I have a question: If you could do it all over again, would you still choose Duke?
Sometimes I wonder if I've made the right choice. It's not that Duke is awful or anything, but I often feel like I drag a $160,000 anchor around with me, like I face higher expectations because of all that capital put into my noggin.
And what did that hundred sixty grand buy me that I could not have gotten elsewhere and for much less-for "Good Will Hunting"'s couple of bucks in late fees at the public library?
I receive a pretty swank degree, which should theoretically guarantee me a nice job. Yet as I write this mid-job search, it's becoming pretty clear that whatever the Duke name gets me, my relatively low GPA cancels out.
I'm about in the middle of my class, which is not altogether unrespectable but also not likely to flabbergast future employers. Yet I probably could have been an academic stud at another college, as I was in high school. I feel confident that my GPA would have been a few tenths higher at a less rigorous school, so I figure my career opportunities here versus anywhere else are pretty much a wash.
On top of that, Duke is almost certainly less fun than most public schools. The nightlife isn't as busy, the bar scene is practically nonexistent and about half of the student body does not go out, ever.
And, don't forget, most of the administration is pretty incompetent. Residence Life and Housing Services, Parking and Transportation, even the Career Center all seem to be low on resources and common sense. Until I can staple a document at any ePrint station 100 percent of the time, park and walk to class in under 15 minutes and receive a valuable piece of advice from the Career Center other than "be emotionally prepared to be unemployed upon graduation," I will remain unimpressed.
Of course we do have great athletics-basketball, obviously, but most of our other teams are competitive as well. It's nice to hear about us playing in the national championship of some sport or another, although I've never watched a sporting event besides basketball.
There are two wild cards in all of this whining: the student body and our education.
The constant refrain surrounding our student body is that we are apathetic: politically, morally and intellectually. There is some truth to that claim; as a group we do not rally or demonstrate for many ideals. It is often disconcerting when I feel strongly about something and everyone around me seemingly ignores it.
But a lack of activism is not necessarily a bad thing. Demonstrations require a clear decision of right and wrong. Our recent history points to the damage done by vocal protests based on too little information. Although we may constantly be accused of arrogance by outsiders, I believe our apparent apathy reflects a sort of humility, a recognition that the great majority of issues require an open, inductive approach.
It is easy to forget that Duke is composed of pretty special students. Eventually, we become accustomed to the level of intelligence exhibited at Duke. Heading abroad or back home from Duke can be a bumpy voyage and a startling reminder that the intellectual life outside our campus is very different. But rather than serving as an evil bubble, I think Duke's academic community is essential to our education.
Our education, the second wild card listed above, is difficult to measure. For every truly engaging lecture or discussion I attend, there is another terribly boring one. Our reputation might guarantee good professors, but it does not guarantee that they are good teachers or that they will remain engaged in the intellectual lives of their students when faced with impending grant deadlines.
Instead, the quality of courses seems to wax and wane, depending not only on the professor but also on the commitment of the students. It is in classes that the apathy of my fellow students becomes the most detrimental. When a professor's reasonable question (and not all of them are reasonable) is met with silence, I cannot help feeling disappointed.
Overall, I am ambivalent about the quality of our courses, especially since I can only guess what classes elsewhere might be like.
So the question returns: Was Duke the right choice? I am not prepared to answer that question for you or myself. There are too many uncertainties and unknowns. All I know is that, once you decide to come here, you must work your very hardest to make your time here the best it can possibly be.
Because $160,000 buys a heavy anchor.
Jordan Everson is a Trinity senior. His column runs every Wednesday.
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