Quad

Head-to-head

Key differences

The biggest gaps between these schools, largest first.

  1. 1

    U. Chicago's yield is 29 pts higher than Duke's

    Yield rate
  2. 2

    U. Chicago has 7 pts more first-gen students than Duke (20% vs. 13%)

    First-generation students
  3. 3

    Duke grads earn $5.9K more ten years out than U. Chicago's ($97,800 vs. $91,885)

    Median earnings, 10 yrs
  4. 4

    Duke costs about $2.5K less per year on average than U. Chicago ($58,582 vs. $61,083, all students)

    Average cost, all students
  5. 5

    U. Chicago is a bit larger (7,569 vs. 6,434)

    Undergrads
  6. 6

    U. Chicago is more diverse (index 0.81 vs. 0.79)

    Diversity index

The shape of each school

Each axis is a national rank among 4-year colleges; further out = more of it.

SelectivityTest scoresSizePell shareFirst-genDiversity

Who's hardest to get into

U. Chicago admits 4.5%, Duke 4.7%; U. Chicago's yield is higher, at 88%.

Acceptance rate
Duke4.7%
U. Chicago4.5%
Quad's selectivity
  • DukeUltra selective
  • U. ChicagoUltra selective
SAT middle 50%Axis 1400–1600
Duke
1510–1570
U. Chicago
1500–1560
How they read a recordfirst-years at 3.75+
  • DukeRigor and GPA very important
  • U. ChicagoRigor very importantweighted GPAs

Who's on each campus

U. Chicago is a bit larger than Duke (7,569 vs. 6,434 undergrads) and has the larger Pell share.

Undergrads
Duke6.4K
U. Chicago7.6K
Pell Grant share
Duke14%
U. Chicago15%

Majors and faculty

Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies leads at Duke, and Econometrics and Quantitative Economics at U. Chicago; both have 5 students per faculty member.

Students per faculty member
Duke5 to 1
U. Chicago5 to 1
Most popular majorshare of graduates
  • DukeMulti-/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other15%
  • U. ChicagoEconometrics and Quantitative Economics31%

What each costs

Duke costs about $2.5K less a year than U. Chicago on average, and its grants cover the larger share of its price.

Average cost, all students
Duke$58.6K
U. Chicago$61.1K
Aid generosity
Duke33%
U. Chicago32%

What each pays off

Duke's former students earn more, a median $97.8K ten years after enrolling; both graduate more than 90% within six years.

Median earnings, 10 years
Duke$97.8K
U. Chicago$91.9K
Graduation rate
Duke97%
U. Chicago96%

How each has changed

Applications grew at both; both got more selective.

Applications, 10-year change
  • DukeGrowing+64%
  • U. ChicagoGrowing+59%
All the numbersEvery figure for these colleges in one table, with differences highlighted.
Sources for this comparisonEvery dataset and year behind the numbers in this comparison; tap any ⓘ for one number's source

Figures are the newest each college has published; years can differ between colleges. Each value's ⓘ shows its source and year. Why