URGENT: Robertson Scholarship vs. deferred Yale

Colleges and Universities A-Z Yale University
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<p>OP: This issue has come up previously. </p>

<p>Under NACAC’s Statement of Principles of Good Practice (Mandatory Practice II.B.3), "Postsecondary members agree that they will permit first-year candidates for fall admission to choose, without penalty, among offers of admission and financial aid until May 1.” (Students admitted ED are a recognized exception to the rule.) The rules also specify that colleges can request a response before the May 1 National Date, but they have to to let students know that they can request an extension until that date. If a student is being asked to accept an admission of scholarship offer before May 1, that information should be conveyed to the NACAC Admission Practices Chair Committee Chair of the state or regional affiliate where the institution is located. The identity of the student and his/her high school will remain confidential. </p>

<p>According to a poster on last year’s thread, the Robertson asks you to get back by mid-April, but they make it clear you can request an extension until May 1. This is an acceptable practice per NACAC guidelines. </p>

<p>You can get an extension from Duke until May 1. Check the fine print of your offer and take this information to your GC. I bet your GC can simply request it on your behalf. If Duke says no, I’d take the matter to NACAC.</p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/661864-choosing-between-stanford-duke-roberston-scholarship-2.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/661864-choosing-between-stanford-duke-roberston-scholarship-2.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Ravenbelle, a friend of my also got the Duke-Robertson (Aussie) - do you want to get in touch with him? He’s also waiting on RD results like you.</p>

<p>I can pm his email address if you want.</p>

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<p>Wow wjb thank you. Does it still apply to me because I’m from New Zealand though? They choose the NZ scholars in a separate pool and we go through a different process. I didn’t receive a letter. I received a phone call. </p>

<p>theskylitup: yes please! What country?</p>

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<p>er…Australia? (aussie? lol) :stuck_out_tongue: :)</p>

<p>PMing!</p>

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<p>CALL AND REQUEST AN EXTENSION. They will give you more time if you ask. CALL. NZ or not just call.</p>

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<p>Ravenbelle,
I would jump at the Robertson scholarship to Duke. You and the rest of the world were deferred from Yale and the chances are extremely slim that you will be admitted-like a 5% possibility, maybe. (I’m not just talking about you, but about everyone deferred from ED)
A friend’s son was a Robertson scholar at Duke, graduated a couple of years ago and he had the most AMAZING experiences being part of this program. Incredible summer trips fully funded in addition to everything else during the school year. Congratulations on getting this scholarship. It is an incredible accomplishment.</p>

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<p>Ravenbelle: I can’t answer you definitively, but I just looked at the NACAC rules, and there is nothing in them that would distinguish international students from domestic students in this situation. I would take this information to your GC and have him/her contact Duke on your behalf.</p>

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<p>Being even if you are ultimately rejected from Yale that has no bearing on your chances at other top schools. Every year people get rejected from Yale who get into Harvard and Princeton. And not to say those schools are preferable to Duke, because I personally <3 Duke, but if you prefer those schools then you would effectively be eliminating all chances of admissions.</p>

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<p>I can’t call Duke because it doesn’t really go by them. I can only call the organisation that runs it in New Zealand and ask. I will try and call Yale too to gauge my chances?</p>

<p>Right now I don’t care about any other school. Yale’s always been the standout. BUT then again the Robertson is amazing too with all expenses paid for.</p>

<p>I’m so glad Dbate that as a Yalie you can say that you love Duke. Would you be able to draw some more comparisons for me? The thing I hear the most is how Duke is dominated by Greek life that makes it really stratified? I think I am 70% going to accept them tomorrow now … because really Yale clearly doesn’t like me as much as I like it =P</p>

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<p>BTW, thank you everyone for your input =)</p>

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<p>I would advise against this. The admissions officers will not tell you your chances and it may actually hurt you. </p>

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<p>Oh well I had been set on going to only two colleges throughout high school. Duke or the University of Texas. I liked Duke because I got the TIP award in middle school so I thought I should go there for college. My partiality to Duke has nothing to do with the atmosphere or the academics and everything to do with my early exposure to the school. I didn’t even know if Duke was difficult or easy to get into when i was a sophomore in high school, I just knew it was prestigious. Unfortunately, the financial aid at Duke was in no way comparable to Yale’s or the scholarship I received at the university of Texas so I didn’t apply :(</p>

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<p>Oh dear … haha all good!</p>

<p>It’s 2:38am now and I think I need to sleep. No amount of internet research is really going to tell me what Duke or Yale is going to be like.</p>

<p>Thanks very much again for all your help =)</p>

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<p>In my opinion - being a merit scholar at a prestigious university is an extremely valuable experience. Don’t underestimate the value of the unique contacts and opportunites you would have as a Robertson scholar. Merit scholarship status separates you from the rest of your classmates. Summer fellowships at Yale or anywhere else are very competitive and not guaranteed. If everything else were equal (and I’m not sure it is, but…) I would think you would have no regrets if you accepted the Robertson. </p>

<p>I know a student who was in a similar situation as you. The consensus among my colleagues and I was that the merit scholarship sets a student apart from other students - that is a very important consideration.</p>

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<p>I suspect the international Robertson organization isn’t bound by the NACAC policies. I’m not certain about that, of course, but I’m going to assume that they know what they are doing.</p>

<p>Getting a Robertson means that you are an extremely impressive candidate – easily impressive enough to get admitted at Yale. But not certain to be admitted at Yale, especially as an international needing full aid. (Yale sent out likely letters, too, and you didn’t get one.) Duke is a great university, and the Robertson itself brings enough extra benefits that you could easily decide to accept it over an actual offer of admission from Yale. Even assuming that you would still pick Yale if you had the choice, you would be nuts to turn down the Robertson offer. I don’t think there’s any harm in calling Yale, but my guess is they will tell you the same thing.</p>

<p>People love Duke, including people who don’t love fraternities, etc. Like any good college, it has a real mix of people and interests. I recently had a conversation with an African-American woman who was a senior there, and she adored it, without ever having joined a sorority or gone to a basketball game. But if you want to get a sense of the absolute worst Duke has to offer, that’s uniquely easy – read Tom Wolfe’s I Am Charlotte Simmons, which is a recent comic roman a clef about Duke. It’s completely exaggerated and negative, of course, and makes Dukies’ blood boil, but it’s probably not completely inaccurate in describing certain dynamics there (and elsewhere).</p>

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<p>The Tom Wolfe novel is about the interplay of social status and abuse of power. The author interviewed students from Stanford, Duke, UPenn and UNC to name a few. </p>

<p>[I&lt;/a&gt; Am Charlotte Simmons - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Am_Charlotte_Simmons]I”>I Am Charlotte Simmons - Wikipedia)</p>

<p>I hardly think this accurately represents “the absolute worst Duke has to offer.” Rather, the prevailing attitudes are probably present at many elite colleges, as well as in most board rooms and politician’s offices.</p>

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<p>The summer and travel opportunities offered by the Robertson are unrivalled. Although Yale offers financial aid for some summer internships and summer travel, it is certainly not guaranteed. This is not to say that you wouldn’t have a great undergraduate career complete with summer opportunities at Yale: I’m sure you would. But nothing like the GUARANTEE of funding for just about any summer project you find, for all of your undergrad summers, that you get with the Robertson. There’s also the fellowship aspect, the fact that you are one of a small group that Duke invests in heavily, the prestige, etc. </p>

<p>I don’t think you would do any harm by calling the Yale admissions office and explaining that you must make this decision soon. If they can help you out by letting you know earlier - I would guess that they might. </p>

<p>If Yale absolutely won’t say, and the scholarship absolutely will not wait more than 24 hours, I (personally) would counsel accepting the Robertson. It will all work out for the best.</p>

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<p>Remember, it’s a work of fiction. Have you read The Bonfire of the Vanities? Yes, Wolfe likes hyperbole - it sells books and makes a good story.
By the way, Wolfe was educated at Washington & Lee and … Yale.</p>

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<p>Thank you ALL!</p>

<p>I have decided to accept Robertson now =)
The argument for the Robertson is too strong and there is always Post-Grad at Yale. I’m assuming it would be a plus as a Robertson for Grad school?</p>

<p>Plus, at my dinner and interview I loved meeting all the cool people he knew. Oh and Julian Robertson told me to read ‘I Am Charlotte Simmons’ himself – he described it as “colorful”!</p>

<p>Thanks again, and congrats to all the Yalies =)</p>

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<p>I think you made a terrific decision - congratulations!!!</p>

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<p>Jumping on this bandwagon a bit late, but excellent decision, Ravenbelle! I have a good friend from New Zealand who accepted the Robertson at Duke and has absolutely loved his time there.</p>

<p>To answer two of your questions:

I suppose one could say that Duke is “dominated” by Greek life in the sense that it’s not in a major city, so things on campus tend to take over the social scene. Parties and events hosted by Greek organizations are a big part of the social scene, to be sure, but no need to worry about it.</p>

<p>First, there is absolutely no pressure to go Greek. I was an independent all four years and never had an issue making friends, finding interesting student groups to join, staying entertained on weekends, etc.</p>

<p>Furthermore, Greek life at Duke is pretty darned open. Almost any event sponsored by a Greek organization is open to any Duke student, and all sorts of people show up. I’d sometimes go with a lot of my gay friends, and people never batted an eye about it. </p>

<p>The stratification is much less apparent than you’d think. None of the sororities have campus housing, so all sorority sisters go through the normal campus housing process. The frats have housing on campus, but the housing is simply sectioned off regular housing, so everyone has exactly the same housing. Similarly, Duke offers substance-free housing and themed housing (arts theme house, language dorm, multicultural, etc.). </p>

<p>Finally, you needn’t worry if Greek life isn’t your thing. It wasn’t mine for the most part, and I still had a great four years at Duke. Duke always has a lot of stuff going on – lectures, plays, music performances, etc. As just one example of silly fun, my friends and I would sometimes go to the Disney sing-alongs on Friday nights in the student union. :D</p>

<p>

Political science is one of the top 3 most popular majors at Duke (econ and pub pol are the others). It’s a top 10 program, and I doubt you’d see a difference between Duke and Yale in political science at the undergraduate level. I only took one political science course so don’t have first-hand experience, but all of the political science majors I know (including my ex) rave about the department.</p>

<p>Theatre is actually surprisingly strong at Duke. One of my best friends majored in theatre and is now studying dramaturgy at Harvard; several others have gone on to theatre programs at Michigan and elsewhere. Duke has a very large and active musical theatre group; they’re a fun group and put on absolutely amazing performances. Duke is also quite strong in film and documentary production. For theatre experience outside of Durham, Duke offers theatre programs in New York and London and a cinematography program in LA.</p>

<p>[Duke</a> University | Theater Studies: Home](<a href=“http://theaterstudies.duke.edu/]Duke”>http://theaterstudies.duke.edu/)
[Hoof</a> ‘n’ Horn](<a href=“http://www.duke.edu/web/hoofnhorn/]Hoof”>http://www.duke.edu/web/hoofnhorn/)</p>

<p>[DUKE</a> IN NEW YORK: FALL ARTS & MEDIA - SUMMER INTERNSHIPS IN THE CITY](<a href=“http://dukeinny.english.duke.edu/]DUKE”>http://dukeinny.english.duke.edu/)
[Duke</a> Study Abroad : Duke in London - Drama](<a href=“http://studyabroad.duke.edu/home/Programs/Summer/Duke_in_London_Drama]Duke”>http://studyabroad.duke.edu/home/Programs/Summer/Duke_in_London_Drama)
[Arts</a> of the Moving Image at Duke University - Duke in Los Angeles overview](<a href=“http://fvd.aas.duke.edu/dula/]Arts”>http://fvd.aas.duke.edu/dula/)</p>