Looking for info about Wake Forest and Duke social climates

[Anonymous]

I am old (35) but way way back in the day I chose Davidson over Duke and UofC. Chicago was actually my first choice &
I got in but parents talked me out of it, too far, cold & expensive. Duke was (IMO ONLY!) full of assholes from New Jersey. Davidson is so, so small but unbelievably friendly & nurturing. I learned how to be a relatively sophisticated person with a love of learning... Not just focused on money or status. Husband went to wake forest, he was / is a super geeky sort but he had a very tight circle of friends and loved it.

[Anonymous]

PP here. Neither of us are the conventional frat / sorority type, either. In fact I was a lower middle class kid from the redneck backwater of Jacksonville, FL and I STILL loved Davidson.

[Anonymous]

OP again. I love the idea of Davidson and hope he will visit. Also thinking of adding Elon as a safety, so appreciate thoughts about social life there too! Thanks so much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op drop the distance thing and find the right school. He will have to grow up and do things on his own. If he does not want frats, look over sea in the UK.

You don't need to go to the UK to avoid frats and sororities. More and more people realize how dumb the Greek system is. There are plenty of colleges and universities in the US where they do not dominate the social scene.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op drop the distance thing and find the right school. He will have to grow up and do things on his own. If he does not want frats, look over sea in the UK.

This is a ridiculous comment. The vast majority of college students go to a college that is close to home. Yet most all of them grow up and do things on their own.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
wow, what's the rap against Davidson? What a strange comment.


Not PP, but I don't think so. The culture is different at Davidson (or Duke, or Wake Forest, or Vanderbilt) than at Chicago. It doesn't mean the kids at Davidson aren't smart, and that it isn't a great school. Just totally different vibe than Chicago socially.


I've known several boys who went to undergrad at Chicago. Smart but very weird, all had long hair and did lots of drugs. Definitely for kids marching to a different drummer.


I've also heard a lot of stories about drugs at Chicago.

Yes anything that is not in the south is bad. I see your point b/c southern frat schools never do drugs.

Alcohol is a drug, of course, but Chicago gets a lot of kids into stuff like LSD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I toured Davidson and chose Duke (Don't hold my bad grammar against the place; I'm not feeling well today). This was a while ago, but Davidson seemed like a very nurturing place. The people I met there seemed kind, and they seemed to understand that the students were still kids and needed a bit of guidance. It seemed like one big family. If I remember correctly, they said that if you leave your purse anywhere on campus, it will still be there when you come back for it. I didn't find Duke to be a kind place. For example, people were purposefully mean to other people to try and gain social standing. Maybe that's a NYC thing or something, but it wasn't really my speed. I ended up finding some good friends, but I don't have it on the short list for my kids.

I went to Duke too and I'm happy that someone else feels this way. I wouldn't send my kids there, particularly my daughter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
wow, what's the rap against Davidson? What a strange comment.


Not PP, but I don't think so. The culture is different at Davidson (or Duke, or Wake Forest, or Vanderbilt) than at Chicago. It doesn't mean the kids at Davidson aren't smart, and that it isn't a great school. Just totally different vibe than Chicago socially.


I've known several boys who went to undergrad at Chicago. Smart but very weird, all had long hair and did lots of drugs. Definitely for kids marching to a different drummer.


I've also heard a lot of stories about drugs at Chicago.

Yes anything that is not in the south is bad. I see your point b/c southern frat schools never do drugs.

Alcohol is a drug, of course, but Chicago gets a lot of kids into stuff like LSD.

.
In 1978.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I toured Davidson and chose Duke (Don't hold my bad grammar against the place; I'm not feeling well today). This was a while ago, but Davidson seemed like a very nurturing place. The people I met there seemed kind, and they seemed to understand that the students were still kids and needed a bit of guidance. It seemed like one big family. If I remember correctly, they said that if you leave your purse anywhere on campus, it will still be there when you come back for it. I didn't find Duke to be a kind place. For example, people were purposefully mean to other people to try and gain social standing. Maybe that's a NYC thing or something, but it wasn't really my speed. I ended up finding some good friends, but I don't have it on the short list for my kids.

I went to Duke too and I'm happy that someone else feels this way. I wouldn't send my kids there, particularly my daughter.

I would not send my daughter there either. Too much anti-intellectual lax bro culture.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I toured Davidson and chose Duke (Don't hold my bad grammar against the place; I'm not feeling well today). This was a while ago, but Davidson seemed like a very nurturing place. The people I met there seemed kind, and they seemed to understand that the students were still kids and needed a bit of guidance. It seemed like one big family. If I remember correctly, they said that if you leave your purse anywhere on campus, it will still be there when you come back for it. I didn't find Duke to be a kind place. For example, people were purposefully mean to other people to try and gain social standing. Maybe that's a NYC thing or something, but it wasn't really my speed. I ended up finding some good friends, but I don't have it on the short list for my kids.

I went to Duke too and I'm happy that someone else feels this way. I wouldn't send my kids there, particularly my daughter.

I would not send my daughter there either. Too much anti-intellectual lax bro culture.

So, who in your family didn't get in?