<p>Three abbreviated points follow, at least one of which is quite relevant and, as yet, is unmentioned in this important thread:</p>
<p>1) Most critically, Duke offers debt deferral and FORGIVENESS, aimed at graduates who enter public service (and certain other fields) with comparatively low compensation. I believe this is a SUPERB program, it strongly encourages alumni to use their talent and education in service to society, while it reduces/eliminates one of the most substantial constraints that might otherwise preclude service-oriented careers.</p>
<p>2) For am and Mnomno: An excellent undergraduate engineering education not only provides key entry level skills; certainly more important, it also creates a rigorous, disciplined and quantitative approach to analysis and problem solving that has great applicability – and proven success – in management, the law, consulting, finance and MANY other highly desirable fields. Mnomno, your daughter will do well to zealously stick with her plan, which hopefully will be highly rewarding and challenging, both at Duke and thereafter.</p>
<p>3) wherezwallace: Your latest post to this thread suggests that the debt free UVa or UNC-CH alumni will accumulate wealth more rapidly than their Duke counterparts with some undergraduate debt. I challenge that assertion for two reasons. First – financially – Duke alumni generally are paid significantly more than their Chapel Hill and Charlottesville counterparts. While this is true throughout many careers, it is particularly so in more senior and responsible positions (in fact, I have read a lot of NCSU initiated statements – I cannot validate these – that indicate that the average N C State alum is more highly compensated than the average UNC-CH graduate). Therefore, I am not at all certain that your claim is valid. Second – non-financially – wealth is important; however, happiness, satisfaction, challenges, non-fiscal rewards, and so forth are far more about non-financial matters than about money alone. I recognize that the crux of this thread focuses on undergraduate costs and return on those investments, but it would be extremely foolish to make a decision of this MAJOR, lifelong consequence based solely of money.</p>