<p>I have been acepted to both schools and can’t decide on what school to go to. I want a good school but also want to want to have fun in college.</p>
<p>can you give some more details about you and what you consider fun? better to be able to give you an informed answer.</p>
<p>I would pick AU. There is too much uncertainty in the New Orleans area right now. DC is a vibrant and growing city with more opportunities.</p>
<p>I faced the same situation last year.
Both offered me honors admission, but I chose AU because of 1) DC, 2) better IR program, and 3) uncertainty of New Orleans.</p>
<p>Plus AU was a bit cheaper and offered a bit more scholarship.</p>
<p>I am from DC. I lived in DC for 7 years after college. DC is my home. But you need to go to Tulane. DC is boring. New Orleans is unlike any city in the US. Mardi Gras, Jazz Fest, the food, the music. No one in DC cares about American. Georgetown is great. GWU is blocks from the White House. American is the third or fourth best school in DC. Plus it's located in boring part of town on the border with Maryland. Come on, it's no contest. If you went to Tulane, you would be as passionate about the school as I am. Have you visited Tulane yet. Make the trip to New Orlean, then decide.</p>
<p>bigwheeldc~ do you come in under another ID? just checking....and so strong in your "opinions" for such a new poster.....</p>
<p>bigwheeldc,</p>
<p>Please watch the tone of your voice.
This forum already has had its fair share of bickering, to the point where the moderator had to intervene. I am not going to disagree with what you said since I respect your opinion. But please refrain from using degrading expressions such as "no one in DC cares about American" as they can upset many people who are passionate about this school. You don't need to demean American to make Tulane great in comparison.</p>
<p>bigwheeldc -- perhaps you have outgrown the DC area....it has a tremendous amount to offer. Not sure why you are commenting on this thread as you are seven years past graduation and you are not attending or do not have a child at AU. Most young kids find D.C. a lot of fun. It is only a Metro ride from AU and we happen to go there all the time. Different strokes for different folks! Also, I beg to differ on your derogatory comment regarding "no one cares about AU" Did you survey the area, have to talk to local businesses that hired students from AU. AU is just as competitive as many other schools in the DC area. Perhaps you have not kept up on the changes at AU from seven years ago. You don't need to thrash one school to make a point about another school.</p>
<p>happycollegemom -- I don't have another ID and nor have I ever posted to this website before today. I have never felt it necessary to signup or even participate in any of the discussions on this website up until today. This morning when I read Skwolf's post, I was compelled to participate for this first time.</p>
<p>I believe that as a native washingtonian and long term resident of the District, I can stand by what I say with a great deal of confidence. When I read the Washington Post, you won't see articles about AU. When you watch local news, you won't see highlights of AU's teams. When you walk around the city, you don't see AU t-shirts. They don't have a strong presence in the city and you don't need to survey the business community to prove it.</p>
<p>bigwheeldc~
as a longterm resident of DC, you certainly don't sound lik one. we have friends in the AU neighborhood, as well as in DC, and we have not only visited all often, we have been receiving DC news via the Washington Post for many years. this was extremely helpful during my d's college-decision making process. to DCers, not only is AU well known and respected, it of all locations knows its scholastic reputation, especially for SIS. those in the area proudly call it "their own school" and this "love affair" sometimes cause grief for AU students as the AU police too diligently ticket parked students cars to maintain these relations. contrast this with the strained town-gown relations the native DCers have with GW. i'm not here to bash GW, but to point out some errors in your posts. the natives are very disturbed by GW's
role as realtor in the downtown area, putting their flags increasinly all over "their" town. (all this in Wash. Post)
further, there are tons of AU grads hard at work all over DC, and altho i can mane businesses i don't feel comfortable doing this publicly. my d. already has job/internship offers at her early stage of the game!
as far as Tulane goes, my d. chose not to go there. we are very familiar with it, as a family memeber got her grad, degree from there. altho the Audubon Gardens near campus are a plus, the French Quarter is NOTHING like it used to be. having a daughter, we were very unsure about its safety.
and, has been said throughout all threads, school spirit is INSIDE the individual, and has nothing to do with the school itself. one can always choose to "sit out the dance" .....</p>
<p>** :) excuse my typos...i don't type well, and if i take too long, it bumps me off! :) forgot to add we also have family there, as well!</p>
<p>happycollegemom--You really aren't "very familiar" with Tulane as your post clearly demonstrates. You have an uncle, cousin or something that once attended Tulane for two years, let me guess about 20 years ago, and that makes you an expert. Oh and by the way, it Audubon Park, not Garden. Yes, it's across from campus, it's got a golf course, tennis courts, running trail and palm trees. It's like you called Central Park, Central Garden.</p>
<p>Regarding your claims that DC has a "love affair" with AU. I haven't seen it. I should know since I was born and raised in DC and lived most of my life in the city. I am sure that the people that live in and around campus really care about AU, but I don't think it's Districtwide. If DC did have a love affair with any school, I would say Georgetown or University of Maryland. Everyone is really into their teams and you see a lot of people who have no affliation with the school wearing their hats and shirts around town. A "love affair" seems a bit of a stretch for AU.</p>
<p>bigwheeldc - do you really have to be so technical -- park vs. garden. Let's put an end to this now. The New Orleans area is devasted with destruction and there is still a lot of clean up to be done. Yes, it is fun and so is DC. You probably have outgrown DC as you have lived there all your life and find other cities more exciting. As far as sports are concerned, a college is not based on its sports team. AU is not designed in that fashion. It is heavily international and a city school. It doesn't make it less favorable academically or socially. It is what you make of it.<br>
I find it interesting that you graduated 7 years ago and decided to be a new member on this particular thread as you have no interest in AU. Are you sure you are not hiding behind someone else's identity. I would think you would be prowling Tulane's website. Very interesting to me.</p>
<p>Sounds to me like BigWheelDC is not in touch with the current information on American. Since the poster is 11 years out of the college search process, he/she may be familiar with AU from the perspective of over a decade ago-- when AU did not have much prominence or attract the same strength of student body. That is not to say it wasn't a good school then, but it has truly risen and continues to do so. We are recruiting amazing students and new faculty.</p>
<p>AU doesn't have the sports teams (but, yes, basketball does get mentioned in the sports on TV and radio), it's smaller than GWU, and not as prestigious as Georgetown. Many view AUs location as an asset-- it's safer and is a true campus, unlike GW which melds into the city streets. </p>
<p>AU has risen in prominence and Bigwheel is simply behind the times. Maybe BigWheel will review current admissions stats to see how similar we are to GW in that regard. </p>
<p>And I agree that trashing AU is not necessary to help this student decide between the two schools. The poster should visit both, then a decision will become clear. Hopefully it has already materialized-- May 1 is looming.</p>
<p>Also, a life in DC doesn't mean you know anything about the school. I've been here 25 years and only recently have learned about it. What few stereotypes I did have I have found to be incorrect, and I'm very impressed by the school.</p>
<p>BigWheelDC-- did you attend Tulane? You don't really say.</p>
<p>bigwheeldc, </p>
<p>While I am never a strong advocate for AU, I find it kind of odd that you evaluate a school based on how much of its merchandise people wear around the city. Is this a new US news variable?</p>
<p>:) To Ryan, And...i :3 You, Advisormom!</p>
<p>Advisormom...that Was Supposed To Be A Heart!!!! Hahaha</p>