Duke 2013 - What are your prejected majors?

talk_about_ambition · 02-22-2009, 09:09 PM

i think im going for political science. maybe double major in history as well.

what about you guys?

constantly · 03-04-2009, 03:15 AM

Thinking about public policy.

By the way, is it true what I've read that the pre-major advising at Duke is terrible?

SriverFX · 03-04-2009, 01:01 PM

That really depends on who you get by luck of the draw. I had the dean of Duke's Med School Admissions, and she was wonderful. She obviously knew how to manage Pre-Med coursework, EC's, and other stuff very well. The advisors are assigned via dorm, and I was in Giles my freshman year.

constantly · 03-04-2009, 11:31 PM

Right, I assume it would vary by individual... but as a whole, I've heard that you're pretty much left to fend for yourself. Is it a case where most of them suck, and if you're lucky you get a brilliant one? Or are most of them great, with a few rotten ones? Or is it just a pool of so-so with a handful of exceptional advisors?

SriverFX · 03-05-2009, 05:09 PM

Probably the last thing you said in the list. To be honest, if you really know what you want to do, you can find all the stuff online (Duke has a really nice premed page) or get your hands on a bulletin and look at the major/minor/certificate reqs and plan your four years out by yourself.

constantly · 03-06-2009, 09:00 AM

Yeah... the thing is that public policy can really go in tons of different directions, so I'm feeling a little lost trying to figure out which classes to take.

SriverFX · 03-06-2009, 11:28 AM

Oh okay, yeah I see what you're saying. If you end up with a bad advisor, you can definitely shoot the Director of Undergraduate Studies (DUS), and set up an appointment to talk things over.

lloydchristmas · 03-09-2009, 05:47 PM

did you mean shoot the DUS...an email? because i think if you actually shot him, you would have a hard time setting up an appointment to talk things over.

SriverFX · 03-13-2009, 04:21 PM

LOL sorry about that; yeah I meant shoot the DUS an email

SriverFX · 03-13-2009, 04:49 PM

By the way when you're scheduling your four years, a general course load is 4 credits per semester. 99% of Duke classes follow the one class = one credit rule, which is really convenient. You can technically take up to six credits a semester, and you need 34 credits to graduate and can use 2 AP credits to that requirement assuming you don't graduate early.