@warblersrule: “This wasn’t my experience at all, perhaps largely because Duke has changed quite a bit over recent decades.”
Naturally, everyone’s experience will be different, and I would agree that Duke has restructured its social life in significant ways over the years. When I was there, East Campus was basically independents, while the West Campus quad (i.e., what most people think of as “Duke” proper) was reserved for Greek houses. That structural dichotomy in living arrangements tended to exacerbate the element of alienation among some students that I referred to.
Of course, I was able to find good friends at Duke, but these were overwhelmingly drawn from the East Campus residential crowd, and they tended therefore to reflect a somewhat “alternative” perspective on Duke.
I’ll stand by my comment about the lack of intellectual atmosphere at Duke during my time there. Indeed, I found the atmosphere somewhat anti-intellectual (especially among the pre-finance frat set that dominated campus life). Perhaps I was simply unfortunate in terms of the other students whom I chanced to meet. Still, from what I’ve been able to suss out about the state of Duke’s culture today, I would recommend the school primarily to applicants who possess a strong sense of self and purpose, and who already have a fairly clearly defined vocational trajectory in mind. As a launching pad for professional success, Duke is an appealing target.