<p>My niece is struggling to decide which of these three great colleges to go to. She grew up in Portland, Oregon but has lived in Boston for the past couple of years. This was a big transition, as she feels constricted by the preppy culture of her private high school in Boston, but also didn't want to return to the Northwest for college. She is very social, a track champion, writes and preforms spoken word poetry, and is interested in social justice in an international context. At Georgetown, she's been accepted into the school of arts and sciences, not foreign service. Any thoughts on which of the three colleges would be the the best fit?</p>
<p>Particularly given her interest and a desire for a more diverse community, I would recommend Georgetown. Like Macalester, Georgetown has an undergraduate focus that does not exist at most research universities and found only at liberal arts colleges. Georgetown has the benefit of the undergraduate focus with the resources (faculty, facilities, etc.) of a major university. Additionally, Georgetown is extremely diverse, in terms of student backgrounds, interests, and outlooks, not just geographically. Your niece’s area of interest is one of Georgetown’s strengths, but I would also highlight that the experience at Georgetown academically is also closely tied to “real-world” implications unlike most other colleges. Washington, DC is a tremendous place to study, as the “real-world” is intrinsically part of the classroom experience, and most/many faculty utilize the resources of Washington, DC in the curricula of their courses. Finally, Georgetown has an incredible campus and a diverse social/cultural life that is also enhanced and influenced by its location (phenomenal college town atmosphere in one of the best cities in the world). The Jesuit tradition of the institution also helps to foster the “service for others” emphasis of the place. Hoya Saxa!!! Georgetown can’t be beat.</p>
<p>Gtown is somewhat diverse, however it is very preppy…it is in many ways typical of the east coast catholic schools, such as Boston college, villanova, and holy cross…Wash U has a much more sizable asian population (17%) than gtowns which adds to its diversity. </p>
<p>Considering she was accepted to arts and sciences would she perhaps be looking into doing premed?? If she has any proclivity to do so I would suggest wash u over Georgetown any day. wash u is very strong in sciences (wash u has top five med school) and georgetown has traditionally been known to focus more energy into politics, foreign relations, and business rather than the hard sciences…(that might change with the new science center though).In terms of overall academic caliber wash u also tops gtown. avg SAT score at wash u is 80pts higher than gtowns which puts it competitively against Harvard, Yale, and Princeton.</p>
<p>Your niece sounds amazing, and the type of student that could definitely be a good fit for georgetown’s educational philosophy of educating the whole person.</p>
<p>Georgetown is incredibly diverse. 9% of the students are internationals and in a very diverse city where she will find ample opportunities to write and perform her poetry. For example dc is the home of busboys and pots. [Busboys</a> & Poets Restaurant // Washington, DC // Shirlington, VA](<a href=“http://www.busboysandpoets.com%5DBusboys”>http://www.busboysandpoets.com). </p>
<p>By he way, Georgetown has Asians too, but also African Americans, Hispanics, south Asians, Jewish people, Arabs, muslims, European Americans , Catholics, Protestants,etc.</p>
<p>Since Georgetown is a Jesuit school, social justice is at the core of the university’s mission as well and therefore attracts a lot of likeminded students. All Georgetown students are required to study ethics…even the business majors.</p>
<p>If she would like to continue running. Georgetown has a world class track team, but if she only wants to run recreationally dc is a fantastic runners city.</p>
<p>^Nova2011 is absolutely wrong about premed opportunities and reputation. Wash. U. is incredibly strong in this domain, but Georgetown’s reputation and success rate in terms of medical school admissions is just as strong with a much more collegial atmosphere (smaller program), a brand new facility, and many more professional, academic, social, and cultural options available in DC as compared to St. Louis.</p>
<p>Additionally, the student body and campus atmosphere is VERY different than Boston College, Villanova, and Holy Cross (all considered back-ups for most Georgetown students)—the atmosphere at Georgetown is far more cosmopolitan and diverse than those aforementioned schools. There are many preppy students at Georgetown, but there are many of every type of student. The absence of a Greek system ensures a stronger, broader sense of community, and you will find much less self-segregation at Georgetown relative to other schools.</p>
<p>Finally, your statement that “overall academic caliber” of Wash U. tops Georgetown. I would agree that the medical school at Wash. U. is stronger, and that Wash. U. has more emphasis on certain PhD/graduate programs, but the undergraduate, law school, business school, international relations/government/public affairs are all stronger at Georgetown. Georgetown carries far more prestige than Wash. U. as well, both in terms of national and international reputation.</p>
<p>Lastly, few students choose Wash. U over Georgetown–that should say something:</p>
<p><a href=“Compare Colleges: Side-by-side college comparisons | Parchment - College admissions predictions.”>Compare Colleges: Side-by-side college comparisons | Parchment - College admissions predictions.;
<p>^Medman I know you wont believe the businessweek rankings because Villanova tops gtown in biz but I think the rankings carry some weight. Wash U is ranked #8 in business and Gtown is #14…Us news in overall academia ranks wash U better than Gtown. Is it so wrong that perhaps a school might be better than gtown (gasp)?</p>
<p>Huffington post ranked Georgtown as the #2 most preppy college in the country with BC ranked #5…gtown students are in fact very similar to bc students. medman you should have an informed opinion before you blabber.</p>
<p>I absolutely believe that certain schools are better than Georgetown for certain people. I do, however, believe that Georgetown, for undergraduate studies, is a remarkable and unique place and that few institutions can provide the unique experience that Georgetown offers. Georgetown has a level of prestige that surpasses its US News ranking (which is predominantly a consequence of low endowment funding, adjunct/part-time faculty (which is an asset in my mind given who these individuals are at Georgetown), Georgetown’s refusal to play the admissions selectivity game with early decision and the common application, etc). As hard as it is far you to believe, Georgetown is more prestigious than Vanderbilt, Emory, Notre Dame, Northwestern, UVa, USC, Tufts, Wash. U., etc. regardless of the “rank.” The undergraduate experience is second to none–now, I would be less likely to endorse Georgetown for a PhD program (except maybe in certain areas) as the school clearly focuses its resources on and promotes faculty who are focused on UNDERGRADUATE LEARNING, RESEARCH, and MENTORSHP. There is the unique opportunities afforded students by the Washington, DC location–it is intrinsically part of the academic and social experience–and these opportunities to have compelling internship experiences give Georgetown students a real professional edge. The commitment to service is unparalleled and provides a unique context and expression of knowledge, community, and personal growth. The other places—Duke, Wash. U., UPenn, Vanderbilt, Cornell, Stanford, etc., and yes especially Villanova–have their own strengths and even some unique qualities, but Georgetown is particularly compelling in my book–the premier university in DC with an undergraduate focus with an environment that really is the best of all worlds and a sense of community that is unparalleled.</p>
<p>“She is very social, a track champion, writes and preforms spoken word poetry, and is interested in social justice in an international context.”</p>
<p>On that basis, Georgetown seems a great fit, but I don’t think she can go wrong with this decision.</p>
<p>“In terms of overall academic caliber wash u also tops gtown. avg SAT score at wash u is 80pts higher than gtowns which puts it competitively against Harvard, Yale, and Princeton.”</p>
<p>Georgetown is also competitive in Big East athletics, so you have to take that into consideration if you’re going to discriminate between the schools by overall SAT scores.</p>
<p>If she is interested in social justice in an international context, Georgetown is in the center of the conversation, and I can’t imagine a better place. If she wants to balance that, or in other words turn down the intensity a bit, WashU is academically top rate, and the environment surrounding it is both beautiful and highly stimulating of constructive thought.</p>