Duke University

02Duke graduate programs

Graduate admission is decided by the department, so write to the program first.

Duke's Graduate School runs master's and PhD programs in Durham, NC, and seven professional schools train lawyers, clinicians, managers, ministers, environmental scientists and policy analysts. Each program or school admits its own students and publishes its own costs.

Ask which program fits Check your application timeline
Degrees
Master's, PhD, professional degrees
Built around
An advisor and a thesis or dissertation; clinical or practice training in the schools
Admitted by
The department or school
Cost
Published per program; funding confirmed on inquiry

02.1PhD programs, Durham NC

The Graduate School: master's and doctoral study.

Every program has its own requirements and its own admissions committee. What they share is the structure. Coursework comes early, an advisor stays with you throughout, and the degree ends in a piece of original written work.

A doctoral student maps her dissertation chapters on a whiteboard while her advisor listens
Fig. G1Chapter plan, third draft. The advisor's folded arms mean chapter four is about to move.

Graduate School

Master's and PhD

A master's is a shorter degree, usually one or two years, finishing with a thesis, a project or an examination depending on the program. A PhD is built around a dissertation: several years of original research under a faculty advisor, examined by a committee.

The advisor is the whole thing. Before you apply for a PhD, read what the faculty in that program have published and write to one or two whose work you want to join. A PhD application that names nobody is harder to place than one that names the right person.

Programs set their own funding terms for doctoral students. Ask the department directly, and ask early.

Master's
Length set by the program, commonly one to two years
PhD
Coursework, qualifying stage, then a dissertation
Admitted by
The department, not a central office
Plan ahead
About 12 months before the start term

Price basisSet per program and published by the department; funding terms confirmed on inquiry.

02.2Professional schools

Seven schools, seven admissions offices, one campus.

Each professional school runs its own calendar and its own requirements, and several expect an entrance test taken well before the deadline. Plan about fifteen months ahead. The table is where to start; the school is where to finish.

Sheet 02 / Professional schools and what each degree is built around
SchoolBuilt aroundAdmitted byCost basis
LawDoctrinal courses alongside trial advocacy and moot court practiceSchool of Law admissionsPublished by the school each year
MedicineBasic science, then clinical training, with simulation before patient contactSchool of Medicine admissionsPublished by the school each year
NursingClinical skills in simulation labs, then supervised clinical placementsSchool of Nursing admissionsPublished by the school each year
Fuqua School of BusinessManagement study in cohorts and team projectsFuqua admissionsPublished by the school each year
DivinityTheology, scripture and supervised ministry practiceDivinity School admissionsPublished by the school each year
Nicholas School of the EnvironmentEnvironmental science and policy, with field and marine workNicholas School admissionsPublished by the school each year
Sanford School of Public PolicyPolicy analysis, methods and applied client projectsSanford School admissionsPublished by the school each year
A law student argues at the lectern during a moot court practice session
Fig. G2Moot court practice. The student judges interrupt on purpose.

School of Law

Law

Doctrinal courses in contracts, property, constitutional law and the rest run alongside practice. Trial advocacy puts you on your feet with witnesses and objections. Moot court puts you at a lectern in front of a bench that has read your brief and wants to argue with it.

The first moot argument usually goes badly in one specific way: the student reads the prepared text and cannot answer the question the bench actually asked. The practice rounds exist to break that habit before it matters.

Built around
Doctrine plus trial advocacy and moot court
Admitted by
School of Law admissions
Plan ahead
About 15 months, including any entrance test

Price basisPublished by the school each academic year; confirmed on inquiry.

Nursing students practise taking vitals on a simulation manikin while an instructor observes
Fig. G3Vitals on a simulation manikin. The instructor's clipboard records the sequence, not just the numbers.

Schools of Medicine and Nursing

Medicine and Nursing

Clinical skills are practised in simulation before patient contact. Students work on high-fidelity manikins and in staged scenarios, taking a blood pressure, reading a monitor, handing over to the next shift, while a clinical instructor watches and then debriefs.

Simulation is not a substitute for supervised clinical placements. It comes first so that a student's first real patient is not also their first attempt at the procedure. The two schools admit separately and publish separate requirements.

Built around
Science, simulation, then supervised clinical training
Admitted by
Each school's own admissions office
Plan ahead
About 15 months

Price basisPublished by each school each academic year; confirmed on inquiry.

02.3From first letter to first term

How a graduate application usually runs.

Times are planning windows counted back from a fall start. Each program publishes its binding dates.

  1. 01Pick the program, then the people

    Read the program's requirements and the faculty list. For a PhD, identify two or three possible advisors.

    About 12–15 months out
  2. 02Write to the department

    A short, specific message about your background and what you want to work on. Ask about funding terms here, not later.

    About 11 months out
  3. 03Tests, transcripts, recommendations

    Check whether the program or school expects a test, book it early, and give recommenders at least a month. International applicants add financial documents and later visa paperwork.

    8–10 months out
  4. 04Apply once, to the right place

    Submit to the program's application. Sending it twice to be safe creates two files and slows both.

    By the published deadline
  5. 05Decision from the department or school

    Some programs interview. The decision comes from the program's committee, and any funding offer comes with it.

    Set by each program

02.4Hard questions

What graduate applicants ask before they commit a year to applying.

Q1Can your office tell me whether I will be admitted?

No. Only the program's committee decides, and it decides on the full file. We can tell you which program your question belongs to and what that program asks for.

Q2Is a PhD funded?

Funding terms are set per program, and they differ between programs. Ask the department in writing and keep the answer.

Q3Can I study part time or online?

Some professional programs offer formats for working students; most doctoral programs are full time and in person, because the work happens in labs and archives here. Check the specific program.

Q4Who is graduate study here not suited to?

Anyone who wants a doctorate without a clear question, or who expects the advisor to supply one. And anyone who needs a promised career outcome: we do not publish outcomes as promises. If you are not sure yet, a master's or a year of work in the field is often the better next step.

02.5Write to the desk

Ask which program fits.

Tell us the field, the degree level and your start term. We will point you to the department or school that decides, and to its published costs.

Coming from a Duke bachelor's? The undergraduate page and research at Duke University explain how lab work carries forward.

Form G1 / Graduate inquiryNo payment taken