Duke vs Cornell: Which is more prestigious OVERALL (not just for MBA)? (2024)

Which university is considered more prestigious overall (rankings, brand, academics, and other intangible aspects)?

I'm mainly concerned about the OVERALL university's brand (i.e. business school's brand is just one of the aspects) and not just their business school's brand.

I've used various major aspects to compare both these universities. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this issue and any other aspects that I might have overlooked below.

International Rankings:
Looking at the 5 to 10-year averages, Duke ranks higher than Cornell in all national rankings, but it's the other way round when it comes to international rankings, which includes reputation rankings.

University Brand:
I believe Duke is highly recognized in the US but not many people know about it internationally. More people have heard of Cornell since it's part of Ivy League.

Duke is the top university in the South (i.e. "Harvard of the South") while Cornell might be overshadowed by other top universities in Northeast. Duke is fully private, which is considered more prestigious than public universities. Even though Cornell is also private, it has some public schools, which are relatively easier to get into.

History for building brand name:
Even though Duke was established as Brown School in 1838, it became "Duke" in 1924 when it got some major funding, which is needed for attracting top students and faculty. I believe that's really when things kicked off for Duke and when it started becoming more prestigious with years as it climbed up in rankings. Cornell was established in 1865 so it might have had more time to build its name.

Nobel Prize Winners:
Cornell has more Nobel laureates, Turning Award winners and fields medalists than Duke, which might be due to the difference in # of students.

Selectivity/Notable People:
Duke (16000 students) vs Cornell (25000 students). Hence, Duke is more selective but Cornell might have more famous alumni and more students.

Undergrad Acceptance Rate:
Over the last few years, Duke is more selective (7.7-11.6%) while Cornell's acceptance rate is usually 3-5% higher. Also, Cornell has some public colleges, which have a much higher acceptance rate.

City/Weather/Campus/Culture:
Duke is in a bigger city (Durham) and has better weather than Cornell. Durham is gradually growing and staring to have more job opportunities. Both have beautiful campuses. Students at both universities should be equally collaborative and supportive.

Sports:
Duke > Cornell. Duke is known for Basketball while Cornell isn't known for anything.

Business School:
While Cornell Johnson is older than Duke Fuqua, Duke Fuqua ranks higher in almost all MBA related rankings if we look at the last 5-year averages. Duke sends more people in Tech (27%) than Cornell (17%), but that's not my concern since I have a strong Tech background. I'd prefer moving to West coast post-MBA since it has more opportunities in Tech. While Duke Fuqua is only for graduate studies, making it more exclusive, Cornell Johnson is for both undergraduate and graduate studies, with the potential of having more number of notable alumni. Money isn't a factor.

Even though some may consider Duke Fuqua and Cornell Johnson as peer schools, I believe Fuqua might be slightly better??? Fuqua has lower acceptance rate and slightly higher GMAT average compared to Johnson's. Duke Fuqua has a really slight edge when it comes to peer and recruiter assessments taken as part of the US News MBA rankings.

Endowment:
Both universities have almost the same endowment of around $9 billion, but Duke has less students. More money = better students & ability to compete against other top universities.

Future/Potential:
Duke is in Research Triangle, which is gradually becoming a research hub and attracting more companies, while not much is changing for Cornell. Hard to project the future for Duke: can it overtake other leading/richer universities in future?

Poll: Started a poll above but I'm more looking forward to the comments from experts.