How difficult is it to get from AU to the city or downtown dc?
It’s not. Take a 10-15 minute walk to the Tenleytown metro station (or take the university-provided free shuttle bus) and you can get anywhere the metro goes.
Students buy a $130 pass every semester that allows unlimitted travel on the Metro subway and on busses too. Combined wth the free AU shuttle mentioned above, travel is really easy.
My daughter is finishing up at AU and goes into the city during the week as well as the weekends. Totally easy and close by.