Is the University of Amsterdam or Duke harder to get into for undergraduate admissions?

Duke is harder to get into overall for undergraduate admissions. It has a highly selective, holistic process with far more qualified applicants than available spots, and strong grades alone usually are not enough. The University of Amsterdam is selective in a different way: for many programs, admission is based more on whether you meet specific academic requirements, and some programs are open while others are capped or numerus fixus.

For a student applying to Duke, the bar is much less predictable. Duke looks closely at course rigor, grades, testing if submitted, extracurricular impact, essays, recommendations, and overall distinction in context. That means even very strong applicants can be denied because the process is competitive across the entire applicant pool, not just based on hitting published thresholds.

The University of Amsterdam tends to be more straightforward for students who fit the academic profile and are applying to a non-capped program. The main exception is numerus fixus programs, where there is a fixed number of seats and selection can be competitive.

So in broad terms, Duke is the tougher school to enter overall, especially for a typical international comparison of undergraduate admissions difficulty. UvA can absolutely be competitive in particular programs, but it is not selective across the board in the same way Duke is.