More selective than 100% of North Carolina colleges we cover.
College Scorecard, Fall 2024 entering class
Average after grants for all families receiving federal aid. Pick your income above.
Sticker price $87,072. College Scorecard.
Higher than 98% of North Carolina colleges we cover and 99% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median 54%.
Within 6 years · College Scorecard
Higher than 100% of North Carolina colleges we cover and 98% of colleges nationwide. U.S. median $53,263.
Median, 10 years after starting · College Scorecard
Duke University acceptance rate & admissions
Of 46,365 applicants, Duke University admitted 3,145 and 1,742 enrolled (IPEDS, Fall 2023 entering class). The middle half of enrolled first-year students scored 1500–1570 on the SAT or 34–35 on the ACT.
IPEDS Admissions, Fall 2023 entering class
Test scores: College Scorecard, Fall 2024. Other figures: College Scorecard; IPEDS
Duke University tuition, cost & net price
What families actually pay per year, by income
Average net price after grants and scholarships for students who receive federal aid. Tap your income band.
College Scorecard, latest reported year (federal aid recipients)
Sticker price (before aid)
IPEDS 2023-24 cost items; total from College Scorecard
College Scorecard; Urban Institute Education Data Portal
What Duke University costs to finish, and how fast it pays back
Graduates of Duke University took 4.1 years on average to finish, so the yearly price adds up to the total below. Payback compares former students' earnings with what high school graduates earn in North Carolina. The figures follow your residency and income choices above.
| Family income | Net price / yr | Cost to finish | Years to pay back |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0–30k | $735 | $3,006 | under 1 year |
| $30–48k | $0 | $0 | under 1 year |
| $48–75k | $5,706 | $23,338 | under 1 year |
| $75–110k | $17,100 | $69,939 | 1.1 years |
| $110k+ | $54,230 | $221,801 | 3.5 years |
Cost to finish = yearly price × 4.1 years, the average time graduates took (88% finished in 4 years; students who entered fall 2017, IPEDS). Years to pay back = cost to finish ÷ the earnings gain: median earnings of former students 10 years after starting ($97,800) minus $33,516 for high school graduates ages 25-34 in NC (Census ACS 2020-2024), a gain of $64,284 a year. Before taxes, loan interest and earnings given up while in school. Method
College Scorecard (net price, earnings); IPEDS Graduation Rates (time to finish); U.S. Census Bureau ACS (high school earnings). Calculated by EducationGuide.
Duke University majors, earnings & careers
Duke University offers 64 bachelor's majors across 10 areas. Earnings below are for this school's graduates of each major, four years after finishing.
- Science & Math · 16
- Humanities & Languages · 15
- Engineering · 8
- Social Sciences & Public Service · 8
- Arts & Design · 6
- Technology & Computing · 5
- Communications & Media · 2
- Health & Medicine · 2
- Business & Finance · 1
- Education · 1
Highest-earning majors at Duke University
| Major | Earnings, 4 yrs | Median debt |
|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | $297,029 | $13,000 |
| Computer Science | $195,809 | $13,500 |
| Computer Engineering | $174,522 | $14,500 |
| Economics | $161,149 | $13,437 |
| Statistics | $152,782 | $13,500 |
| Mechanical Engineering | $120,991 | $10,000 |
| History | $112,377 | $13,000 |
| Biomedical Engineering | $105,921 | $13,894 |
Quick list of all 64 majors
- Anthropology$81,120
- Area Studies—
- Behavioral Sciences—
- Biochemistry—
- Biological and Physical Sciences—
- Biology$83,192
- Biomathematics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology—
- Biomedical Engineering$105,921
- Cell / Cellular Biology and Anatomical Sciences—
- Chemistry—
- Civil Engineering—
- Classics—
- Cognitive Science—
- Computational Science—
- Computer and Information Sciences—
- Computer Engineering$174,522
- Computer Science$195,809
- Dance—
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology—
- Economics$161,149
- Electrical Engineering—
- Engineering, Other—
- English—
- Environmental Control Technologies / Technicians—
- Environmental Engineering—
- Environmental Science / Conservation$73,435
- Ethnic / Gender Studies—
- Geology / Earth Science—
- German—
- History$112,377
- Interdisciplinary Studies—
- International and Comparative Education$79,640
- Journalism—
- Linguistics$88,098
- Literature—
- Mathematics$297,029
- Mathematics and Computer Science—
- Mechanical Engineering$120,991
- Medieval and Renaissance Studies—
- Multi / Interdisciplinary Studies, Other—
- Music—
- Natural Sciences—
- Neuroscience$73,140
- Nursing$87,763
- Philosophy—
- Physics—
- Physiology—
- Political Science$88,459
- Psychology$73,359
- Psychology (Research)—
- Psychology, Other—
- Public Health$101,771
- Public Policy Analysis$103,071
- Public Relations and Advertising—
- Religious Studies—
- Slavic, Baltic and Albanian Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics—
- Sociology$61,425
- Software and Media Applications—
- Spanish / French / Romance Languages—
- Statistics$152,782
- Studio Art—
- Theatre—
- Visual and Performing Arts—
- Visual and Performing Arts, Other—
— means too few graduates to report earnings.
College Scorecard field of study, latest release
All majors by area with earnings 1 and 4 years out, and debt →Nursing → Registered nurse
Median annual wage for all workers in this job, not only new graduates. U.S. jobs projected to grow 5.6% from 2025 to 2035.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35
Computer Science → Software developer
Median annual wage for all workers in this job, not only new graduates. U.S. jobs projected to grow 10.2% from 2025 to 2035.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35
Living in Durham
Overall prices in the Durham-Chapel Hill, NC area.
BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
2 bedrooms $1,745. Housing costs 1% below the U.S. average.
HUD Fair Market Rent, FY2027
January and July average highs. 50 inches of rain a year, 3 inches of snow.
NOAA Climate Normals 1991-2020
Highest: tornado (relatively high).
FEMA National Risk Index, Durham County
Campus & students
IPEDS fall enrollment; Carnegie Classification; EADA via Urban Institute
Durham County at a glance
U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year 2024
Compare Duke University with similar schools
Similar private colleges in North Carolina by selectivity, graduation rate and size. Tap “Why?” to see where the price difference comes from.
| School | Acceptance | You'd pay | Graduation | Earnings, 10 yrs | Price gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duke University | 6% | $29,612 | 97% | $97,800 | This school |
| Wake Forest University | 22% | $28,719 | 89% | $78,158 | |
| Davidson College | 13% | $17,379 | 91% | $81,400 | |
| Cabarrus College of Health Sciences | 23% | $17,618 | 71% | $58,708 | |
| Elon University | 66% | $41,555 | 84% | $74,545 |
College Scorecard, latest reported year. “You'd pay” follows your residency and income choices above.
Why the price is different
Duke University would cost you $893 more per year than Wake Forest University, on average.
- Lower sticker price at Duke University, mostly from a lower estimate for personal & travel costs (−$1,113).
- Wake Forest University gives aided families $1,320 more in grants, on average.
| Per year, North Carolina resident | Duke University | Wake Forest University | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuition & fees | $68,758 | $67,642 | +$1,116 |
| Books & supplies | $1,602 | $1,630 | −$28 |
| Housing & meals | $17,458 | $17,848 | −$390 |
| Personal & travel | $2,207 | $3,320 | −$1,113 |
| Living-at-home adjustment | −$2,953 | −$2,941 | −$12 |
| Sticker price | $87,072 | $87,499 | −$427 |
| Average grants | −$57,460 | −$58,780 | +$1,320 |
| You pay | $29,612 | $28,719 | +$893 |
“+” means Duke University costs more; “−” means it costs less. Grants are the sticker price minus the net price. Cost items: IPEDS, on-campus budget. Sticker and net price: College Scorecard, latest reported year; the adjustment reconciles the two. Net price is an average for first-time, full-time students receiving federal aid, not a quote.
Common questions about Duke University
What is the Duke University acceptance rate?
Duke University accepts 6% of applicants (College Scorecard). In the latest IPEDS admissions year, 3,145 of 46,365 applicants were admitted. The middle half of enrolled first-year students scored 1500–1570 on the SAT or 34–35 on the ACT.
How much does Duke University cost per year?
The sticker price (cost of attendance) is $87,072 a year. After grants and scholarships, students receiving federal aid pay $29,612 a year on average; families earning $0–30k pay $735 and families earning $110k+ pay $54,230.
How much do Duke University graduates earn?
Former Duke University students earn a median $97,800 ten years after starting college, compared with a U.S. median of $53,263 across the colleges we cover.
What is the Duke University graduation rate?
97% of first-time, full-time students graduate within six years, and 98% return for their second year.
How long does a Duke University degree take to pay off?
For a family earning $48–75k, finishing at Duke University costs about $23,338 after grants ($5,706 a year for 4.1 years, the average time graduates took). Former students earn a median $97,800 ten years after starting, $64,284 more than high school graduates in North Carolina ($33,516), so the cost is repaid in under 1 year of that gain, before taxes and interest (EducationGuide calculation).
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Sources on this page: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard and IPEDS; U.S. Census Bureau (ACS); Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS, Employment Projections); Bureau of Economic Analysis; HUD; NOAA; FEMA; Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By); Wikidata. “Colleges we cover” means colleges awarding bachelor's degrees to at least 100 undergraduates. Averages are not quotes; confirm costs with the school. How we score
Data: download this school's data (JSON) · Markdown · all datasets
Cite this: “Duke University: cost, admissions and outcomes,” EducationGuide.com, https://educationguide.com/colleges/duke-university (College Scorecard and IPEDS data).