<p>I live in Virginia (Not Northern VA which is very metropolitan/DC suburbs/diverse)
I think is it funny that anyone would worry about Duke being “too southern.” Duke is much more mannerly, “greet others courteously in passing” than many northern schools, but it is not the most touchy feely “speaking tradition” school in the south by a long shot…plenty of Duke students can be brusque and be citified-urban-in-a-hurry in manner. There are more Carolinians at Duke by charter quota rules…but there aren’t exactly tons of North and South Carolinians. The student body at Duke does NOT represent the local/state culture and is very hard to describe or sum up. And we have an excellent state school just down the road with only 18% out of staters by their NC state charter…so Duke is very very different. Duke is very misunderstood by the public closest to it. It’s high ratings in the Journal for Blacks in Higher Education are not well known to the locals. Yes, there will be a significant sector of very smart people with southern accents and real southern roots but the student body is decidedly national and even international in representation. If you come to Duke, prepare to stretch to get to know students from every corner of the USA.
The faculty is also from all over the world.
I am constantly assaulted in my part of the “real south” with the anti-northern sentiments associated with Duke…ie "how does your son like “The University of New Jersey?” and my favorite…“I wouldn’t want my son to go to Duke…he might marry a Yankee!” Also misunderstood is the level of affluence…a huge number of worthy people at Duke receive financial aide.<br>
Bluedevilmike, I think you would likely take an interest in the local culture no matter where you went to college! But he is right…local people like “stop and chats.” if you want to get to know North Carolina culture, go off campus and strike up conversations with anyone…the pace of life is pretty slow and people love to chat.<br>
Honestly…my son has met simply fantastic kids at Duke, regardless of their economic status before arriving. Most of his classmates are simply very talented at something and he learns a lot from his peers. Last time he called home, he said “70% of what he has learned in college is from his peers,” actually.
I’m gonna say that one way Duke is southern…is the number of weeks you can wear shorts and sandals.</p>