<p>I am a gay male from the West Coast looking at both Duke and Wake Forest. I am really in love with both schools, but for different reasons. You would probably not guess that I am gay upon meeting me, and I am very preppy/athletic and am a HUGE sports fan. Which school do you think would be a better environment for a gay student? I know that Wake has the reputation of being more conservative, but I also get the sense that the kids there are generally very welcoming and that the friendly southern hospitality is very pervasive. I know that Duke probably has a little bit larger of a gay population. Also, how do you think fraternities would respond if I were to rush (and be open about my sexuality during rush)? Just give me your thoughts. And any other thoughts about the pro's and con's of either school would be great too! Thanks.</p>
<p>Since you said you are from the west coast.</p>
<p>The ACC is having a Picnic this weekend at Golden Gate Park, SF. I am positive you will get to meet a lot of alumni from each school. I do not know where you are located, but this might be a good opportunity to interact with people from both schools.</p>
<p><a href=“https://alumni.wfu.edu/clubs/registration.php?club_code=CA-SF&event_id=1072[/url]”>https://alumni.wfu.edu/clubs/registration.php?club_code=CA-SF&event_id=1072</a></p>
<p>Hi! Sorry it took so long for this response – hope you’re still checking back 
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<p>Southern schools as a whole, although not all Southern schools, tend to be less accepting than Northern schools. The school I would say seems to be most accepting (based on visits, student experiences, etc) would be NYU (I have a zillion friends who go there and they all seem to say the same thing about LGBT life there). </p>
<p>I would not say Wake is extremely accepting towards the LGBT community, but I would also not say that Wake is unaccepting. I think in recent years Wake has made more of an effort to accept different types of people. I have friends at Wake who are gay and they seem to like the school. However, I don’t think many of them are Greek. </p>
<p>Certain frats are definitely accepting of homosexual individuals, while some are very unaccepting, although I’m sure this will be the same wherever you go. I can’t say for sure how an openly gay person would be treated during formal rush, as this is not the norm at Wake. </p>
<p>I hope you are able to find many things you like about Wake Forest. If you visit, you can get more of a feel for the Wake community as a whole. I also read the posts on the Duke thread. They seem to be very open towards the LGBT community as well, which makes me happy to hear! :)</p>
<p>I hope you are able to find things you like about both schools. Should you have more specific questions, please feel free to PM me (it goes straight to my email so I’ll see it sooner). Good luck with your college search!</p>
<p>thanks so much for the responses - theyre really helpful!</p>