<p>I just read these threads and I figured that I might add my two cents about Georgetown and my Georgetown experience.</p>
<p>I graduated from GU in '01 and would say that overall it's a pretty good school. </p>
<p>Pros-
Strong academics
Safe area of the city
Relatively decent dining halls
Good student to faculty ratio
SFS is excellent
Great on-campus housing
Good student center
Nice gym</p>
<p>Cons-
It's a bar school
Science department is very weak
Living off-campus is very expensive...you will do this as juniors & seniors
If you don't have a car, you're stuck...no metro stop...so if you want to leave this part of the city, you need to take a cab.
Social scene is very weak</p>
<p>If you can get into GU, you can get into UVA which is a much better choice. Though the education was good, it was a little frustrating that whenever I went to visit my friends at other schools, I had a better time. </p>
<p>the part about the social scene is the exact opposite of what ive heard from everyone at georgetown currently.. and besides what you get out of a school is what you put into it.. so maybe it wasnt GU that was lacking</p>
<p>I don't know, I think it's different for me b/c I looked into UVA and I like Georgetown 20x more... </p>
<p>Also, Gtown is my top choice now and it seems like it's everything I could want in a school. (and I really hope I'm right b/c I'm not one of those people who likes to sit around and study all the time haha) My brother graduated in 2000 and he loved every minute of it. He said Gtown had a great social scene, and is still friends with tons of his friends from the school.</p>
<p>How would you compare it to George Washington University, though? I see contrasts right away (GW is right on a metro stop, strong science department, less safe) and wondered what you thought of that.</p>
<p>Georgetown is a better choice than GW. Though GW is on the yellow line, and thus more city accessible, it is situated right near the White House. I don't really think that this is the best area to live, primarily because it is mostly a financial and office area. There are no real "GW bars" to speak of and because the school is on a metro stop, there are a large number of commuters.</p>
<p>I was a biology major. After college I spent two years doing clinical research and am now working for a consulting firm.</p>
<p>If you have your heart set on going to school in DC, do yourself a favor and don't go to AU. This school boasts that they are in DC, and they are. What they neglect to tell you is that they are situated in the middle of a wealthy neighborhood with no real decent activities for students in close proximity.</p>
<p>You don't have to live off campus as a junior or senior, but most people do. However, if you get a bad lottery pick for housing, you'll probably want to. By the time you're a junior or senior and you want to bring somebody home with you, chances are you won't want to have another person living in the same room with you.</p>
<p>The social scene isn't necessarily bad. It's just not as good as other places. The Tombs is probably the best college bar I've ever been to. The difference is that every bar in Charlottesville is a college bar. One note about UVA is that it can be a pretty grim place to go to school if you don't go greek. </p>
<p>There is also something to be said for going to school where there is a decent football program. D1 schools for football make every Saturday a great time with tailgating, parties, etc.</p>
<p>Granted, GU has a good basketball program, but it isn't the same by any means.</p>
<p>Some of those townhouses are owned by the University. Others are independently owned. It is cheaper to live in the houses on the other side of campus in Glover Park, and a majority of off-campus living is here. These are better places to live in terms of space, etc. but they are a ways from M Street. Most parties take place in Glover.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Pros-
Strong academics
Safe area of the city
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Although Georgetown is in a safe part of the city, be very careful and secure your personal belongings and follow common-sense safety tips.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Relatively decent dining halls
[/quote]
</p>
<p>... And the addition of Hoya Court and the addition of whatever they're going to put in Darnall Cafeteria.</p>
<p>
[quote]
It's a bar school
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Really? I've felt more like it's about half-half.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Living off-campus is very expensive...you will do this as juniors & seniors
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Only if you get screwed for housing, which is strongly unlikely.</p>
<p>
[quote]
If you don't have a car, you're stuck...no metro stop...so if you want to leave this part of the city, you need to take a cab.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>GUTS -> Rosslyn -> Wherever you need to go.</p>
<p>Weekends: Walk to 33rd + M (take the Exorcist steps down, if you'd like) (or go to 34th and M, take the DuPont GMC to DuPont and take the Metro from there), pay a buck, hop on the Georgetown Metro Connection that takes you to Rosslyn, voila! Or, walk the Key Bridge (note: it's incredibly windy).</p>
<p>The biology department is very good, I'm not quite sure what you're talking about. The bio faculty has earned more excellence in teaching awards than any other department at gtown. There are lots of opportunities for research too.
As for the social scene, I also don't know what you're talking about. You can walk around any weekend and find parties to go to even if you don't know of any. There's always stuff going on. I'm not sure if it's just changed since you graduated or if you weren't all that outgoing, but I feel like i disagree with about half of what you said.</p>
<p>Chemistry is noted as one of its top 7 programs along with IR, languages, linguistics and english. 85% of premed students are accepted to medical school. Saying the science department (of which there are 4) is inaccurate.</p>
<p>I recently visited Villanova, and it didn't seem that bad. However, I don't have any sort of 'inside word.' How is it different that Georgetown?</p>
<p>Currently, I'm trying to decide btwn the two, so any unbiased help would be appreciated A LOT!!!!!!</p>
<p>the nearest metro stop to Georgetown is GW's/Foggy Bottom. Which is on the Blue and Orange lines. No one ever takes the yellow line... Anyone who has lived in the DC metro area for like a month would know that.</p>