George Washington vs. Georgetown

<p>posted this in the georgetown forum too - just looking for comparisons, pros/cons of each school, etc.</p>

<p>Daughter attends GU (SFS) great for International Politics etc.... Son is waiting from both GU and GW. Actually I like GW for him. More Politically 'active'...ie: political office, elections etc. Now it might be that my D is just not involved at GU in those activities, but I don't feel the political vibe at GU like I do at GW. Son is not interested in International Politics as much as D; he is more interested in Political Science-Political Office. It really depends on your child. Both schools offer excellent Internship opportunities etc. And yes the tuition may seem higher at GW, but it is 'fixed' so no 4 to 8 % yearly increase. GW is also more apt to give $$. GU only gives need based, which meant nothing here... GOOD LUCK!</p>

<p>GW is also know for the Eliot School of International Affairs, which is very highly ranked, as well as the School of Media and Public Affairs. Both programs are supposed to be very highly rated. GU may be quite a bit more conservative and preppy, GW more poitically active.</p>

<p>If accepted to both I would go to Gtown, but I posted in the gtown forum, so u can see wat i wrote there.</p>

<p>Honestly, if accepted to both (highly unlikely) I would prolly still want to go to GW; tough choice though. The pros and cons for GW vs. Georgetown for me: GW is more urban, right in the middle of the city, less of a campus. GW is non-affiliated with religion (hence more liberal-leaning) while Georgetown is catholic/jesuit and a bit more conservative. GW has merit aid/Georgetown does not. GW has the fixed tuition for 4 years, Georgetown does not (if money is an issue). Georgetown has a better basketball team. Both have great international relations programs and terrific access to internships in D.C. These are just some factors I would consider...</p>

<p>Check out the list of majors and courses at both schools when making your decision. Georgetown does not have a major in my D's area of interest, so it was removed from her list early on.</p>

<p>fa-la-la-lena, i really like the conservative slant at Gtwon. I am not catholic (i'm muslim), but i heard religion is really important regardless of affiliation. I even heard u can not speak out against God in class(correct me if i am wrong)</p>

<p>Both are fine schools, but to the extent you are concerned about how much cachet the two schools have in the job market and elsewhere (and don't get me wrong, this concern can be overstated/overrated - the most important thing is where you think you'll be the happiest and get the education you want), it's like comparing Penn and BU. Both are fine schools, but Penn is regarded as being head and shoulders above BU. I would say a similar comparison is made between GU and GWU, which is one of the reasons GU is so much harder to get into.</p>

<p>I agree totally with WCASParent.</p>

<p>while many people like to compare the two schools, it just can't be done. especially admissions...they try to do it a lot. the schools aren't the same - and don't have the same reputation. I'm saying this as a prospective GWU student (maybe a student in like 30 minutes lol)</p>

<p>I'd say a more accurate comparison would be between Columbia and NYU in NYC. They are both terrific schools but with very different atmospheres. I wouldn't say one was "head and shoulders" above the other. GU and GWU are both considered Most Competitive according to Barrons'. Choose based on a visit to each school and careful analysis of the course bulletins, etc.</p>

<p>researchmaven-
I am on board with most of your analogy, because both Columbia and NYU are in the same city, but have different atmospheres and different reputations. However, there is simply no question that Columbia is head and shoulders above NYU in terms of academic reputation, even though (again), both are fine schools. They are both rated "most competitive" because of the percentage of students admitted (which rating is probably given to schools that admit less than 30% of the applicant pool, but I'm just guessing), but Columbia gets a more highly qualified appicant pool, admits a smaller percentage of that pool, and gets a more highly qualified class. I am a professional who works in New York City and my company sees a lot of resumes; there is no question that a bachelor's degree from Columbia has more cachet and gets more respect than a bachelor's degree from NYU (all other things being equal).</p>

<p>I too am a professional in NYC at a consulting firm and have never made a hiring decision based upon the difference in "cachet" between NYU and Columbia. I am more concerned with the applicant's performance at their respective college, their internship experience and their performance in the interview. I highly respect a degree from both Columbia and NYU. So as far as GU and GWU are concerned, I'd pick based on majors available, internship accessibility, atmosphere and the like. Yes, GU's average SAT and GPA is higher than GWUs, that's obvious from a review of any book of college statistics, but there isn't enough of a difference to base a decision solely on that.</p>

<p>That's why I said all other things being equal.
If the applicant's GPAs, majors and experience are roughly comparable, we consider the degree from Columbia to be more impressive.<br>
You are right, of course, that it is hard to imagine making a hiring decision solely on the undergrad school - because we are usually considering many other factors - but for example, since we can't possibly interview everyone, we screen resumes first, and that is one place where the Columbia degree would make a difference.</p>

<p>If you were screening, would a GU degree really help a lot more than a GWU degree? Do companies screen based on the undergrad school, or do they screen based on performance, or does performance come into the mix later on, after the screening?</p>

<p>Also, a big thing for me is getting into grad school. Which school has a better record for sending students to good grad schools?</p>

<p>As for grad schools, I suspect that both GU and GWU do very well - what gets you into a good grad school is more a question of how well you did at your undergrad school than where you went, plus how well you did on the applicable boards (LSATs, MCATs, etc). Grad schools would usually rather have a distinguished student from a mid-range school than an undistinguished student from a top-range school.</p>

<p>As for screening resumes, I cannot speak for others, but for my firm, the grad school is still most important; when looking at the overall academic credentials of an applicant, however, I would be much more impressed with someone who went Columbia undergrad and GU law school, than NYU undergrad and GWU law school (or any other of comparable variables; you get the picture). But remember, there are numerous variables - including, most importantly, whether a given applicant has distinguished him/herself at his/her schools (and outside of school as well).</p>

<p>I got in to GW and American. Is there a definite advantage between one or the other?</p>

<p>One advantage of GW, depending on your preference is location. Right in the heart of DC. That being said, bacause of its location it is not your typical campus. So for those that are looking to cross the quad to get to classes it will not being the same crossing city streets to get to classes. American is in a nice part of town on the outskirts, but still within the beltline and transportation is good. Just a simple point of view.</p>

<p>I personally would take GW over American in a heartbeat, but you need to decide where you'd be happier.</p>

<p>What about GW and NYU? Where would you choose to go?</p>

<p>I got into GW and NYU and I am leaning towards GW. I am from NY and think GW offers more of a college experience and a change.</p>