JAMES B. DUKE HAD A REMARKABLE VISION IN 1924: to transform a regional liberal arts college into one of the world's top institutions of higher education. Younger than most other prestigious U.S. research universities, Duke University consistently ranks among the very best. Its graduate and professional schools — in business, divinity, engineering, the environment, law, medicine and nursing — are among the leaders in their fields.

Duke is situated on nearly 9,000 acres in Durham, North Carolina. Known as the City of Medicine, Durham was the fastest growing North Carolina city in the 1990s and now has a population of more than 200,000.

Duke welcomes hundreds of thousands of visitors every year who explore the Sarah P. Duke Gardens, Duke Chapel, Nasher Museum of Art, Duke Forest, Duke Lemur Center and other attractions. The 210-foot tower of Duke Chapel dominates the Gothic architecture of West Campus. East Campus, Duke's original campus and built in the Georgian style, serves as home to all first-year students.