Less socially adept admitted students at Duke?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can we stop shaming the Aspies already?

Because essentially that's what they're saying. Technically-focused neurodivergent students who may or may not be diagnosed are very valuable. Our global economy depends on innovation, and this is the cohort that drives it. The emotionally and socially connected are the glue that holds our society together, and they will always tend to be more successful in their lives, due to their superior social skills... so I don't know why we're attacking the ones that contribute to progress and are less social. On the contrary, we should be supporting them!

A school filled with them is a nightmare.

Does anyone seriously believe that duke is filled with neurodivergent students. Its reputation alone is enough to drive many away.

These are the 1st year students: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQW8QQTAADb/

Wow. That was scary. I'm a Duke alum. Duke has unfortunately become a school of two extremes. Rich party kids (lots of legacies and other kids who are "development priorities") who are active in Greek life. And kids like in that video who are very socially awkward. I was far from the coolest person at Duke. But I also wasn't a nerd. And there were tons of people like me when I was there, in addition to the people now at the two poles. The middle of "normal" kids has been squeezed. It is very sad. I am thinking very carefully about whether my "normal," "well-rounded" child will be happy at alma mater dear. And if not, where they can be happy.

And before someone jumps down my throat, many of the "normal" kids I describe who I was friends with were Asian, black, Indian, etc. And I am the parent of a teenager so I do know how kids dress these days. And most of those kids dress weird.

I agree. And that video is a one-off video. There there are many more Chronicle videos out there that are strikingly similar. (I used to follow the Chron on IG.)

Using 1990s era touchstones, here’s the current breakdown of Duke undergrads:

25% Epworth
25% SAE/Kappa
25% Hardcore Pratt/STEM library dwellers and grinds
20% Recruited athletes
5% Miscellaneous

LOL. Very well done. Took me a minute to recall the name of the "frat" but I will add Psi U to the first group. Epworth was the "I should have gone to Oberlin" crowd. Psi U was just socially awkward, and there are many more of those now. Maybe that also ties into group 3. Recruited athletes is actually closer to 10% so perhaps there is a bit more miscellaneous (I know a few kids there now who are miscellaneous and they do have friends who are similar).

Back in the 90s there were many more miscellaneous. The SAE/Kappa crowd might have actually been a bit smaller but there were more chill frats/sororities/selective houses (DG, AOPi, Sigma Chi, KA, CC, Wayne Manor, Mirecourt).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Duke took 90 transfer kids last year and has said they will take 90 more this year.
They are 100% focused on transfer kids who are humanities (English, History, art, foreign language) and social sciences (sociology and anthropology) majors.

They've said that they don't expect freshman admits to come locked into a major but by sophomore year they do. This makes sense and it's really difficult to build a "fake" profile through a year of college because if you're taking Econ and STEM classes and joining those clubs at your sending school then it's impossible to convince Duke that your passion is really in Romance languages. Sure, you could have a grand year-long plan based on tricking Duke but then you're sort of screwed at your home school if you don't get in (when you have taken a year of sociology courses, haven't started your engineering course work and aren't in STEM clubs, etc).

How does Public Policy and the Sanford School fit in here? Does Duke assume it’s really just a plan to major in Econ and go IB/MBB?

If so, that strikes me as deeply cynical and sad. Duke’s Public Policy department is excellent, and there are tons of kids who are genuinely interested in pursuing a career (and for some, a graduate degree) in the field.

I was a PPS major. It is really a catch-all and is an incredible program. It is great prep for almost anything - IB, MBB consulting, law school, DC policy work, journalism, I think even some pre-meds. It is a very easy story to write for your app - interned in something political or related to one of their sub-specialties. I'm sure they have no trouble filling it.

[Anonymous]

Check out the Sig Chis at Duke now…it’s the Asian house. Nothing wrong with that but just a very noticeable feel.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Check out the Sig Chis at Duke now…it’s the Asian house. Nothing wrong with that but just a very noticeable feel.

Not really. Just looked at their IG page. There are a few Asian guys but no more than 20% or so.

[Anonymous]

Alumni giving rate is way down. But Duke can rely on a handful of billionaires to offset but participation rate probably at an all time low.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Alumni giving rate is way down. But Duke can rely on a handful of billionaires to offset but participation rate probably at an all time low.

Their endowment seems small compared to peers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Alumni giving rate is way down. But Duke can rely on a handful of billionaires to offset but participation rate probably at an all time low.

Their endowment seems small compared to peers.

Nope. Duke has about the 12th largest endowment of private schools. Given that it just basically turned 100 so is playing catchup, this is perfectly fine.

I am curious to know how the current campaign is going. The "Made for This" tagline is awful and embarrassing. I agree that there are probably a few big fish propping it up. Tons of Duke legacies apply so alums donating to get their kids in also help. But not sure how much they are getting from the rank and file.

[Anonymous]

Duke at $11.6 billion in beginning of 2025 is at number 11. UTexas system, UMichigan, and UPenn are slightly higher but their enrollment is multiple times larger than Duke. Michigan has 33k undergrads, Penn 10k and Duke at 6,800. The change in the vibe on campus has alienated lots of grads and development office privately acknowledges that trend. Same if not more noticeable at Princeton, Dartmouth, Harvard and Yale. Notre Dame is a powerhouse at $20 billion and benefits as other top Catholic schools Holy Cross from a more homogeneous, continual demographic (wealthy Catholic families).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Duke at $11.6 billion in beginning of 2025 is at number 11. UTexas system, UMichigan, and UPenn are slightly higher but their enrollment is multiple times larger than Duke. Michigan has 33k undergrads, Penn 10k and Duke at 6,800. The change in the vibe on campus has alienated lots of grads and development office privately acknowledges that trend. Same if not more noticeable at Princeton, Dartmouth, Harvard and Yale. Notre Dame is a powerhouse at $20 billion and benefits as other top Catholic schools Holy Cross from a more homogeneous, continual demographic (wealthy Catholic families).

The vibe on campus becoming more academically intense, highly driven is a trend across most of the ivies more than it is at Duke. It is not new. The shift began around 2012.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can we stop shaming the Aspies already?

Because essentially that's what they're saying. Technically-focused neurodivergent students who may or may not be diagnosed are very valuable. Our global economy depends on innovation, and this is the cohort that drives it. The emotionally and socially connected are the glue that holds our society together, and they will always tend to be more successful in their lives, due to their superior social skills... so I don't know why we're attacking the ones that contribute to progress and are less social. On the contrary, we should be supporting them!

A school filled with them is a nightmare.

Does anyone seriously believe that duke is filled with neurodivergent students. Its reputation alone is enough to drive many away.

These are the 1st year students: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQW8QQTAADb/

Wow. That was scary. I'm a Duke alum. Duke has unfortunately become a school of two extremes. Rich party kids (lots of legacies and other kids who are "development priorities") who are active in Greek life. And kids like in that video who are very socially awkward. I was far from the coolest person at Duke. But I also wasn't a nerd. And there were tons of people like me when I was there, in addition to the people now at the two poles. The middle of "normal" kids has been squeezed. It is very sad. I am thinking very carefully about whether my "normal," "well-rounded" child will be happy at alma mater dear. And if not, where they can be happy.

And before someone jumps down my throat, many of the "normal" kids I describe who I was friends with were Asian, black, Indian, etc. And I am the parent of a teenager so I do know how kids dress these days. And most of those kids dress weird.

I agree. And that video is a one-off video. There there are many more Chronicle videos out there that are strikingly similar. (I used to follow the Chron on IG.)

Using 1990s era touchstones, here’s the current breakdown of Duke undergrads:

25% Epworth
25% SAE/Kappa
25% Hardcore Pratt/STEM library dwellers and grinds
20% Recruited athletes
5% Miscellaneous

LOL. Very well done. Took me a minute to recall the name of the "frat" but I will add Psi U to the first group. Epworth was the "I should have gone to Oberlin" crowd. Psi U was just socially awkward, and there are many more of those now. Maybe that also ties into group 3. Recruited athletes is actually closer to 10% so perhaps there is a bit more miscellaneous (I know a few kids there now who are miscellaneous and they do have friends who are similar).

Back in the 90s there were many more miscellaneous. The SAE/Kappa crowd might have actually been a bit smaller but there were more chill frats/sororities/selective houses (DG, AOPi, Sigma Chi, KA, CC, Wayne Manor, Mirecourt).

Good points. I agree!

Personally, I thought of Epworth more as the “Didn’t get into Brown” cohort.

(All joking aside, I knew a few people who lived in Epworth and they were awesome. Interesting and authentic. Not performative for its own sake.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Duke at $11.6 billion in beginning of 2025 is at number 11. UTexas system, UMichigan, and UPenn are slightly higher but their enrollment is multiple times larger than Duke. Michigan has 33k undergrads, Penn 10k and Duke at 6,800. The change in the vibe on campus has alienated lots of grads and development office privately acknowledges that trend. Same if not more noticeable at Princeton, Dartmouth, Harvard and Yale. Notre Dame is a powerhouse at $20 billion and benefits as other top Catholic schools Holy Cross from a more homogeneous, continual demographic (wealthy Catholic families).

Why? Because of less white students?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Alumni giving rate is way down. But Duke can rely on a handful of billionaires to offset but participation rate probably at an all time low.

Their endowment seems small compared to peers.

Nope. Duke has about the 12th largest endowment of private schools. Given that it just basically turned 100 so is playing catchup, this is perfectly fine.

I am curious to know how the current campaign is going. The "Made for This" tagline is awful and embarrassing. I agree that there are probably a few big fish propping it up. Tons of Duke legacies apply so alums donating to get their kids in also help. But not sure how much they are getting from the rank and file.

Here's the official ranking by endowment.

https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/the-short-list-college/articles/universities-with-the-biggest-endowments

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can we stop shaming the Aspies already?

Because essentially that's what they're saying. Technically-focused neurodivergent students who may or may not be diagnosed are very valuable. Our global economy depends on innovation, and this is the cohort that drives it. The emotionally and socially connected are the glue that holds our society together, and they will always tend to be more successful in their lives, due to their superior social skills... so I don't know why we're attacking the ones that contribute to progress and are less social. On the contrary, we should be supporting them!

A school filled with them is a nightmare.

Does anyone seriously believe that duke is filled with neurodivergent students. Its reputation alone is enough to drive many away.

These are the 1st year students: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQW8QQTAADb/

Wow. That was scary. I'm a Duke alum. Duke has unfortunately become a school of two extremes. Rich party kids (lots of legacies and other kids who are "development priorities") who are active in Greek life. And kids like in that video who are very socially awkward. I was far from the coolest person at Duke. But I also wasn't a nerd. And there were tons of people like me when I was there, in addition to the people now at the two poles. The middle of "normal" kids has been squeezed. It is very sad. I am thinking very carefully about whether my "normal," "well-rounded" child will be happy at alma mater dear. And if not, where they can be happy.

And before someone jumps down my throat, many of the "normal" kids I describe who I was friends with were Asian, black, Indian, etc. And I am the parent of a teenager so I do know how kids dress these days. And most of those kids dress weird.

I agree. And that video is a one-off video. There there are many more Chronicle videos out there that are strikingly similar. (I used to follow the Chron on IG.)

Using 1990s era touchstones, here’s the current breakdown of Duke undergrads:

25% Epworth
25% SAE/Kappa
25% Hardcore Pratt/STEM library dwellers and grinds
20% Recruited athletes
5% Miscellaneous

LOL. Very well done. Took me a minute to recall the name of the "frat" but I will add Psi U to the first group. Epworth was the "I should have gone to Oberlin" crowd. Psi U was just socially awkward, and there are many more of those now. Maybe that also ties into group 3. Recruited athletes is actually closer to 10% so perhaps there is a bit more miscellaneous (I know a few kids there now who are miscellaneous and they do have friends who are similar).

Back in the 90s there were many more miscellaneous. The SAE/Kappa crowd might have actually been a bit smaller but there were more chill frats/sororities/selective houses (DG, AOPi, Sigma Chi, KA, CC, Wayne Manor, Mirecourt).

Good points. I agree!

Personally, I thought of Epworth more as the “Didn’t get into Brown” cohort.

(All joking aside, I knew a few people who lived in Epworth and they were awesome. Interesting and authentic. Not performative for its own sake.)

There were some very odd ducks in Epworth. And that building was weird. Is it still standing?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Duke at $11.6 billion in beginning of 2025 is at number 11. UTexas system, UMichigan, and UPenn are slightly higher but their enrollment is multiple times larger than Duke. Michigan has 33k undergrads, Penn 10k and Duke at 6,800. The change in the vibe on campus has alienated lots of grads and development office privately acknowledges that trend. Same if not more noticeable at Princeton, Dartmouth, Harvard and Yale. Notre Dame is a powerhouse at $20 billion and benefits as other top Catholic schools Holy Cross from a more homogeneous, continual demographic (wealthy Catholic families).

Why? Because of less white students?

No. Because of Duke’s policies that pushed much of the social life off campus.

The school has been eager to facilitate more inclusive social events, which is a terrific goal. But the execution has been poor, including with the new Quad X residential life system (too restrictive for juniors and seniors.)

Duke’s biggest mistake was outright banning fraternities and sororities on campus. This did not actually diminish the popularity or influence of the Greek orgs - it just pushed them off campus, beyond the oversight or authority of the school. (Duke’s Greek life is now governed by the self-created Durham IFC and Durham Panhellenic, which are not affiliated with the school).

So fraternity and sorority parties and events now draw students off campus, including to parties in fields with sketchy cell service out in the middle of nowhere (and that require kids to know someone in order to procure a wristband to attend/take the bus there). No more open kegs on campus on Thursday or Saturday nights. (Used to be great ways to blow off steam after studying.)

Yes, basketball games draw lots of kids from across different social groups. But overall, campus is a quieter, less lively place at night and on weekends. Alums are not happy with the change.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can we stop shaming the Aspies already?

Because essentially that's what they're saying. Technically-focused neurodivergent students who may or may not be diagnosed are very valuable. Our global economy depends on innovation, and this is the cohort that drives it. The emotionally and socially connected are the glue that holds our society together, and they will always tend to be more successful in their lives, due to their superior social skills... so I don't know why we're attacking the ones that contribute to progress and are less social. On the contrary, we should be supporting them!

A school filled with them is a nightmare.

Does anyone seriously believe that duke is filled with neurodivergent students. Its reputation alone is enough to drive many away.

These are the 1st year students: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQW8QQTAADb/

Wow. That was scary. I'm a Duke alum. Duke has unfortunately become a school of two extremes. Rich party kids (lots of legacies and other kids who are "development priorities") who are active in Greek life. And kids like in that video who are very socially awkward. I was far from the coolest person at Duke. But I also wasn't a nerd. And there were tons of people like me when I was there, in addition to the people now at the two poles. The middle of "normal" kids has been squeezed. It is very sad. I am thinking very carefully about whether my "normal," "well-rounded" child will be happy at alma mater dear. And if not, where they can be happy.

And before someone jumps down my throat, many of the "normal" kids I describe who I was friends with were Asian, black, Indian, etc. And I am the parent of a teenager so I do know how kids dress these days. And most of those kids dress weird.

I agree. And that video is a one-off video. There there are many more Chronicle videos out there that are strikingly similar. (I used to follow the Chron on IG.)

Using 1990s era touchstones, here’s the current breakdown of Duke undergrads:

25% Epworth
25% SAE/Kappa
25% Hardcore Pratt/STEM library dwellers and grinds
20% Recruited athletes
5% Miscellaneous

LOL. Very well done. Took me a minute to recall the name of the "frat" but I will add Psi U to the first group. Epworth was the "I should have gone to Oberlin" crowd. Psi U was just socially awkward, and there are many more of those now. Maybe that also ties into group 3. Recruited athletes is actually closer to 10% so perhaps there is a bit more miscellaneous (I know a few kids there now who are miscellaneous and they do have friends who are similar).

Back in the 90s there were many more miscellaneous. The SAE/Kappa crowd might have actually been a bit smaller but there were more chill frats/sororities/selective houses (DG, AOPi, Sigma Chi, KA, CC, Wayne Manor, Mirecourt).

Good points. I agree!

Personally, I thought of Epworth more as the “Didn’t get into Brown” cohort.

(All joking aside, I knew a few people who lived in Epworth and they were awesome. Interesting and authentic. Not performative for its own sake.)

There were some very odd ducks in Epworth. And that building was weird. Is it still standing?

The building had gorgeous bones (!) but definitely was in disrepair. Not sure if it’s still around. Maybe check Google Maps?