<p>Hey everyone, I am new to this whole college confidential thing but I have a big decision to make. I just got accepted off of the waitlist at Duke, but have already committed to USC with a Dean's scholarship. I am wondering which is better for me. Both seem to have everything I seek in a campus - a good balance between academics and extracurriculars, great sports, research opportunities, strong pre-med programs, and a fun group of students. Duke is appealing to me because of their admit rate of students who get into medical school (85% versus about 50% at USC). Both alumni connections are huge, but obviously USC is a little stronger here in Southern California. I am debating between majoring in biology or kinesiology and I ultimately need to decide if I want to be far from home or not. Anyone facing the same decision that could help me out? Thanks so much!</p>
<p>How’s your FA package from Duke? Can you afford Duke without any loans? If not, much much would you have to take out in loans? </p>
<p>Finances should be your first concern when deciding where to go.</p>
<p>I don’t have any financial aid at Duke, so that isn’t a huge draw for me</p>
<p>No financial aid at Duke? Go to USC then.</p>
<p>Can your parents pay full tuition at Duke without any financial hardship?</p>
<p>You can’t make a bad decision, even with the med school acceptance rates bothering you; go with your gut.</p>
<p>Your post on Duke forums implies that you’ll be paying full price -10k for USC and full price for Duke.</p>
<p>Since you don’t quality for financial aid and if your family can easily fork out 10k more per year, Duke is the obvious answer. It is just a more pretigeous school, with better placement and higher med school acceptance rate.</p>
<p>Duke, CA kids need to see the rest of the world.</p>
<p>Why are you posting the same thread multiple times from different accounts? Either way, 10,000$ dollars seems pretty manageable for your family. Just make sure that they don’t incur too much debt. Duke pre med should definitely be worth the higher cost. Furthermore, if you received absolutely no aid at Duke, you should be in a strong enough financial position to bear the cost differential.</p>