<p>...Chapel Hill? Cherry Hill is in NJ--Philly area.</p>
<p>Sorry, yes that was a mistake (I also lived in McGuire so I am accustomed to writing Cherry Hill).</p>
<p>although i think some others on this board might be guilty of your tu quoque accusation, specifically in their treatment of bo5ton, i am not. i never said you were unable to critique other schools, i simply said your "disgusting" comment was an attack, and not a critique at all...which is what we should be doing on these boards. you gave no basis or justification for your disgusting comment, which standing alone was snotty and ignorant, and i feel like i acted accordingly.</p>
<p>although i still fail to see how your "disgusting" description fits or makes since with your justification for it, i do agree in some sense with what you have to say about the area. compared with D.C., Raleigh-Durham probably does seem that way to you. but despite your prejudices, just remember that Chapel Hill and the school itself are a great deal more cosmopolitan than the outside area. several NGOs are headquartered with the school, such as Carolina for Kibera, an organization that works in one of the largest slums in the world in Kenya. this does not seem too indicate xenophobia to me. as far as what you said about narrow mindedness, the town over from Chapel Hill elected a gay mayor over a decade ago. regarding your racist remarks, please remember that UNC-CH's proportion of black students is twice that of GWU's.</p>
<p>regardless, thanks for explaining what you posted earlier.</p>
<p>(holy sh--, what have i created...)</p>
<p>just in case you were curious: </p>
<p>the professor of my honors program recently spent the last 20 minutes of class making his case for why "GW is a poor university" and why we should all consider "other academic options," at the risk of graduating with a "useless education" that will put us "years behind [our] peers at other universities." </p>
<p>its not about prestige, its about getting out of an overrated party school that doesnt offer remotely the education it should. </p>
<p>though GW has let me down academically, ive had a great time here. but if a traditional liberal education, or a solid education at all, is important to you, this seems not the place.</p>
<p>Casey - WHY is GW not giving you a proper education? In all these responses there has not been one concrete example. Are the professors inferior, are the courses shallow? What is it? Explain.</p>
<p>Do you think some kids in the honors program are resentful they were possibly rejected from the schools they thought they were supposed to go to? No one is saying what the problem is. Was the money they were given to be in the honors program too tempting to refuse?</p>
<p>I think the people who go to GW and like GW are there not just for academics, but, for the opportunities that living in Washington, DC affords them. It seems that if this is not your goal, this is not the place. And there are many people at GW who choose NOT to apply to Georgetown because it is a more conservative school, has a religious affiliation, etc, etc. </p>
<p>Also, why does your professor teach at a school he thinks is inferior? Very strange. Did anyone question that?</p>
<p>PEEJAY, I will do my best to answer each of your questions to the best of my ability.</p>
<ol>
<li>"Why is GW not giving me a proper education?" </li>
</ol>
<p>The root of this question lies inescapably in one's definition of a "proper education." From my own observations, and from some of my professors themselves, GW offers an alternative, occupational education, specifically for future bureaucrats and mid-level business executives. Unlike Ivy League schools and other older (note: not necessarily better) universities, most GW departments and courses are geared towards specific career training. This non-traditional approach is unlike the study of great thinkers, great books and the broad core curricula that many of those older institutions feature. The drawback of this, IMHO, is that students do not develop abstract critical thinking skills that are paramount in any professional field, let alone life in general. I believe that these skills ought to be, as they have been until fairly recently, the object of higher education. Further, we cannot expect to come up with truly original ideas until we have understood and analyzed the ideas of those great minds before us. In these respects, GW is want. Now, to be clear, this traditional sort of education may not be what you, or anyone else, desires from their university. But for those like myself who do, GW does not satisfy these desires. </p>
<ol>
<li>"Do you think some kids in the honors program are resentful they were possibly rejected from the schools they thought they were supposed to go to? ...Was the money they were given to be in the honors program too tempting to refuse?"</li>
</ol>
<p>I can only answer for myself and a couple other students in this regard. First, myself. I am not resentful, but I was waitlisted at several other schools (Ivies, Georgetown, etc) that I had ranked higher than GW in my preferences. I was also admitted to schools that were higher in my preferences than GW (Michigan Honors, USC, NYU), but I turned them down to come to DC on a generous merit scholarship and work on Capitol Hill (which I do). By enrolling in the honors program, I thought, as at Michigan, I would be immersed in a traditionally styled education that incorporated philosophy, history, science, literature and politics. Granted I came to GW with an intention to possibly transfer after one year, I had secretly hoped that I would be happy with what I found. But I was not, and here we are. As for the others in my program, most of them are simply are not what I thought they would be. They are not the well-rounded intellectual-artisan-athletes I strive to be, nor are many of them particularly interested in school. Call me what you will, but despite dreading waking up in the morning, I have always loved going to school for class, lacrosse practice, or newspaper layout. It's not an attitude I have felt here. </p>
<ol>
<li>"Why does your professor teach at a school he thinks is inferior? Very strange." </li>
</ol>
<p>My professor (Harvard UG, Stanford PhD) is 35 and this is his first job after a stint at his grad school. Most 35 year olds are given "staff" positions at Universities; GW offered him a higher ranking position within his department, a large research bankroll, as well as the position as director of the honors program. For what it is worth, he is taking a job at Brown next year. Still, just because a professor teaches somewhere, it doesn't mean he values the UG education. Teaching is a business, and the graduate/faculty benefits at a certain university within a certain department are not the same as the benefit of an undergraduate education at that same university. </p>
<p>I hope those answers were sufficient, let me know if I can be more specific.</p>
<p>Casey, by looking at your reflections upon GW's academics... etc, I know you will never be satisfied at any school. I transferred from an ivy, Yale, to GW last year and I can tell you the academics between the two schools are equally good. Please come back down to earth with your utopian expectations...</p>
<p>I'm curious, ballack432, why did you transfer from yale to gw? Are you happy that you did? What did you not like about yale?</p>
<p>Yes, as someone who is an alum of both an ivy league school and a city school very similar to GW, I agree that the academics at all the top 100 or so national universities is very similar. Those who have never actually attended an ivy league school tend to idealize what goes on there. Casey, yes, as you said: look what you created. Nothing positive, I don't think. Your original post attracted a group of people, most of them not associated with GW, who took it as open season to go on the attack. According to our previous discussion, this was supposedly not your original intent. I guess, lesson learned. As for your honors professor, always keep in mind that you don't know the whole story. His behavior seems extremely unprofessional and emotional and may have something to do with a personal problem he had in his department.</p>
<p>Adding to what researchmaven said in regard to your professor---a word of caution about what you post here attributed to him. As a parent of a student at GW, I was easily able to identify this professor. Administrators from GW and other colleges read these boards. I highly doubt that either institution (GW or Brown) would look favorably on a professor who openly encouraged students to seek education elsewhere. I would also object to a professor using twenty minutes of honors class time to complain about the school. His and your aspirations toward higher levels of abstract and critical thinking in a liberal arts education are noble. His professional behavior, as described by you, is not. While there are many areas in which I think GW can improve, calling it an occupational training school for future bureaucrats and mid-level executives is both negative and wrong. The college does a good job in preparing students for advanced education, whether it be law, med, dental or graduate school, for those who make full use of the opportunities and classes available. Their record for students winning national scholarships and awards is also solid. And the school graduates many who go on to service groups such as the Peace Corp. and Teach America. While it took my child a few semesters to settle in and find her own group of people, she is really flourishing now, is working very hard and is challenged daily as well. The opportunities afforded her through her small department have been amazing.
That said, GW is not for everyone, and I respect your right and decision to seek a transfer. I wish you success in finding a school that hopefully will be a better fit for your academic and career goals.</p>
<p>In regards to CelloMom's mention of the Peace Corps, GW was recently recognized, in the mid-sized university category, for sending the largest number of graduates on to the Peace Corps. Somehow, this doesn't jive with the picture some here would like to paint of all GW students walking around with Prada bags and Gucci shoes. Can't imagine someone with these accouterments working in the jungles of Africa and similar scenarios. Hmmm...</p>
<p>I would like to add my two cents: My daughter has taken several creative writing courses at GW - not what you might think of as something to prepare a bureaucrat of mid-level executive.</p>
<p>The quality of teaching in these classes has been remarkable impressive. The professors spend a great deal of time and energy guiding her and encouraging her to improve her work. The school is not "known" for this, yet her professors are top notch.</p>
<p>people who work for the peace corps and teach for america are not always necessarily poor themselves either. i would actually argue that people who do the peace corps or teach for america actually have higher incomes than average, due to the fact that compensation is relatively bare, and one must have a relatively solid financial base (ie their parents) in order to incur the opportunity costs of doing either one.</p>
<p>but i guess that's not what your saying. your saying that gwu students can get down and dirty, and put their prada bags aside for a few years. how commendable! i'd say many of them actually do this for law school or med. school applications. the question is how many of them actually commit their lives to such endeavors?</p>
<p>i commend YOU, armcp!</p>
<p>My point, armcp, is that the Prada bag thing is a GROSS EXAGGERATION, but some people, like you, who will never get over not getting enough scholarship money to attend GW, will try to dispute anything positive that is pointed out about the school or its students. It's not necessary to do Peace Corps work to impress law and med schools. All you need is a certain score on the LSAT/MCAT and a certain GPA. It's not like getting into college. Doing Peace Corps work is NOT EASY and very few would make the sacrifice casually!! And I don't know what you're commending armcp about, happycollegemom.</p>
<p>GW commentary aside for a moment (!) Researchmaven is absolutely correct. Admissions to law and med schools is largely GPA and LSAT/MCAT driven...the higher those numbers the better. Second most important is letters of recommendation. Most law schools don't even look at what is commonly known in high school lingo as EC's (Yale and Stanford are possible exceptions). Grad school admission is based more on gpa and research experience and letters or recommendation. Teach for America is very competetive and the application and interview process is rigorous. TFA accepts only about 20% of total applicants and of those who do TFA approx. 70% remain in the teaching field. Aspiring law and med school students with low gpa and/or lsat-mcat scores will be in no better position for admission after peace corps or TFA than before if they they haven't raised their scores. I don't have any personal experience with the application/acceptance to the Peace Corps.</p>
<p>I have a few questions: armcp, you applied to GW , but were disappointed that you didn't receive a scholarship that you thought you deserved, correct? So now you go to Tulane?
<a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/george-washington-university/175574-thread-exclusively-those-who-recieved-0-gw.html%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/george-washington-university/175574-thread-exclusively-those-who-recieved-0-gw.html</a>
But happycollegemom, you don't sound so happy. What exactly is your beef with GW? Rejected, or didn't get a scholarship? I do not understand why people who have nothing to do with GW love to post negative things here. Why?</p>
<p>yes, i do go to tulane, and i did not get a scholarship to GW, which i mistakenly thought was my birthright. you're right—i have no business posting here anymore. i will leave your utopia alone.</p>
<p>Great, thanks.</p>