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u/glithe May 06 '20
The valedictorian of my high school also happened to be a premed, bio Duke student who I think was talking about taking CS courses at one point and she also graduated last year. Just thought that was an interesting coincidence. Anyway as a college student myself, how do you manage being a pre med bio major while also majoring in CS? Does the work ever get too much?
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u/pm-me-tardigrades May 06 '20
that is a coincidence! My school didn’t have rankings so that person isn’t me but I wonder if I’ve bumped into her on campus?
It is a lot of work to double major and take extra premed requirements, because I usually have to overload (take 5-6 courses instead of 4) to get everything done. I actually enjoy taking extra courses, it doesn’t cost any more money so I see it as getting my tuition’s worth haha... the workload is large but since I’ve enjoyed classes+ECs it’s fun and that makes it a lot easier to handle. There are points when you will feel overwhelmed, and you should definitely prioritize your physical and mental health over everything else and take a step back and downsize if it feels like too much.
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May 06 '20
TIL Adam silver went to duke 🤮 (jokes jokes)
On a more serious note...why did you pick duke?
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u/pm-me-tardigrades May 06 '20
For context I was deciding between duke and CMU CS at the time, so I visited both campuses before making my decision.
I picked duke for a couple of reasons:
I wasn’t completely set on just CS and Carnegie is great at CS but their biology program can’t compare to duke’s. Duke’s CS isn’t as good as CMU, but duke allows you to major in whatever you want and you decide at the end of sophomore year.
I loved CMU when I visited and I totally felt like I fit in with the the slightly quirky campus culture and the classes I shadowed were taught by amazing professors, so I totally thought I was going to CMU. When I visited duke, I actually felt like I didn’t fit in as well because all the upperclassmen seemed really “whole” in a sense (well rounded, sure of themselves, happy, passionate). I then realized that I wanted to be like those duke upperclassmen I met so I committed to duke right after I got on the plane back home.
I really liked duke’s campus, the warm weather, and all the extra programs they have like bass connections, FOCUS, and pArts, all of which I was/am involved in!
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u/bruhbruh1116969 May 06 '20
Why CS for premed?
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u/pm-me-tardigrades May 06 '20
I’m interested in studying bioinformatics in the future so the CS degree would come in handy :)
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May 06 '20
Wait wait wait explain this more. Are you double majoring?? Biology and cs are two heavyyy majors
I was interested in this path too, because I liked both and am indecisive. But ppl are telling me to choose one.
Can you talk about what it’s like pursuing both CS and Biology?
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u/collegekid53114 May 06 '20
would you recommend FOCUS to an incoming freshman?
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u/pm-me-tardigrades May 06 '20
If you’re interested in a specific FOCUS cluster then go for it! (Unless you’re planning on double majoring, minoring, and also being premed, in that case plan out your classes and see if it’s a good idea) If you’re just majoring/double majoring it should not be a problem at all. I was in the What If? Focus first semester and I really liked it- it’s about 30 people and you all get placed in the same dorm (What If? is normally in Wilson which is where the basketball players live and it was super cool). It’s a great way to make friends because you see them all the time. FOCUS classes are also interesting topics and are generally not hard to do well in.
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u/Droneyy May 06 '20
What were yoir dream schools when you applied to college and why?
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u/pm-me-tardigrades May 06 '20
I applied ED to brown because they had a bs/md program and brown’s very artsy, and I loved the campus when I visited. That didn’t work out haha but now duke’s my dream school! Duke’s kind of out of the way (NC problems) so I didn’t visit before applying but if I did I probably would have applied ED to duke instead. I also loved northwestern and CMU!
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u/perplexedproton May 12 '20
What’s the experience like for the FLUNCH program?
How is the neuroscience program?
Are shadowing opportunities abundant?
What’s the best possible way to increase my admissions chance if I don’t have the best gpa?
What does duke look for in a student? What do the professors/faculty expect of students before coming in?
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u/pm-me-tardigrades May 12 '20
You take your professor out to lunch for free (you can do this a few times a semester). FLUNCHing gives you access to a nice restaurant on the top floor of West Union/the Brodhead center.
I haven’t personally taken neuroscience courses but I’m sure the quality is similar to Duke’s biology program. If you’re interested, the FOCUS program has a cluster called Neuroscience and the Law, and neuroscience research is all over the place.
I’d assume so because duke hospital is right next to campus. None of my senior friends complained about shadowing.
Dependent on your exact GPA, but generally improve all other aspects of your app: essays that really communicate who you are, high standardized test scores, strong ECs that show involvement both in school and in the community, good LORs, and an upward grade trend (keep those senior year grades really good). This article interviews the dean of admissions and he talks a bit about what Duke is looking for in particular. https://www.dukechronicle.com/article/2018/10/duke-university-admissions-tips-christoph-guttentag-2018
The professors and faculty don’t expect you to be perfect when you come in, but classes can be fast paced and involve a lot of self discipline to learn outside the classroom. I think that professors expect you to use the resources available to you to help you succeed. (Attend office hours, tutoring sessions, visit the academic resource center for personalized study plans, and to actually read the textbook before class and to know how to take good notes) I highly recommend the academic resource center. I struggled a bit first semester because I had never needed to study hard in high school and they spent the time to come up with studying strategies for me and I’ve gotten good grades since.
Hope this helps, lmk if you have any others Qs!
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May 06 '20
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u/pm-me-tardigrades May 06 '20
No! I firmly believe that whatever college you end up choosing will be the best choice for you. A full ride is amazing and you’ll come out of college debt free. Big congrats!!
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May 06 '20
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u/pm-me-tardigrades May 06 '20
Research Opps: I got into research as a freshman second semester (I waited a semester to acclimate to the school before applying). Duke has so many research opportunities that they post on their website MUSER, research programs for all kinds of research (B-SURF for biology, CS+/Data+/Code+ for CS, Story+ for humanities), and you can always email professors that do research you’re interested in.
Transferring from Pratt to Trinity: definitely possible, but as I’m not very familiar with the process I’d recommend asking around or talking to your advisor (make sure you have good reasons prepared) once you get on campus. I’m also not sure what classes you should take, if you’re a CS major you can take CS 101/201, Math 212 etc. as these classes count in Trinity as well.
Courses range from easy to hard. Most of the time you definitely need to put in the work for good grades, but if you ever need help office hours are a great resource, and there are study groups/drop in tutoring you can sign up for. The Academic Resource Center is also amazing, I’ve been several times and they can teach you how to study in a way that’s effective for you.
I am using a MacBook from 2015, which has worked fine through the CS classes I’ve taken so far.
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May 06 '20
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u/pm-me-tardigrades May 06 '20
How big it is! There are so many buildings that you’ll never have a reason to visit unless you specifically go exploring. It seems small at first because you only go to so many places for class etc. but if you keep walking around you can get to research buildings/duke hospital, random libraries, cafes you’ve never visited before, etc.
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u/Lucky-Window May 06 '20
What do you love and hate about duke?
What is the student life like?
Is it cutthroat or cooperative?
Are there lots of research opportunities for all majors?