Duke: the complete school report for parents
Duke rates 6 of the 18 admission factors Very Important, among them course rigor, GPA and extracurricular activities. This is a genuinely holistic review. Duke admits fewer than 1 in 10 applicants, and scores are optional but help when they are strong. Transfer applicants are admitted at 8.7% against 5.2% for first-years, so the transfer route is materially wider.
Duke is officially Duke University. Admissions figures below come from its 2025-2026 Common Data Set (see the source), with the admission-factor grid re-read from that file on 2026-10-21.
Is Duke a reach, target or safety for your student?
Enter a GPA and course load and the calculator places Duke against the figures above. No account needed.
What does Duke actually weigh in admissions?
Duke rates 6 of the 18 factors "Very Important": course rigor, GPA, extracurricular activities, recommendations, personal qualities, talent. It does not consider 1 of them at all. Every college reports these weights in section C7 of its Common Data Set; below is Duke's 2025-2026 answer, read from the grid in its own file.
| Factor | How Duke rates it |
|---|---|
| course rigor | Very Important |
| GPA | Very Important |
| test scores | Considered |
| the essay | Important |
| extracurricular activities | Very Important |
| recommendations | Very Important |
| personal qualities | Very Important |
| talent | Very Important |
| class rank | Important |
| demonstrated interest | Considered |
| the interview | Considered |
| legacy | Considered |
| first-generation status | Considered |
| geography | Considered |
| state residency | Considered |
| volunteer work | Considered |
| work experience | Considered |
| religious affiliation | Not Considered |
Does Duke consider how hard my child’s courses were?
Yes. It is one of the most important factors. The senior-year schedule should keep its AP, IB or honors depth rather than lighten.
Does Duke consider GPA?
Yes. It is one of the most important factors.
Does Duke consider SAT or ACT scores?
Yes, but only as a secondary factor.
Does Duke consider the application essay?
Yes. It is an important factor.
Does Duke consider extracurricular activities?
Yes. It is one of the most important factors.
Does Duke consider recommendation letters?
Yes. It is one of the most important factors.
Does Duke consider character and personal qualities?
Yes. It is one of the most important factors.
Does Duke consider a special talent or ability?
Yes. It is one of the most important factors.
Does Duke consider class rank?
Yes. It is an important factor.
Does Duke consider demonstrated interest?
Yes, but only as a secondary factor.
Does Duke consider an interview?
Yes, but only as a secondary factor.
Does Duke consider legacy status?
Yes, but only as a secondary factor. It can act as a tiebreaker but will not carry a weak application.
Does Duke consider being first-generation?
Yes, but only as a secondary factor. Say so on the application; it is read as context.
Does Duke consider where we live?
Yes, but only as a secondary factor.
Does Duke consider state residency?
Yes, but only as a secondary factor.
Does Duke consider volunteer work?
Yes, but only as a secondary factor.
Does Duke consider work experience?
Yes, but only as a secondary factor.
Does Duke consider religious affiliation?
No. Duke does not consider it.
Is transferring in easier than applying as a freshman?
Duke admitted 8.7% of 1,812 transfer applicants, against 5.2% of first-year applicants. For a student who does not get in at eighteen, the transfer route is a genuinely wider door and worth planning for deliberately.
When do we apply, and does timing change the odds?
Duke reports its early rounds below.
| Regular application deadline | January 2 |
|---|---|
| Decisions released | April 1 |
| Reply / deposit deadline | May 1 |
| Early Decision offered | Yes |
| Early Decision deadline | November 1 |
| Early Action offered | No |
| Application fee | $85 |
| Fee waiver available | Yes |
| Deferred admission offered | Yes |
What will Duke actually cost us?
Families pay an average of $29,612 a year at Duke after grants and scholarships, against a published in-state tuition of $73,740. The published price is not what most families pay. The university reports meeting 100% of demonstrated need on average. It also gave 9 merit awards averaging $91,953 to first-years with no demonstrated need.
23% of Duke graduates borrow, leaving with an average of $26,395 in debt, which the federal data puts at about $138 a month in repayment. Duke’s net price calculator gives your own figure.
Does a degree from Duke pay off?
Graduates earn a median $97,800 ten years after entering, and $85,792 at six years. 92% out-earn a typical high school graduate within six years. 89% are actively paying down their loans three years in.
$201,846 to $62,485, depending on the major. Median earnings five years out at Duke:
| Major | Median earnings, 5 years | Graduates a year |
|---|---|---|
| Computer Science | $201,846 | 370 |
| Computer Engineering | $174,619 | 134 |
| Economics | $171,986 | 209 |
| Mathematics | $131,658 | 53 |
| Mechanical Engineering | $125,085 | 79 |
| Statistics | $121,776 | 48 |
| Biomedical/Medical Engineering | $115,268 | 67 |
| Public Policy Analysis | $113,034 | 181 |
| Political Science and Government | $101,627 | 91 |
| Biology, General | $70,605 | 160 |
| International and Comparative Education | $66,024 | 32 |
| Anthropology | $62,485 | 21 |
College Scorecard, by field of study; highest and lowest shown.
Will my child actually graduate?
97% of first-years return for a second year. 85% graduate within four years and 96% within six (2019 cohort). The rate holds up across income: 91.1% of Pell-grant recipients graduate within six years against 96.5% of everyone else, a gap of 5.4 points.
How big are the classes?
71% of class sections have fewer than 20 students, while 3% have 100 or more. The student-faculty ratio is 5:1, and 94% of faculty are full-time. Accredited by Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.
What is life at Duke like?
6,525 undergraduates, 84% of first-years from out of state. 100% of freshmen live in university housing, falling to 85% across all undergraduates. Greek life is small: 30% of men join a fraternity and 42% of women a sorority. 13% of students are the first in their family to attend college, and the median family income is $78,468.
Duke guarantees housing to all full-time undergraduates for four years, and all students are required, to the extent housing is available, to live on campus for their first three years. Seniors are guaranteed the opportunity to live on campus, though the university may temporarily suspend the senior guarantee during construction and renovation. First-year students live in a residential community designed exclusively for them.
Source: Housing Assignments, Duke Housing and Residence Life; First-Year Housing, Duke Housing and Residence Life
Duke competes in 27 NCAA Division I varsity sports as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). The teams are the Blue Devils, who have won 17 NCAA team national championships.
Source: Duke Facts; School Spirit and Community, Duke Admissions
54% of Duke undergraduates study away, choosing from more than 35 Duke-administered programs and more than 120 Duke-approved programs.
Source: Duke Undergraduate Admissions; Duke Global Education
Duke says more than half of its undergraduates have a mentored research experience before they graduate, and its Undergraduate Research Support Office funds assistantships, conference travel and independent-study supplies. In the Career Center's Class of 2025 senior outcomes report, 96% of graduates were employed, in graduate school, or in military or volunteer service six months out (knowledge rate 90.2%): 74% employed full-time and 21% continuing their education.
Source: Frequently Asked Questions, Duke Undergraduate Research Support; Academic Support, Duke Undergraduate Admissions; 2025 Senior Outcomes, Duke Career Center
How is Duke ranked, and how strong is the alumni network?
Duke is ranked #8 for national universities in the U.S. News Best Colleges 2027. Its full set of published positions, including the ones that are less flattering:
| Ranking | Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. News Best Colleges 2027, national universities | #8 |
| Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2027 | #32 |
Shown in full, including the less flattering ones.
Source: U.S. News Best Colleges Ranking 2027: MIT ends Princeton's long run at the top (Poets&Quants for Undergrads); U.S. News & World Report posts 2027 college rankings (College Kickstart); Duke University, Times Higher Education World University Rankings
Duke's alumni directory holds searchable profiles of more than 190,000 alumni, and Duke Alumni supports more than 60 regional groups worldwide alongside affinity groups.
Source: Alumni, Duke Student Affairs; Regional and Affinity Groups, Duke Alumni
What this means for your student
- Course rigor is rated Very Important here, so the senior-year schedule should hold its AP, IB or honors depth rather than lighten.
- If the first-year answer is no, the transfer route is genuinely wider here and worth planning for from the first semester of college.
- Its highest-earning major returns $201,846 five years out against $62,485 at the other end, a gap wider than the one between most schools.
- See where your student actually stands: calculate their GPA and compare it against the distribution above.
Common questions about Duke
What do Duke graduates earn?
Duke graduates earn a median $97,800 ten years after entering, and 92% out-earn a typical high school graduate within six years.
Other schools families compare with Duke
Where these numbers come from
Admissions figures: Duke’s 2025-2026 Common Data Set, published here, factor grid re-read from it on 2026-10-21. Earnings, debt, net price and graduation rates: College Scorecard (2022-2023). Unreported values show as “Not reported”.