Durham, NC
Allopathic Medical Schools | Private Non-Profit
Overall, students rated the program a 7.6 out of 10 for satisfaction. The student body is described as highly cooperative. The environment is considered supportive for underrepresented minorities, LGBTQ+ students, married students, students with disabilities, non-traditional students. Faculty members are seen as highly approachable.
🎓 The Basics ▼
Overall, how satisfied are you with this program?
What was the zip code of your residence in high school?
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 63,099.40 | 5 |
What do you like most?
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THE GOOD: Duke is unique among medical schools in that they compress all the classroom learning into one year, which opens up a year for independent research. I cannot overemphasize the value of the research year. Duke students apply to residency programs with multiple publications under their belts, which is a big advantage. As medicine becomes more data-driven and research-driven, doctors with research experience- the kind you receive at Duke- will rise to the top. Other perks include the pass/fail grading system during first year. My first year at Duke was far less stressful than college, largely because there’s no grade pressure. Durham is also a very affordable place to live. Compared to a medical student in Boston, New York, or San Francisco, you will save tens-of-thousands in living expenses.
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Phenomenal clinical training, great supportive culture, and really close-knit student community. Smaller class sizes are a huge plus, and ability to do one year of research/dual degree makes us really competitive for residencies. Most people graduate with multiple publications, step 1 >>240, and get their first choice in residency.
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- Done with pre-clinical courses in one year, and these courses are graded pass fail without internal ranking. Our Step 1 average is in the 250s -- you don't need a full two years of pre-clinicals to do well on Step 1. Being done with clinicals a year earlier means more time to ruminate on specialty choice after having had real-world exposure, this is HUGE. Because of the unique third year, I'm able to participate in a very prestigious research fellowship that will do wonders for my residency applications -- that's something that I would have to take a 5th year anywhere else to do. I'd say our clinical grading is very fair and we are evaluated with the fact that we are 2nd year medical students during our rotations in mind. There's no medical school in the country that will allow you to customize your education to the degree that you can here. Also, the financial aid is fantastic and the sense of community is real.
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The incredible supportive environment, the lack of inter/intraclass competition, the REAL collaboration between laboratories, and honestly the amazingly livable Durham, NC location.
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Curriculum & Environment
What do you like least?
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THE BAD: Compressing the classroom curriculum into one year comes with a cost: Duke students don’t have as deep an understanding of normal anatomy and physiology as students at other schools. This lack of knowledge is obvious at the beginning of clinical year, but we ultimately close the gap and perform just as well on Step 1 as other medical schools. THE UGLY: Duke’s student culture is very alienating if you don’t fit the mold. During the interview process and second look, the school administration enthusiastically promotes left-wing ‘social justice’ ideologies, which creates a selection bias: militant social justice warriors flock to Duke, whereas people who reject those ideologies shy away from Duke. Thus, Duke ends up with a homogeneous super-majority who all believe the same far-left ideologies and constantly validate each other’s beliefs. It’s gotten to the point where students feel comfortable airing sweeping prejudices against large groups of people who are perceived as “illiberal”. White people from rural areas are “white inbred hicks” to quote a colleague. ‘Evangelical’ Christians and political conservatives are Nazis, brain-dead idiots, or “wastes of life”. Moderate and apolitical students are seen as untrustworthy or even “complicit in evil” because they won’t take a side. And the administration reinforces this culture. Everything they teach comes through a lens of race and gender, as if these were the only factors responsible for alleged disparities and hardships, as if human diversity is simply a product of race and gender. I attended a very liberal school as an undergrad, but it’s no comparison to Duke Med. Liberal-secular politics consumes the culture and curriculum at Duke- there’s no escaping it and certainly no questioning of it. If you’re a dedicated progressive, you’ll probably love the culture and think it’s a tight-knit community of enlightened 'free-thinkers'. If you don’t fall into that group, you may find the culture downright toxic.
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Nothing really, coming here was best decision in my life
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The move towards a team-based learning curriculum.
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I honestly think it is the best medical school in the country, so nothing.
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LOL nothing.
🧾 The Details ▼
Does the student body seem cooperative or competitive?
Does the environment seem supportive for underrepresented minorities?
Does the environment seem supportive for lesbian/gay/bisexual/transsexual students?
Does the environment seem supportive for married students?
Does the environment seem supportive for students with disabilities?
Does the environment seem supportive for older/non-traditional students?
Do you/did you feel well prepared for your board exams?
No responses
How approachable are faculty members?
What are the facilities and clinics like (old/new, well maintained, etc.)?
No responses
How do students from this program do after graduation - are they adequately prepared for practice?
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Most students get their first pick for residency training, go into extremely competitive fields and best programs. National and international leaders in the field
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Duke has some of the very highest intern performance scores. We produce good clinicians who go on to great careers.
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dope
What are rotations like?
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8
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10
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1
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7
How do students from this program do in the Match?
No responses
Any other information you want to share?
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Durham gets a bad rep, but think about cost of living -- particularly if you will be taking out loans to go to school. $15,000 a year gets you a much higher quality of life here than in NYC.
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Duke is a school still on the upward climb. It isn't simply resting on its laurels, though via academic analytics, it definitely could be. Its vibrant clinically and intellectually and I can't think of a better place to train.
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RELAXED.
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