Phredd3
Member
You didn't hear wrong. The burritos are still huge and delicious.
Our Duke college tour is November 5th (yes election day). Tell me what to expect.
- Thread starter HoKogan
- Start date
And it was started by 2 Duke alum soon after they graduated.
Ok so we did the tour on the 5th. Didn't feel like talking about it yesterday. Presentation was well done. Our guide was a freshman and it was her first tour, so given that we thought she did a solid job and hit most of the points she needed to. My daughter thought Duke was fine, liked the campus (she had been there before but that was for football) liked the Quad X program and the emphasis on research. Compared to App (which was our first tour) she said Duke didn't seem to be quite as chill in terms of atmosphere. Most of the students were on the move from one place to the next and there wasn't too much of college kids being college kids.
Arguably the tour's biggest weakness is it couldn't really get too in depth in terms of the programs offered and what is great or unique about them at Duke. The guide talked about both Pratt and Trinity, and was able to explain Pratt better, because of its engineering focus. Trinity is incredibly broad and I would not expect the guide to really be able to hit some of the points of the various majors and concentrations offered. In contrast, the guide at App was able to speak to some degree on some of the programs offered by giving an overview of the buildings on campus. For example, she would point out where the business school is located and hit a point on how App is rated on that, or here is the building where all the psychology majors go, here is where a lot students go for foreign language classes or english, etc. It was a bit more comprehensive picture of what a day of your academic life at App would be like.
My daughter is interested in psychology, sociology and creative writing, these are all programs that Duke offers, but there isn't a ton of specific information on why you would choose Duke for these programs vs somewhere else. Thats not really something a guide is going to be able to deliver unless they happen to be in the same program. What I'd love to know is where to get that information. I'd also like to know if Duke offers a more in depth look at student life there from both an academic and social perspective. They touch on some things about 9th street and Durham in general, but not quite from an "imagine yourself here" perspective. So my question is if there is a next step in getting more information about specifics, where do I get that.
And a couple of last points. Of course the mens basketball team gets brought up because its the brand most familiar to the average person and the gateway to the university itself. Its almost impossible to calculate Coach K's worth from a school ambassador perspective. That said, I don't think anyone mentioned the football team
. Ah well. And lastly, we'd heard people complain that Duke tours could come off as cold or indifferent to perspective students and I just want to say that was not the experience in any aspect of our visit. My daughter is intrigued, but needs more info to be sold. I'd like to be able to give her more information so she feels confident about applying, in terms of this place offers what you want, where are the details.
Next up is my alma mater UNCG this saturday. She's been there for music camp twice but not considered it as a perspective student.
EDIT: and BTW, we did eat at Cosmic Cantina, recommendation approved.
Arguably the tour's biggest weakness is it couldn't really get too in depth in terms of the programs offered and what is great or unique about them at Duke. The guide talked about both Pratt and Trinity, and was able to explain Pratt better, because of its engineering focus. Trinity is incredibly broad and I would not expect the guide to really be able to hit some of the points of the various majors and concentrations offered. In contrast, the guide at App was able to speak to some degree on some of the programs offered by giving an overview of the buildings on campus. For example, she would point out where the business school is located and hit a point on how App is rated on that, or here is the building where all the psychology majors go, here is where a lot students go for foreign language classes or english, etc. It was a bit more comprehensive picture of what a day of your academic life at App would be like.
My daughter is interested in psychology, sociology and creative writing, these are all programs that Duke offers, but there isn't a ton of specific information on why you would choose Duke for these programs vs somewhere else. Thats not really something a guide is going to be able to deliver unless they happen to be in the same program. What I'd love to know is where to get that information. I'd also like to know if Duke offers a more in depth look at student life there from both an academic and social perspective. They touch on some things about 9th street and Durham in general, but not quite from an "imagine yourself here" perspective. So my question is if there is a next step in getting more information about specifics, where do I get that.
And a couple of last points. Of course the mens basketball team gets brought up because its the brand most familiar to the average person and the gateway to the university itself. Its almost impossible to calculate Coach K's worth from a school ambassador perspective. That said, I don't think anyone mentioned the football team
. Ah well. And lastly, we'd heard people complain that Duke tours could come off as cold or indifferent to perspective students and I just want to say that was not the experience in any aspect of our visit. My daughter is intrigued, but needs more info to be sold. I'd like to be able to give her more information so she feels confident about applying, in terms of this place offers what you want, where are the details. Next up is my alma mater UNCG this saturday. She's been there for music camp twice but not considered it as a perspective student.
EDIT: and BTW, we did eat at Cosmic Cantina, recommendation approved.
OZZIE4DUKE
Well-known member
HK, I actually had a tour on the 4th from the Alumni Association. My fraternity, no longer at Duke (thanks to Nan...) (and no fraternities are recognized by Duke today), anyway we had a multi-class reunion weekend and got the tour (~1 1/2 hours long). The two students, both sophs, did well but I think we "educated them" about life at Duke in the 70's more than they told us about life there today.
My daughter applied to Duke but was wait listed (as a quadruple legacy and straight A student) and never responded to it. She went to State her freshman year and then transferred to Appy. Got her teaching degree (2004) and taught Pre-K in Banner Elk for several years before moving east. She loved it there. And I loved her going there - the cost per semester at Appy was the cost of a week at Duke and that's not an exaggeration. She didn't think paying more per year at Duke than what she would earn per year as a teacher made much $ense, and I was thrilled.
Don't think this info helps you any and I wish your daughter well.
My daughter applied to Duke but was wait listed (as a quadruple legacy and straight A student) and never responded to it. She went to State her freshman year and then transferred to Appy. Got her teaching degree (2004) and taught Pre-K in Banner Elk for several years before moving east. She loved it there. And I loved her going there - the cost per semester at Appy was the cost of a week at Duke and that's not an exaggeration. She didn't think paying more per year at Duke than what she would earn per year as a teacher made much $ense, and I was thrilled.
Don't think this info helps you any and I wish your daughter well.
sagegrouse
Member
Duke is an incredibly good school, with gifted students and many wonderful people who will be friends for life. You can get descriptions of the programs from on-line sources or calling the department. Trust me, they are all excellent.
My daughter was one of eight Dukies in her med school class (not in NC). Four were summa cum laude (no wonder Duke premeds get admitted to med school at a high rate). She gets together with female class-mates every few years; all seem to be doctors, lawyers, and business owners or leaders.
Don't miss a chance to go to Duke!
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My daughter was one of eight Dukies in her med school class (not in NC). Four were summa cum laude (no wonder Duke premeds get admitted to med school at a high rate). She gets together with female class-mates every few years; all seem to be doctors, lawyers, and business owners or leaders.
Don't miss a chance to go to Duke!
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I think they sold the overall experience fine, if you need more info about the majors and programs, it will require a bit more digging.
to be fair I think that's a responsibility that should fall to the respective student. No way some student tour guide can be knowledgeable about all the various majors and programs...
Yeah, I said as much in my review of the tour and I didn't hold that against the guide.