When we talk about premium universities, Duke is one of the best universities out there. Getting into Duke can set your life. Duke University is a private research university situated in Durham, North Carolina. It was founded by Methodists and Quakers in the town we currently know as Trinity in 1838. It was later moved to Durham in 1892. Duke is famous for its competitive admissions, athletics programs, and its academics. It is considered the best university in the south. It is among the top 10 universities in the world according to the ranking of U.S. News and World Report. As we talked about above, Duke is famous for its competitive admissions. Let’s know in detail about the Duke acceptance rate and the admission process.
Duke University’s acceptance rate has continued to decline for 8 years, and it is believed that it will continue to do so.
The 2023 class was the single most challenging and competitive year for admission into duke. For the class of 2023, 41,613 candidates applied for admission out of which only 3064 candidates were selected for admission to Duke University making the acceptance rate for the year 7.4%. 882 candidates were admitted by the early admission process where the total number of applicants for early admission was 4,852 making the acceptance rate for early admission to 18.2%.
For class 2022 the acceptance rate was 8% and the early admission acceptance rate was 21% whereas for the class of 2021 the acceptance rate stood at 9% and the early admission acceptance rate stood at 25%. It shows the declining trend in the acceptance of candidates into Duke Universities.
Profile of Average Accepted Candidate
I) GPA – Meanwhile Duke doesn’t publish the average high school GPA of its accepted candidates. But grades are important if you want to get into Duke, on average 90% of Duke’s class graduate in the top 10% of their class and 95% in the top quarter.
II) SAT/ACT – Average SAT score of an accepted Duke student is between 1480 and 1570, whereas the ACT score stands between 33 and 35.
Duke University Evaluation Process of a Candidate
According to Duke University, 2019-20 common data set, It considers these factors very important
- GPA
- Interview
- Test scores
- Essay
- Recommendation letter
- Extracurriculars
- Talent
- First Generation
- Legacy
- Personality
- Personal qualities
- Volunteer work
- Work experience
- State residency
- Geographic residence
Duke’s Early Decision vs Regular Decision
Duke takes admissions through two programs: early decision program and a regular decision program. In the early decision program candidates who apply and get selected should commit to attending Duke University. Those who don’t get accepted can have their applications denied or deferred. Deferred Applicants will be reconsidered in the regular decision program and then the applicants will have no contractual bounds to attend Duke if they get accepted.
Early Decision program students must submit all their materials by November 1st, and they get notified in the middle of December.
Regular Decision Program students can submit their materials by the first week of January or the 20th of December whichever is comfortable for the alumni interviews. Regular Decision Program students get notified in March or at the beginning of April.
Past Trends of Acceptance Rate from Both Programs
I)Early Decision Program
From the past trends of acceptance through the early decision program we can say that it has greater chances of acceptance. In Class of 2016 25% applicants were accepted and in class of 2017 a whopping 30% similarly in classes 2018,2019,2020,2021 and 2022 it has been 25%,26%,24%,25% and 21% respectively. This data shows that in comparison to regular decision programs the acceptance rate of early decision programs is much higher, but it comes with its own set of rules which have been listed above.
II) Regular Decision Program
Past trends of regular decision programs show a declining acceptance rate. In the class of 2016, the acceptance rate was 12%, and in the class of 2017 the rate was the same as 12%, In 2018 and 2019 it declined to 11%. In classes of 2020 and 2021, it stood at 9%. The toughest classes were in the year 2022 and 2023 where acceptance rates were 8% and 7.4% respectively. By seeing this trend, we can safely assume that the acceptance rate of Duke University will continue to decline in the future.
Conclusion
By far now we can say that it’s not easy to get accepted into Duke University. It’s one of the most competitive universities in the world leaving behind some ivy league universities in the world rankings. One has to be at the top of their class to even think about duke. Duke doesn’t only consider your academics but your race, your culture, overall personality, extracurriculars, legacy and even you’re the generation of your family to attend Duke. The early decision program may attract a lot of individuals to apply because of its high acceptance rate but in this program, you have to commit to attending Duke and that could be a big decision affecting your entire life. According to the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS) Duke’s average cost of attending before aid is $77,069 and after aid is $27,020. Almost 50% of students get need-based aid and almost 62% graduate with zero debt.
FAQs
I)What will be a good GPA for applying to Duke?
For Duke University your GPA should be 4.5 or above because the average GPA at duke is 4.13. That’s why it’s very competitive to get into.
II)Good SAT and ACT scores For Duke?
For your best chance at getting in, you should aim for the 75th percentile with a 1580 SAT or a 35 ACT score, If your GPA is low you have to compensate with higher SAT and ACT scores.
III)Is Duke University Too Costly?
The National average cost of tuition in the U.S. is $41,181 and the tuition cost of Duke University is $60,489, So it is a bit costlier, but almost half of the students get need-based aid and after aid the total cost of attending comes down to $27,020.
