single most factor is how your research interests match the faculty's research interests. There's no point in going to a school no matter how good it is, if the professors there aren't working on what you want to work on.</p>
<p>how dare u compare Penn State to the almighty Duke, which is a school that is on par with Columbia, Penn, and a notch above UC Berkeley, Cornell, Brown, UChicago, and Johns Hopkins!</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Good advice. Absent more details about your situation this is all that can or needs to be said. Prepare, however, for the inevitable Duke vs. Public University food fight - I see Bescraze Malfoy has already lobbed the first coconut cream pie.</p>
<p>I wonder what EAD has to say about this one. If you're going to grad school for engineering Penn State is better.</p>
<p>If you guys think Duke and Penn state are equal you are ridiculous. Who cares if its duke. You could say Tufts, Johns Hopkins, Cornell, Notre Dame, Northwestern or any of those schools and I would say the same answer. You could say Michigan, UCB, UVA and so on and it would be the same. THIS IS NOT A public vs private school thing its an Intelligent vs retarded answer thing. If you honestly say Penn state over one of these schools with no outside circumstances effecting your decision you guys know nothing.</p>
<p>I said Penn State is better for graduate engineering and I stand by my statement. I never claimed the two schools were equally good. If I did, would it shatter the laws of your USNEWS universe? What about if I claimed brown, Chicago, Cornell, and WUSTL are about even with Duke! That would certainly blow your USNEWS captivated mind. Oh my god USNEWS says they aren't and if USNWR claims something it must be true!!!</p>
<p>did you ever think that I was not talking directly to you? Did you ever think I meant overall. Did you ever think you get too angry on forums? Did you ever think you need to chill? Also why do you always try to bring up controversial topics? This is about Penn State and Duke not Cornell, not Chicago and not WUSTL.</p>
<p>Penn State probably IS better for grad school engineering.</p>
<p>Graduate engineering ranking (ref: USNWR)</p>
<p>Department ......... PSU .... Duke
Peer Assessment .. 3.8 ...... 3.5
Recruiter Assess ... 3.8 ...... 3.5
Aerospace ........... 14 ...... N/A
Biomedical ........... 27 ........ 4
Chemical ............. 20 ....... N/A
Civil .................... 21 ....... 27
Computer ............ 18 ........ 22
Electrical ............. 18 ........ 31
Environmental ....... 19 ........ 24
Industrial .............. 5 ....... N/A
Materials .............. 10 ....... N/A
Mechanical ........... 14 ........ 26
Nuclear ................ 5 ........ N/A
Petroleum ............. 5 ........ N/A</p>
<p>It appears that Penn State wins. Now throw away these rankings and follow the advice on post #8.</p>
<p>OMG. I never realized how medicore Duke was in engineering. Maybe they should just drop the discipline altogether. Perhaps if they did, they would rank right up there with HYPSM.</p>
<p>"how dare u compare Penn State to the almighty Duke, which is a school that is on par with Columbia, Penn, and a notch above UC Berkeley, Cornell, Brown, UChicago, and Johns Hopkins!"</p>
<p>This post made me laugh. Anyway, you would be crazy to pick Duke undergraduate over Penn State University Park if you were accepted to Schreyer Honors College or are wanting engineering. Schreyer is amazing. As for graduate school, Penn State's campus is beautiful and it's graduate facilities are excellent, but I'm sure Duke's are as well. I think the best thing you can do is try to decide how much you are willing to spend, as there be quite a large difference in price. Both are great schools. Best of luck.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Anyway, you would be crazy to pick Duke undergraduate over Penn State University Park if you were accepted to Schreyer Honors College or are wanting engineering.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Oohh! You just lobbed a plate of linguini in red sauce in this food fight. Talking in such absolutes just keeps the cream pies and salisbury steak with gravy flying. </p>
<p>Penn State is a great school for many people, depending on their needs, wants, preferences. Duke is a great school for many people, depending on their needs, wants, preferences. Instead of arguing which one is "better" overall or for one particular thing (e.g., engineering, diversity, food, parties, athletics, number of a capella singing groups, whatever), focus on what each is strong in, weak in, or just different.</p>
<p>Penn State is huge (50K students?) - means lots of opportunities in academics, social activities, living arrangements, clubs & organizations, etc. Rarely would courses or activities be cancelled due to lack of interest - in a population that large, there will always be at least a few interested in whatever it is. But that size could be overwhelming for some students and some students do get lost in the anonymity of just being one of 50,000. Duke is much smaller - 6-7K so can provide a more intimate feel but is big enough (and wealthy enough) to offer more than enough for most college students. Many people thrive in the large, diverse population of a large state university, many don't and need a smaller population, some are adaptable enough to be able to thrive in either. I chose (30 years ago!) the smaller, more personal route (William & Mary over U Penn, UVa, Va Tech), which was best for me. My son is much like me and went the same route -- W&M over U. Delaware honors, American honors, Maryland honors, Ithaca College school of communications honors (Ithaca is similar size as W&M and was his very close second choice). W&M, although public, is OOS for us and pricey (most expensive bottom-line cost of all his options) but we decided it was worth it (and still significantly below the $50K of the top privates). My daughter is in the search process now and has the personality that she would do well at any size school, although she clearly prefers the 4-8K student population range in suburban or small town. The point is, size is a much larger factor than many people tend to give it during the search process - finding the right size for you, whether tiny, small, medium, large, or jumbo, is extremely important.</p>
<p>Both have good reputations for academics, although Duke clearly is more "prestigious," if that is important to you. This is not to say that Penn State does not have prestige - if you stay in PA or nearby then it may even have a bit more than Duke, depending on your field. </p>
<p>Beyond "prestige" (which may or may not be deserved - it is really just a perception), the academics at both are in the big leagues. There will be a wider variance at Penn State, due to its size and mission as a public university, but if you are in the honors program, it will be quite good and will provide you with everything you need to get started in life and career.</p>
<p>Cost is another area of significant difference. In-state at Penn State is an incredible value, and even out-of-state is pretty good. Duke's full cost is over $50K. Yes, there is financial aid, and it can be quite good, depending on circumstances. But, for most students, Duke will be notably more expensive. Each individual will have to make his/her own decision on whether the cost difference is worth whatever are the actual or perceived benefits. You should note, however, that those who tend to diminish the significance of the cost difference, either as being "worth it" or as "taken care of by financial aid," tend to come from more privileged backgrounds in which the costs are covered by someone else (parents, trust fund) for whom it is a drop in the bucket, and, consequently, have no personal, first-hand experience with financial aid (they only know what they read or hear). I am in the camp that Duke (or any of the expensive privates) is not worth significant extra cost over a number of great and very, very good publics or, even, some very good less-expensive privates. Others choose otherwise.</p>
<p>There are many other factors each individual has to consider - social, location, type and attractiveness of campus (this is one that has a much larger impact once you are there than many people realize while they are searching), facilities and amenities, athletics, etc. </p>
<p>Finally, you can't let any one single factor override everything else. Look at the total package and see which one is the best overall fit for you. </p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>I wasn't going to validate the opinion of someone that has yet to reach college with a real response, but you did give me another laugh. It wasn't a slap at Duke, but the Schreyer program is incredible and Duke's engineering is very weak. Overall, Duke is more prestigious, but there are certain circumstances that I think would lean one towards Penn State over Duke. It was not an outrageous comment. Anyway, enjoy Harvard, it sounds like you will fit right in.</p>