<p>Esp. for current students: *Do you think you're getting a bang for your buck at GW? *
[ul]
[<em>] Is your work challenging enough?
[</em>] Is the food worth $10-$12? (when i visited, my hamburger + soda was literally $12)
[<em>] Dorms nice enough? (Esp. with the room service being cut)
[</em>] Are professors worth YOUR time, or are they stuck in their own research?
[/ul]</p>
<p>GW is expensive. I'm still wondering if i should apply. My experience when i visited:
[ul]
[<em>] J St. is way too expensive.
[</em>] Dorms are OK. They're clean and all, but I guess I never really focused much on the dorms, much less compared them with other schools.
[li] I don't believe in the internship hype. You can get as many internships as another student out of D.C. if you're just as proactive. [/li][/ul]</p>
<p>I still like GW, but in your opinion, is it worth the $50k mark?</p>
<ol>
<li>For me, yes worth every cent.</li>
<li>Not many people pay sticker price (many threads on this).</li>
</ol>
<p>To address specific concerns:
Food can be expensive, however you learn to manage money and find it cheap. Also I spend about the same amount on food as my brother who goes to a state university (traditional buffet meal plan).</p>
<p>Dorms are top notch. Room service was a joke, its much better without it. (learn to clean your own messes, and you don’t have to prepare for someone to enter your room every week.)</p>
<p>The internship benefit is that you can intern/work during the semester, which other students cannot. Also use the semester part-time jobs to get better summer ones (DC or at home)</p>
<p>Belief- First I will respond as a current student:
-I find the academics to definitely be challenging. Most students I know work very hard for good grades.
-No hamburger should cost $10-$12 but when you live in a Northeast city that’s what you have to deal with. If you are on a budget, you can live within the allotted meal plan allowance. Many of us do!
-Dorms are great in comparison to most. I was fortunate to have the housecleaning services as a freshman but only miss not having my bathroom cleaned.
Are profs worth MY Time?? I don’t approach my interactions with profs in that way. There of course are some who are not as available as others but, in my experience I have not had any problems getting individual time with profs when needed.</p>
<p>Finally, I do not believe any undergraduate school is worth having a large debt after graduation or placing a financial burden on your family. But if you can do it and GW is a fit, then YES it is worth it. Check out prior post from current students who are loving GW!</p>
<p>belief- Unfortunately, some very angry former GW student is posting negative comments , under different screen names throughout CC. It’s good to have all perspectives just research these threads and you will get lots of info from legitimate different sources.</p>
<p>$10-12 a meal?
You can go buy cheaper groceries elsewhere. You don’t have to spend $12 for lunch.</p>
<p>Dorms?
Fine. Some are nicer than others.</p>
<p>Professors?
There are plenty of professors who are legends in their fields, such as retired ambassadors. Others are newer professors or recent Ph.D.'s themselves, but still can challenge an 18 year old. Most professors have more experience than a recent high school grad, whether a GW professor or a professor at another school.</p>
<p>Is ANY BA worth $50,000 a year? Of course not. </p>
<p>If you get substantial scholarships, go for it. If not, go to a cheaper school. </p>
<p>No BA is worth $200,000 cash. </p>
<p>With that said, there are plenty of opportunities that this school offers, both itself and because of DC. Many are unique and worthwhile- see my posts for details (again, not worth $200,000 cash, but if you’re fortunate enough to get financial aid, you should at least consider GW).</p>
<p>honestly, no school is worth $50,000+. Anyone here that says yes is out of their mind. But the sad part is, if you want to go to a private school, you are going to have to pay around that much no matter where you go. If you are really concerned about money, go to a community college or an in-state public school. GW is like any other private institution. It will be hard to find a private school with a cost of less than even $45,000. However, my belief it that if you are willing to spend a lot of money or become loaded with debt by going to a private school, then you should go to a school that is top tier and the one you love the most. GW for me was that. Is it worth the price? No way whatsoever! But that goes to any private school. Unlike any other private school however, GW is in a city I love with opportunities I can’t get anywhere else. </p>
<p>Like I said, if you do not want to spend the money THEN DONT GO TO A PRIVATE SCHOOL, they are all overpriced. In such a case, go to a community college or in-state public school. Plus you can always transfer after two years as well</p>
<p>It is expensive, many of the dorms are old, you do have to clean your own room even before you move in, many professors are too busy to connect with students other than during class but if you have the initiative to maximize the opportunities available through GW, you can work outside of these issues. It is more about who you are able to be as a student. There are great opportunities to learn there.</p>
<p>First off, we do have to go on the record as saying we have had great support from admin there consistently through a bumpy transition for our student.</p>
<p>It is expensive, many of the dorms are old and kids are packed in like sardines, you do have to clean your own room even before you move in. Many kids hate the J Street food and won’t eat there though a certain amount of spending there is mandatory; there are lots of less expensive places to eat around the city if you are committed to making the effort to eat in a budget. Many professors are too busy to connect with students other than during class but others are available and have extraordinary experiences to share. You have the added benefit or distractions/temptations of being in a big city.</p>
<p>If you have the initiative to maximize the opportunities available through GW, you can work outside of these issues. It is more about who you are able to be as a student. There are great opportunities to learn there and you can make it worth it to have spent what it costs, but you have to be so inclined.</p>
<p>Your question needs to be looked at in context. What are your other choices and what are their costs? Given that its around the same sticker price as GT and American the common choice would be GT.
If you have no interest in gov’t or politics then I would think the extra costs for living in DC are not worth it.
If you get merit money at American and none at GW then it would depend on your financial situation.
The real question is if it is worth it compared to xxxx if your goal is yyyy.</p>
<p>If your goal is to get the most amazing and intellectual experience in the classroom that you can during your undergrad years then my opinion would be no, its not worth it.</p>