Duke University Top Questions

My classmates are/were brilliant, hard-working, inspiring, and eager to learn.

My classmates are driven, passionate, and creative.

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My classmates from Duke became some of my best life-long friends.

My classmates are highly motivated, highly capable individuals who tend to be quite goal-oriented while also looking out for the best interests of others.

They are amazing

The students here are diverse, diverse in race/ethnicity, culture, socio-economic status, work ethic, personality, religion, drinking behaviors, sexuality and overall background. Some people who attend Duke are natural born geniuses who do not need to study for an exam more than the night before and still receive an A, while others are hard workers whose phenomenal grades depend on how many nights they put into studying. You'll meet people who blow your mind when you come here, but you won't know the extent of what they accomplished until you've known them for over a year. Most people here are modest when it comes to what they have done, but you also will meet people who honestly just bother you. You will not get along with everyone you meet at Duke, but you'll find your friends faster than you think.

Duke boasts one of the most diverse student bodies among all colleges in the US. All the social minorities: African-American and Latino students, LGBT students, the socio-economically disadvantaged (such as myself) are all very well represented on campus. The LGBT centre on campus is particularly active with a lot of events. And their T-shirt -- “Love = Love” -- can be very easily spotted. The two most popular ways students dress themselves would be: the preppy type with shirts, khakis, and boat shoes and the Californian type with T-shirts, shorts, and flip-flops, due to the fact that they are the two best represented groups on campus. However, there are many more than two dressing styles that students exhibit here as the campus is really diverse. One of the stereotypes associated with Duke would be racial segregation. And from my experiences so far, this is simply not true. I personally have friends that are off Caucasian, Asian, Indian and African descents and this is definitely the norm here. There may be some extent of segregation within the international students from Asia but even then they have a fair amount of interactions with the rest of the campus. As to be expected from any elite private school, the upper-middle class and above is the most prevalent financial background here. A survey conducted this year shows that one third of the student population came from families that earn $300000 or more per year. With that said, the socio-economically disadvantaged are still very well represented here with Duke’s generous financial aid program. And as a member of the said group myself, I do not feel separated from the more well-off students at all. Politics-wise, the students here are very active, which is expected at a school where political science and public policy are two of the most popular majors. A perfect example would be the (very) recent passing of the Amendment One, which banned same-sex marriages in the state of North Carolina. The student groups at Duke very actively campaigned against the amendment and encouraged all the students to vote. Even though the Amendment One was eventually passed with 60{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of the votes in favor of it, the Durham county was won by the opposers, which perfectly demonstrates both Duke students’ openness of mind and political awareness/activeness.

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yes

Duke is an incredibly diverse campus. There are people from all socioeconomic statuses, races, countries, states, etc. Duke was recently named a top LGBTQ-friendly campus. Duke really has a culture of inclusion. There are retreats that Duke puts on (notably Common Ground, put on by the Center for Multicultural Affairs) that promote inclusion and diversity. I have many friends of different races, genders, sexualities, and socioeconomic statuses. Most students are not politically active, but the culture leans to the left. There are certain "scenes" at Duke (particularly the Greek scene) that are somewhat exclusive, with the IFC and Panhellenic sororities and fraternities attracting mostly higher SES white students, NPHC attracting almost exclusively black students, and IGC attracting other ethnicities. However, if students make an effort to maintain diversity in their friend group, it is easy.

Duke has a reputation as a liberal campus. This is in large due to the faculty's political leanings rather than the students'. While most students can discuss current issues on politics and political groups exist on campus, I would not characterize the student body as a politically active group. For the most part students approach differences in gender, race, religion, socioeconomic status and sexual orientation thoughtfully. There is a healthy LGBT community on campus. Students come from all over the world and are encouraged to celebrate their cultures. However, Duke is not perfect. Ethnic and sexual diversity are most actively promoted on campus. Socioeconomic and religious diversity are not nearly as prevalent in student groups and conversations. As a woman, I have experienced an interesting combination of misogyny and feminism on campus. Greek life often brings out the worst part of students' understanding of gender roles on campus, whereas the feminism encouraged in the women's studies department struggles to reconcile idealism with social reality. There is a misconception that women at Duke exhibit flawless perfection socially, academically and physically. While this is an issue for women on campus, it applies to the men, as well. As notorious high achievers, Duke students feel pressure to seek perfection in all aspects of their lives. There is always something they can improve, some aspect of their life where they find themselves subpar. While there are groups on campus that help raise awareness of our universal fallibility, Duke students tend to hold themselves to Hollywood glamor standards.

Duke has a reputation as a liberal campus. This is in large due to the faculty's political leanings rather than the students'. While most students can discuss current issues on politics and political groups exist on campus, I would not characterize the student body as a politically active group. For the most part students approach differences in gender, race, religion, socioeconomic status and sexual orientation thoughtfully. There is a healthy LGBT community on campus. Students come from all over the world and are encouraged to celebrate their cultures. However, Duke is not perfect. Ethnic and sexual diversity are most actively promoted on campus. Socioeconomic and religious diversity are not nearly as prevalent in student groups and conversations. As a woman, I have experienced an interesting combination of misogyny and feminism on campus. Greek life often brings out the worst part of students' understanding of gender roles on campus, whereas the feminism encouraged in the women's studies department struggles to reconcile idealism with social reality. There is a misconception that women at Duke exhibit flawless perfection socially, academically and physically. While this is an issue for women on campus, it applies to the men, as well. As notorious high achievers, Duke students feel pressure to seek perfection in all aspects of their lives. There is always something they can improve, some aspect of their life where they find themselves subpar. While there are groups on campus that help raise awareness of our universal fallibility, Duke students tend to hold themselves to Hollywood glamor standards.

Duke is a fairly liberal campus socially. Groups like ASA (Asian Student Association) and Mi Gente (Hispanic) are very popular and students get very involved. There are also a variety of religious groups like Cru (Campus Crusade for Christ) or and services on campus that are popular on campus. Duke is a very gay-friendly campus. Many students have the gay pride flags hanging out of their dorm windows. None of this is overwhelming though. It's easy to get involved, but I never feel pressured or annoyed by any of the groups that I'm not involved in. Economically, Duke is surprisingly well-rounded. Because of the great financial aid, students of all socio-economic status can attend school here. Even though there are very wealthy and very poor students here, it's not blatant who belongs to each group. It's not really an issue discussed among students, which I like. People feel equal here. As long as students are willing to socialize and be open to meeting new people, I think everyone can find his or her niche at Duke. A huge partier and a nerd can get along just fine in the classroom setting too. Duke never has that exclusive, clique-y feel that often exists in high school. We have a lot of students from North Carolina, New York, California, and Texas, but that's probably to be expected. There are students from every state at Duke and from 85 countries. The student body is diverse, which I find to be a very beneficial component to the overall experience at Duke. As for politics at Duke, I hesitate to use the word "apathetic," but students aren't the most involved in politics. It's mostly because students are too busy to keep up with every current event. I think students care, and they do get involved some, but politics aren't huge on campus. There are groups for those who want to get involved though. We have some students participating in an "Occupy Duke," sleeping out in tents on campus, so there are some people who are passionate. I would say Duke is more left-wing, but there are plenty of conservatives students too. Students here are focused on their classes and having fun. Most students don't seem to be too preoccupied with worries about getting a job after graduation and how much money they make. If you graduate with a degree from Duke, you don't have to worry as much about getting a job as someone from an average university. Companies, grad schools, law schools, and medical schools know that Duke is a good school. Plus Duke has an impressive alumni network, which always helps.

Extremely intelligent, driven and focused and they have the ability to study and perform well in class as well as support a thriving social life. It is not too ridiculously competitive and most people are very nice and honest.

My classmates are an internationally diverse body of uniquely talented, focused, driven, hardworking, intelligent and competitive achievers who were admitted to Duke after lifelong preparation in academics, athletics or the arts, ethics, and earnest, dedicated, community service.

My classmates are very intelligent and bring to the classroom alot of diversity from around the world.

Motivated, knowledgeable, intelligent and sharp, but also fun-loving.

Vibrant, intelligent, hardworking, fun, involved

Duke students are extremely smart and motivated, but at the same time, very humble and willing to help each other all while keeping academics and social life balanced as Duke tends to have a very unique lifestyle and nightlife.