<p>I got accepted into both AU and GWU.</p>
<p>I really love both... I love AU's homey campus and friendly student body... but GWU has really good academics and a little bigger of a student body, which is nice...</p>
<p>My question is... HOW DO I DECIDE?</p>
<p>Please... I'm asking for any advice... how I should go about making to decision?... or if anyone knows which school has superior academics?... or anything! </p>
<p>I'm majoring in French and International Relations, by the way.</p>
<p>GWU. It's closer to everything, has it's own metro stop, and has great internships available. I definitely think it's a great choice.</p>
<p>You think GWU has better internship opportunities than AU? That's really important to know! Thanks!</p>
<p>When I visited GWU, they said they had more internships then students. That's impressive.</p>
<p>First, I'm biased b/c I'm a GW student but it depends on what you are looking for from your college environment. AU is in a really nice suburban neighboorhood but it's 20 mi away from the city and I do not think nearly as exciting. If you compared the published stat's GW is more academically competitive. Further, the International Affairs program is top notch! Obama was on our campus yesterday and his chief of staff is speaking at our commencement ceremonies this May!!
The only way that I finalized my decision, was to visit my two top choices after I was accepted and just follow my "gut". It really does come down to which school feels right to you. AU has plenty of internships and also has a good IA program. So, I would recommend that you not let all of the "which is better" stuff lead your decision.</p>
<p>P.S. GW is a great place to go to school! Congrats</p>
<p>GWU, perhaps?</p>
<p>Wow :o unanimously GWU! GWU DOES sound amazing... the one thing I'm concerned about it though is the "red tape" I always hear about... I'm not exactly sure what that means (specifically to GWU), does anyone know? And also I heard that they don't have good study abroad programs... which is SO important to me! Does anyone have more input!?</p>
<p>amandacecile If you're an advocate for yourself, the whole "red tape" will not be an issue. I remember reading that as well last year when trying to make a decision but it has not been a problem.</p>
<p>I'm not certain about the study abroad program, go into the college forum and the George Washington University thread in particular, there is a current GW Senior who is answering questions. This should help you further.</p>
<p>Thought I would weigh in on AU's side. S is a freshman in SIS - started in the Washington Mentorship program and did very well - is very happy with his choice. AU is NOT 20 miles away - the Tenley stop on the Metro is a mile from the main campus, and it takes 20 minutes to get to the Metro Center stop. We visited GW before S applied to schools- our impression was that it, in a word, sucked -- no campus to speak of, and the admissions rep who made the presentation was a pompous, name-dropping jerk. AU has a plethora of internship opportunities and they go out of their way to assist the students in obtaining them. BTW, AU was in the top 20 schools for undergraduate international relations programs, while GW wasn't ranked. Click on the following to see the article in Foreign Policy Magazine</p>
<p>MsBC... thanks for all your advice! I think I will go to that college forum and post something. But if you end up seeing this again, how do you describe the student body at GWU? Are people typically friendly? I have this fear that there will be soooo many stuck up people :P</p>
<p>And hoverdad... thanks so much for weighing in on AU! Maybe you're right... I'm sure AU would be a good decision too. Ah! What will I do? More opinions?</p>
<p>I've visited both and I'd prefer AU's campus as opposed to GW's non-campus, but I was a suburban kid and that's just my own frame of reference. It's a lot like the Boston U. / Boston College dichotomy. A lot of student just crave the inner city vibe.</p>
<p>Ah yes, I'm afraid I live not only in the suburbs, but rural Ohio! I think I do prefer the campus. Yet, I wonder if it would be so neat to be right in the city!</p>
<p>You really have to visit both and decide for yourself. Both are good programs. My D visited both and decided the AU campus was too small and she would get bored there. She is very happy at GWU, loves the urban campus, has found many activities that she enjoys and many friends.</p>
<p>I didn't think GW had "no campus" when I was there yesterday. You definitely knew when you were on campus and when you were off. It felt pretty campus-like to me. Just chiming in. I would not want to be a mile from the metro. For me, personally, that defeats the purpose of living in the city. However, I'm torn between AU and GW - they were tied, but as I've only visited GW, I'm obviously leaning that direction right now.</p>
<p>Hmmm...
I'm actually kind of leaning towards AU now...
ah! I should visit GWU though, right?</p>
<p>visit both while you're down here. GWU has a "campus". Buildings are around each other, and there are plaza like areas around it. The buildings seem new. GWU has great academics. AU has a traditional campus, with good academics. GWU has its own metro stop, as does AU, but GWU is more "in the middle of everything". AU is a suburban-esque area. IR would be better at GW. Also remember, no matter which school you go to in DC, if you feel like taking some courses at another school, or borrowing a book from another library, you can do so, through the Consortium of Washington Universities (or something like that).</p>
<p>GWU. I visited both, I didn't like AU, the campus wasnt very nice and the academics seemed eh. I also heard GWU has great ties with city corps for internships and the government/white house (4 BLOCKS AWAY!). But it comes at a price, and $53000 isnt pocket change</p>
<p>GWU is awesome! For international relations/ politics you have DC at your fingertips. I was considering it and my friend goes there.
I don't mean to be an idiot, but what is AU? (American?)</p>
<p>Kmhuether: yes! AU is American University :). And yes... thanks for the advice so far guys... </p>
<p>Right now I'm actually leaning towards GWU. As you can see.. my opinion changes EVERY day! Next week I'm going to DC to visit both... so we'll see...</p>
<p>AU is ranked much higher for business than GWU (according to Business Week - 28th v. 65th)), and ranks exactly the same as GWU (according to Foreign Police Magazine) for international relations. AU's undergraduate School of International Service is larger than GW's (actually the largest in the U.S.) and is a substantially larger portion of the student population. Princeton Review ranks AU's career counseling center (which includes the internship office) much higher than GW.</p>