College of the Day: Duke University

Duke University

Quick Facts:

Location: Durham, NC

Established:1838

Students Enrolled: 14,591

Applicants: 30,374

Male/Female Ratio: 50/50

Duke University is a top private university located in the lush forest of Durham, North Carolina. The university's campus is known for it's Gothic-styled residential and class buildings. The area offers students many outdoor opportunities on and around campus.

Duke is a prestigious university that is competitive with the Ivy League schools.  Students choose between two undergraduate schools when applying: the Pratt School of Engineering and the Trinity College of Arts and Sciences. The engineer programs are national standouts, especially the electrical and biomedical programs.  Other strong programs include biology, ecology, neuroscience, public policy, economics, and literary studies. 

Student Life:

The majority of Duke students come from out of state, particularly the northeast and California. Only ten percent of students are from North Carolina.  Students are required to live on campus for their first three years.  Students can choose to in either residence halls or on campus fraternities/sororities. Freshmen all live on the east campus with each dorm led by a faculty member.  Seniors are allowed to live off campus in near by apartments. 

The majority of social life at Duke takes place through the Greek system.  Twenty-nine percent of the men and forty-two percent of the students choose to join either a fraternity or sorority. Fraternity parties are open to everyone. Alcohol is easy to find on campus, even for those who are not 21.  The university has been attempting to tailer it's policies to deal with underage drinking.

Duke is known for it's men's basketball team. Each basketball season, students camp out for the prized tickets for each game.  Students at the games are called "Cameron Crazies" because of their intense passion for the game. Student spirit is at all time high during the rivalry games with nearby University of North Carolina. 

Applying:

If you are interested in applying to Duke University you should have a Critical Reading SAT score of 660-750 and a Math SAT Score of 690-780. ACT scores for all sections should be from 30-34. Duke typically has at least 30,000 applicants each year with only 13% of applicants being accepted.  

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 Source: Fiske, Edward B. "Duke University." Fiske Guide to Colleges. Vol. 2015. N.p: 221-225. Print