<p>Various factors could tip the decision toward any of these schools. Georgetown, in my opinion, has the best balance. So, although I never thought I’d find myself recommending Georgetown over Chicago (having attended both), in this case I agree with Alexandre on the “overall experience” aspect. I don’t know about Science Po, but since the OP is Austrian, wouldn’t it be more interesting to get out of Europe for a few months?</p>
<p>Chicago vs. Georgetown
Chicago has a beautiful campus with predominantly neo-Gothic architecture (reminiscent of Cambridge), arranged around traditional quadrangles, with connections among buildings intended to reflect the connections among academic disciplines. The library and other facilities are excellent (far superior to Georgetown’s). However, Georgetown is set in a safer residential area, with upscale shops, restaurants and bars/clubs within walking distance. It is a short bus ride to the national monuments and the Smithsonian Institution (major museum system). The UofC is many miles from Chicago’s downtown “Loop” area. Chicago’s winter weather is brutally cold, windy, and snowy. DC winters are typically more mild (though, as I write from the Baltimore-Washington area, we are in the midst of a crippling snowstorm that may top off as high as 75 centimeters.)</p>
<p>Undergraduate classes in the Social Sciences and Humanities at Chicago typically are small, focused on close reading and discussion of classic texts. Quantitative methods are very big there, too. Georgetown’s classes more often are a little larger, lecture based (with Question & Answer), and supported by modern textbooks or contemporary academic publications. Chicago’s tenured faculty are more distinguished (with many leading scholars in their fields). Georgetown likes to hire political celebrities (like former Secretaries of State) for a few years after they retire; the core, tenured faculty typically are good teachers but not as likely to be major scholars in their fields (with exceptions in a few niche areas.) Still, it would be a memorable experience to get a class with a celebrity professor at Georgetown (like Madeleine Albright).</p>
<p>Chicago is a world-class research university, Georgetown is America’s number one or two Catholic college with a few strong graduate programs. In the Social Sciences, Chicago benefits from its association with the National Opinion Research Center ([About</a> NORC](<a href=“http://www.norc.org/Aboutus/]About”>http://www.norc.org/Aboutus/)). If you are serious about social science research, there are few places in the world better to learn how to do it than at Chicago, especially if you can line up an internship at NORC. Even a job as telephone interviewer might be a very worthwhile way to dig deep into American public opinion ([Telephone</a> Interviewers](<a href=“http://www.norc.org/Careers/Telephone+Interviewers/]Telephone”>http://www.norc.org/Careers/Telephone+Interviewers/)). On the other hand, Georgetown is known for leveraging its location in the nation’s capital to connect students with great internship opportunities. </p>
<p>Another thing to consider is that Chicago is on a quarter system, with slightly shorter terms than most American semester systems.</p>