<p>In the event that you are interested in Duke, the real story on this college is the following: </p>
<li><p>Duke has a great academic reputation and an even greater reputation among employers. </p></li>
<li><p>The school is large enough to feel like a university and to have all the activities you would want, yet small enough so that one won’t get lost in the crowd. From a personal growth standpoint, some students tend to favor large schools over small ones as they tend to be less insular and more diverse in student population. Duke provides this advantage without losing the intimacy. </p></li>
<li><p>The students are top-notch and high achievers, but not cutthroat. Duke is a place where very smart and well-rounded young men and women are able to meet other similarly motivated and accomplished students from all around the world. At the same time, Duke students are a blend of many amazing (and incredibly diverse) skill sets and personalities.</p></li>
<li><p>Duke is not complacent in trying to attract top students. They will provide excellent financial aid in many circumstances. </p></li>
<li><p>The Duke campus thrives on the energy created by its undergraduates and their potential.</p></li>
<li><p>The weather is usually sunny, even in winter. It snows, but it rarely stays cold for long. </p></li>
<li><p>Duke Gardens are unique and beautiful…and one can enjoy them for several months while school is still in session. </p></li>
<li><p>The Duke Chapel is awesome, with its grand fa</p></li>
</ol>
<ol>
<li>Don't be misled by certain posters that Duke is "better" than schools like Columbia, Cornell, or even Michigan. They're all great schools and anyone is lucky to attend one of them.</li>
</ol>
<p>Ummm . . . I wouldn't get carried away with this. According to the National Climate Data Center, Raleigh-Durham gets 58% of the maximum available sunshine---exactly the same as Boston, New York City, Providence, and Minneapolis/St. Paul; very similar to Baltimore, St. Louis, New Orleans, and Portland, ME (all 57%); only slightly ahead of Philadelphia (56%), DC (56%), and Chicago (54%); and well behind Tucson (85%), Los Angeles (72%), Honolulu (71%), Miami (70%), Denver-Boulder (69%), and San Francisco-Berkeley (66%).</p>
<p>Don't get me wrong, there are lots of reasons to like Duke, but don't go there for the sunshine. </p>
<p>
[quote]
students invariably think, “Wow, I'm so privileged to be at Duke" and that mindset goes with them for the rest of their lives.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>I think this is true. When we visited Duke, my D found this attitude of privilege, entitlement, and extremely high self-regard to be a total turn-off. "Snootiness," she calls it, and she's got a keen radar for it. At some other elite schools---Brown comes to mind---the students we met did not seem nearly so taken with their own "specialness." It's also reflected in many of the comments by Duke proponents on these boards.</p>
<p>Duke is home to more strivers and future country-clubbers than probably any other school in the US. Has there ever been a significant new idea or movement out of Duke undergrads in the last 100 years? Not unless you count this:</p>
<p>I want to puke. If I wanted to read Puke promotional literature, This forum would be a perfect place for me</p>
<p>Hawkette, you do realize that the same (or analogous) assertions are really the same sort of things we hear day in and day out about Duke minus the comparative literature, snootiness, and bashing of other schools? </p>
<p>Its definitely a great improvement though. You are right about Duke Pride, its very very strong and its stench is <em>sometimes</em> very obnoxious1</p>
<p>But you get lovely Durham if you go to Duke!<br>
I have heard several reports lately similar to the above poster's where a visiting student (and parent) was really turned off by the "snootiness" and attitude of the students on campus. I'm sure Duke offers a wonderful education and has very intelligent students, but right now there is something going wrong with the image the school is projecting- especially on this forum.
Also- I think the UConn and UT (Tenn) women's basketball programs are the pride of the sport, not Duke's.</p>
<p>
[quote]
4. Duke is not complacent in trying to attract top students. They will provide excellent financial aid in many circumstances.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>You can't be serious, hawkette. Duke is known to be pretty stingy with financial aid to upper middle class citizens, who make around 80k-150k a year. A friend of mine was accepted to Stanford, Duke, Georgetown, and others 2 yrs ago. Even if his parents made around 110k with 1 other sibling in college, Duke expected him to pay full tuition. Stanford only expected him to pay half the tuition. This seems to be a general trend at Duke since only about 40% of the entire student body receives any aid. I would also add that other schools like Cornell, Northwestern, UChicago aren't that great with fin aid, either.</p>
<p>Ahh, hawkette - I see your Duke-bias is finally fully revealed (there has always been hints to as such in your prior posts).</p>
<p>I really don’t see how Duke is any more “special” in those regards to Stanford, Northwestern, Penn (minus big-revenue sports) or even state schools like UCB or UM.</p>
<p>Quote:
Originally Posted by k&s
Ahh, hawkette - I see your Duke-bias is finally fully revealed </p>
<p>As opposed to CayugaRed2005 (Cornell), tokenadult (Harvard), bclintonk (Michigan), Phead128 (JHU), MomofWildChild (Penn), patlees88 (Cornell), or barrons (Wisconsin)? Or your own firm stance on affirmative action? I've been on these boards long enough to recognize bias in others, thank you very much. </p>
<p>In defense of most of the above posters, they are or have attended the schools that they tumpet. I can't say for sure, but I don't believe hawkette went to Duke.</p>
<p>okok. so you goto Duke. congratulations. i used to regard duke very highly before coming to this forum.</p>
<p>no, im serious. i used to think it was one of nation's top program, and was very hesitant when i declined the offer, but now...</p>
<p>after all that EAD craziness in the Columbia thread, and bunch of other unnecessary over-promotional threads of Duke popping up here and there by Duke students, </p>
<p>i have to second that this is getting really sickening, not to say pathetic.</p>
<p>Please. While I may be a Cornell alum, I think you would be hard pressed to find any propaganda spewing from my mouth. For any college. There are many valid reasons to attend Duke. Or Cornell. Or Michigan. Or Macalaster. And there really isn't any reason to shamelessly put the others down.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Yes, it's a pity Durham isn't up to the standards of lovely New Haven or West Philly
[/quote]
</p>
<p>It certainly isn’t up to the standards of Palo Alto or Evanston (by far). Not to mention Princeton, or heck, Cambridge.</p>
<p>
[quote]
As opposed to CayugaRed2005 (Cornell), tokenadult (Harvard), bclintonk (Michigan), Phead128 (JHU), MomofWildChild (Penn), patlees88 (Cornell), or barrons (Wisconsin)? Or your own firm stance on affirmative action? I've been on these boards long enough to recognize bias in others, thank you very much.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>The difference is that they all pretty much face up to it (and posters like Cayuga more or less defends against those who unfairly impugn Cornell, rather than make it out to be the greatest place on earth).</p>
<p>Hawkette, otoh (to less discerning eyes) usually hides her Duke bias in her numerous posts about how private non-Ivies get shafted.</p>
<p>And I highly doubt that you would be able to accurately summarize what my stance on AA is.</p>
<p>And oh, btw, your shameless sniping was especially lame.</p>