Duke University Top Questions

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Because there is such a wide range of activities and groups on campus, it is difficult to say which are the most popular. However the athletic programs and arts organizations on campus are extremely popular. Many students, both male and female, participate in club sports such as soccer and lacrosse which are organized more closely to varsity sports. However if a student wishes to have a less intensive sport involvement, there are also intramural teams that students organize together and play for fun. Although Duke is more widely known for its athletics, (namely the men’s basketball team) the arts organizations at Duke are prominent and strong. There is a wide range of cultural dance groups— outside of the Duke Dance Department— that have a large presence on campus. I am a member / leader of Duke’s premier multicultural dance group called Defining Movement. The group was founded on the pillars of multiculturalism and service, and promotes acceptance, unity, and diversity through art. Furthermore, the theater program at Duke is rather extensive. Students can watch their peers in various theater productions almost all year round. The two most sold-out performances on campus ever year, and my personal favorites, are Awaaz (the South Indian Diwali Dance Festival) and the acapella groups’ spring showcases. The social scene at Duke is very diverse and always fun! A student can decide to rush a Greek sorority/ fraternity, join a Selective Living Group, or remain unaffiliated. All rush processes occur in the spring which lets students first form friendships independent of their affiliations and then make more and new friends in the spring. Although the Greek community is large, it does not dominate all aspects of social life like it does at other universities. Like most college campuses, many social events and popular weekend activities include drinking, but Duke provides students with many fun and sober events every weekend through the Devils After Dark program. Everyone's favorites are the Disney sing-a-longs they put on about once a month.

Because there is such a wide range of activities and groups on campus, it is difficult to say which are the most popular. However the athletic programs and arts organizations on campus are extremely popular. Many students, both male and female, participate in club sports such as soccer and lacrosse which are organized more closely to varsity sports. However if a student wishes to have a less intensive sport involvement, there are also intramural teams that students organize together and play for fun. Although Duke is more widely known for its athletics, (namely the men’s basketball team) the arts organizations at Duke are prominent and strong. There is a wide range of cultural dance groups— outside of the Duke Dance Department— that have a large presence on campus. I am a member / leader of Duke’s premier multicultural dance group called Defining Movement. The group was founded on the pillars of multiculturalism and service, and promotes acceptance, unity, and diversity through art. Furthermore, the theater program at Duke is rather extensive. Students can watch their peers in various theater productions almost all year round. The two most sold-out performances on campus ever year, and my personal favorites, are Awaaz (the South Indian Diwali Dance Festival) and the acapella groups’ spring showcases. The social scene at Duke is very diverse and always fun! A student can decide to rush a Greek sorority/ fraternity, join a Selective Living Group, or remain unaffiliated. All rush processes occur in the spring which lets students first form friendships independent of their affiliations and then make more and new friends in the spring. Although the Greek community is large, it does not dominate all aspects of social life like it does at other universities. Like most college campuses, many social events and popular weekend activities include drinking, but Duke provides students with many fun and sober events every weekend through the Devils After Dark program. Everyone's favorites are the Disney sing-a-longs they put on about once a month.

Duke students engage in a lot of different activities. Durham is one of the "foodiest" cities in America, so going out to eat is AWESOME. Additionally, the nightlife in Durham is pretty fun. Some students don't like it (it takes a sense of humor to like some of the establishments because they are just so ridiculous, such as Shooters II, which has a mechanical bull and a giant statue of a horse in the middle of the dance floor), but it is easy to find a place to just hang out and chill on campus on a weekend as well. Speakers come, and DUU and other campus organizations put on really fun events, such as concerts, water balloon fights, bouncy castles, etc. There are also a multitude of sports events to go to, and there is no experience quite like being a Cameron Crazie. As far as romance, Duke could be improved - there is certainly a lack of a dating culture at Duke. Students start to settle down sophomore and junior year, but actually going on dates is rare, as are relationships freshman year. Some Duke students go through their entire college experience without having a significant other, whether by choice or no. There is a hookup culture, especially within the Greek scene. Fraternities and sororities are as important as you make them in your life. However, this may change with the new housing model that Duke is implementing. The Duke student body is open to friends and new people, though as the years go on it gets harder to meet new people. Overall, the students enjoy the social scene, and there is never really a lack of things to do.

The closest friends I have made in college, I made my freshman year. While I constantly meet new people, the people I spend the most time with are the friends I made as a freshman. I participated in a pre-orientaiton backpacking trip, Project WILD, the summer before I went to Duke. This gave me the opportunity to form relationships with my classmates before I even set foot on campus. I loved the program because it helped to dispel the anxiety I experienced about leaving home and being the only student from my high school going to my university. My first semester at Duke, I also participated in a Freshman FOCUS program. This grouped a set of classes together with the theme of cognitive science, geopolitics and collective memory. The students in my FOCUS classes lived in the same residence hall and once a week, we had a seminar over dinner with out professors. We grew close over the classwork, the study groups we formed and the dinners we had together, made easier by the fact that we all lived together. Duke is the perfect size where you can walk through campus and you will without a doubt run into someone you know. But you will rarely run into the same person twice. I have participated in a range of activities during my time at Duke from photographing for the student newspaper, The Chronicle, to traveling to Medellin, Colombia through DukeEngage. The friends I have made are just as eclectic as the activities I have tried. There are two events, however, in which the entire student body participates: Duke Basketball and LDOC (the Last Day of Classes celebration). Duke Basketball is pretty self explanatory: we tent, we paint ourselves, we yell and we win. LDOC is a day of celebration culminating in a free concert on the main quad where artists like Ludacris and Ben Folds perform for the student body. Both are universally attended and essential to the Duke social experience.

There are many, many student groups on campus. Just about anything that you can think of. The most popular are intramural sports (really casual and easy to get involved in), student government, and various others. I'm in a group called Duke Engineers for International Development (DEID), which is essentially Engineers without Borders without the official charter from their organization. Last year, I was involved with the El Salvador project. During the year, we worked on bridge designs and fundraising for our project. Then, over the summer, a group of ten of us (from all engineering disciplines) traveled to El Salvador and stayed for eight weeks. We worked with an NGO from the US called Bridges to Prosperity, and built two suspended footbridges in neighboring communities. Then we rehabilitated a vehicular bridge. We also go to interact a lot with the communities, which included playing soccer with schoolchildren. It was definitely the best experience of my life, and before Duke, I never thought it was possible that I could get involved in something like this. It was my first time out of the country. I'm still involved with DEID this year too. I'm fundraising chair for the El Salvador project, but I'm also involved with the Bolivia project. I'll travel to Bolivia the first three weeks of Summer 2012 to build another footbridge with 7 other Duke students (we're working with Bridges to Prosperity on this project too). These types of projects might sound boring to non-engineers, but rest-assured that there are plenty of other projects for non-engineers too! Every week, we get emails of all of the different events going on during the week and on the weekend. There are a variety of events--musical, theater, entertainment. My favorite is the weekly movies they show. Duke will show movies that haven't yet been released on DVD but are out of normal theaters, and students get in for free. Aside form these events, Duke students are also huge athletic fans. Even though our football team isn't great, students still enjoy the games. Basketball season is huge too (as I'm sure most people know!) Cameron Crazies are the best fans in the world (I am slightly biased.) I met most of my close friends last year in my dorm. I'm also friends with people I've met from classes though. It's really easy to meet new people at Duke, which I love. As for dating, the scene at Duke isn't huge, but it's definitely apparent. Last year, as a freshman, I didn't notice it too much. Freshman live on a separate campus than upperclassmen, so it was rare to see couples then. It must have been because people were still getting to know each other because this year I have seen a lot more couples. Some students are too busy to date I think, but there are definitely people who make the time for relationships. On a Tuesday at 2 AM, I'm up studying. Students work hard during the week so they can enjoy a little time off on a Friday or Saturday night (and Thursdays for many students too). People, whether or not they are in a frat/sorority, like to go out and have a good time. I will usually go out to dinner with some friends and catch a movie on the weekend. I'm not a big partier, but I still have a social life. You don't have to party to make friends, but if you do party, you will definitely have a good time here. I don't go off campus too often even though I have my car. There is always a lot to do on campus, so I never feel like I need to leave! One of Duke's big annual events is LDOC--Last Day of Classes. We get a few very popular musical artists to come perform. Past performances were from Ludacris, Mike Posner, and Kanye West. Students enjoy a day of fun before having to study for finals. There are many other exciting events throughout the year though too!

They are the Scottie Pippen to the West Campus Courts' Michael Jordan, but hey, Scottie was a hell of a player too. Few people utilize these courts, but they stay lit to the wee hours of the night, and can sometimes be found housing some less-than legal activities by freshmen.

The Intramural Sports building has seen more vicious battles on the court than the more famous Cameron Indoor Stadium. While unassuming, the memories that fill this stadium make it special to many.

Definitely pledge. If you don't you miss out on pretty much everything. Lots of shagging, not many couples.