Georgetown Class of 2009 Student Taking Questions

Colleges & Universities A-Z Georgetown University
1

<p>Hi all,</p>

<p>I'm at work right now and slightly bored, so I figured I might help you all out with any questions you had about Georgetown.</p>

<p>I just graduated this May, and am heading to law school in the fall. I was a Political Economy major with an Arab Studies Certificate minor, worked for University Information Services, and was involved with GERMS. Most of my friends were pre-med. I studied abroad junior year (at St Andrews in Scotland). Hopefully that gives y'all an idea of what sort of questions I might be able to help with.</p>

<p>Anyways, I'll take any questions you've got - from food, to activities, to classes, to dorms, to social life, drugs, anything at all.</p>

<p>Fire away.</p>

2

<p>Heyyyyy</p>

<p>I’m so glad I found this thread…I would love love love to hear more from you (PM is cool too)… specifically…what school were you in? Are you going to Gtown law? Did you discover a passion for law while at Gtown? I’m really interested in public policy… any thoughts on that? Or the CSJ?</p>

3

<p>How’s the general vibe there? Is everyone competitive? is it chill?</p>

4

<p>Hi guys,</p>

<p>I was in the College, Political Economy major. So I took courses in Government and Economics for my major. I also took lots of courses as electives, not for my major.</p>

<p>I was accepted to Georgetown Law (they took me before my file was even complete, so I think they must have a special preference for Georgetown undergrads), but ultimately decided to go to NYU for law school. I wouldn’t say that I discovered a passion for law as much as I realized that it is first what I am mentally best-suited to do for a living. Law school (I’m told) is very different from anything you do as an undergrad, here or elsewhere. It’s unlike any other academic endeavor. Having said that, there are a number of public-policy type courses taught to undergrads here by Gtown law professors, and you will definitely have the opportunity to explore law and public policy and see if it’s right for you. Especially good courses are International Law (take it with Arend, who I’m told is just about the best professor most people have had) and Constitutional Law. Those courses also probably look good on law school apps, though I didn’t have them and it didn’t seem to hurt me. I don’t know anything about the CSJ, unfortunately - sorry!</p>

<p>The general vibe - it really, really, REALLY depends on who you hang out with. There are totally chill crowds and there are intense, cutthroat crowds - and both exist within almost every area of study/school. If I had to generalize, I would say that most people are conscientious and studious, but that they still also know how to have a good time. Typical Georgetown would be spending all Thursday night in the library studying for a test and then spending all Friday night out in bars (for Seniors) or on the Village A rooftops (everyone) partying it up.</p>

<p>Keep the questions coming.</p>

5

<ol>
<li><p>Do a lot of Georgetown students work on capitol hill as staffers?</p></li>
<li><p>What are some small qualities about georgetown that set it apart/make it unique- even if its just a small thing like a tradition or school policy?</p></li>
</ol>

6

<ol>
<li><p>More of an admissions question- but is it unheard of for people to be accepted to the Georgetown College with a 30 ACT? </p></li>
<li><p>How was the social atmosphere right off the bat as a freshman? Did you find it difficult to make friends, go out, etc…</p></li>
</ol>

7

<p>Did you study abroad? If so, how did you like it and what was it like?</p>

8

<p>Hi there, and hoya saxa!</p>

<p>What happens if I get scheduled for two classes with only ten minutes in between? Will I be able to get there in time? Will the school even give me a schedule like that?</p>

<p>I am in the process of pre-registration and I think that many of my alternates are going to overlap with something (besides prosem, of course…I’m in SFS)…and the classes that don’t overlap might be ten minutes apart from another class I’ve chosen! Does this hurt my chances of getting the schedule I want?</p>

<p>Thanks for your help- I appreciate it!</p>

9

<p>Thanks for the advice Matt!</p>

<p>I really appreciate the help!</p>

10

<p>Hi all,</p>

<p>I’d forgotten about this until moments ago; apologies for not getting back to you sooner.</p>

<p>I’ll deal with questions in the order they were asked. Here goes:</p>

<p>Q: Do a lot of Georgetown students work on capitol hill as staffers?</p>

<p>A: Yes. Definitely. I know three people in my immediate circle of friends who have done this. It can be a great experience, I’m told, and I wish I had looked more closely at it.</p>

<p>Q: What are some small qualities about georgetown that set it apart/make it unique- even if its just a small thing like a tradition or school policy?</p>

<p>A: We have no frats, which is kind of cool. Your social life revolves around the student groups you’re involved in. For me, that was GERMS. For others, it might be the Corp, or College Dems (or Republicans), or International Relations Club, or an athletic team. But the fact that we don’t have frats contributes to a general air of collegiality about campus at large, which is quite nice, I think. My advice here is to find your group early, and get very involved. I got involved with GERMS only in my junior year, which meant that I missed out on two years of having a great, tight social circle.</p>

<p>Also, keep in mind that we are a Jesuit school - this makes us somewhat unique among the most selective colleges. (Notre Dame is both Catholic without being Jesuit and not pulling from quite the same pool in terms of selectivity. The latter also applies to BC.) The best classes I’ve had here were taught by Jesuits. They literally changed my life.</p>

<p>Q: Did you study abroad? If so, how did you like it and what was it like? </p>

<p>A: Yes, I did - at the University of St Andrews, in Scotland. It was wonderful. Absolutely wonderful. I miss it dreadfully. While there, I was able to backpack around and see almost every country in Western Europe. It helped to have friends who were also studying abroad there at the time - I was able to visit and stay with them, which was both fun and economical. Scotland was beautiful and well-served by Ryanair, which made it ideal for exploring Europe at large, which was really my goal. St Andrews had the additional virtue of being well-endowed with classes on the Middle East, which were useful for my Arab Studies Certificate.</p>

<p>My one regret about studying abroad is not having studied in a non-English speaking country. Many of my friends studied in France, Spain, or Egypt, and all of those who did acquired a facility with the local language that I fear I will never match. Having said that, I cannot recommend studying abroad highly enough. It was a high point of my college experience.</p>

<p>Q: What happens if I get scheduled for two classes with only ten minutes in between? Will I be able to get there in time? Will the school even give me a schedule like that?</p>

<p>A: It really depends on where the classes are. You can take a look at [Georgetown</a> University](<a href=“http://maps.georgetown.edu%5DGeorgetown”>http://maps.georgetown.edu) to check out the location of buildings. It takes 15-20 minutes to get from one extreme end of campus to the other. The good news is that most of your classes will likely be in the same building or buildings, since departments generally share the same classrooms.</p>

<p>The school will absolutely give you a schedule with impossible-to-make course meeting times, as long as no classes technically overlap. If an alternate overlaps with a course you’ve already been slotted into, you will not be scheduled for that alternate. PAY VERY CLOSE ATTENTION TO THE WAY THE COURSE SCHEDULER WORKS. Figure it out now - it took me the better part of four years to do so, and my schedules suffered as a result.</p>

<p>Keep the questions coming!</p>

<p>Matt</p>

11

<p>will my non religion change my experience in Gtown if i get in?
also im not clear on wut u meant by “Also, keep in mind that we are a Jesuit school - this makes us somewhat unique among the most selective colleges”
arent Jesuit and Catholic both related to Christianity?</p>

12

<p>Jesuits are Catholic and Catholics are Christian. The same way that US Navy Seals are US Navy and the US Navy is American.</p>

<p>Here’s more about Georgetown’s Jesuit Tradition
[McDonough</a> School of Business - What is a Jesuit School](<a href=“http://msb.georgetown.edu/prospective/undergraduate/highlights/jesuit/]McDonough”>EMBA Program Offers Jesuit Values Course | McDonough School of Business | Georgetown University)</p>

13

<p>Hi, I am in the college because when I applied I thought that I might want to go pre-med. Now, I am kind of reconsidering the whole being a doctor thing because my interest in IR outweighs that of science. I was wondering…how hard is it to switch into the SFS and can you do it after first semester, or do you have to wait a year? I signed up for all my classes already and just took the standard bio, gov’t, seminar, french, biblical lit. will that affect anything?</p>

14

<p>1789 has handled the issue of Jesuit identity quite well, so I’ll just add that you don’t need to worry that being areligious or agnostic will isolate you on this campus - it is truly quite diverse in terms of religious perspective. Keep an open mind, though, and be thoughtful about this business, and I think you’ll be surprised at the sort of changes in viewpoint that can happen in four years. I was.</p>

<p>Q: Now, I am kind of reconsidering the whole being a doctor thing because my interest in IR outweighs that of science…how hard is it to switch into the SFS and can you do it after first semester, or do you have to wait a year? I signed up for all my classes already and just took the standard bio, gov’t, seminar, french, biblical lit. will that affect anything?</p>

<p>A: The beautiful thing about Georgetown is that you need not choose between IR and being a doctor. You can major in international politics and also be pre-med. Or, even better, STIA - Science, Technology, and International Affairs. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of not focusing too much on any one goal at the outset here. I did that with law, and when I thought I might want to change my mind, it was in many ways too late to do so, due mostly to my having driven myself so stubbornly on one path.</p>

<p>It is not too difficult to transfer into the SFS after a year or possibly even a semester, provided you have the grades: above a 3.5 will give you a great shot; above a 3.7 would, I imagine, make you a shoo-in. And if you want to go to Med school, you should plan on having a GPA in that range anyway. I do not know if the SFS would entertain a transfer prior to the start of Freshman year classes. You could call them - +1-202-687-5696.</p>

<p>SFS requirements are a little bit different from COL requirements, insofar as their gen-eds are reduced and they are required to take basic Econ, Map of the Modern World, and a few other random but interesting IR-type courses in addition to their few gen-eds. Again, you should probably talk to the deans at the SFS to figure out exactly what your best course of action would be here.</p>

15

<p>rightflankr, do u no where i can get the freshman app essay questions in advance? they say u cant save part 2 of the app so u should type and save your essays b4 starting it
but how do i do that if i dont even know the prompts?</p>

16

<p>Okay, I’m not RightFlankr, but you can definitely get the essay topics in advance. They’re not trying to surprise you with the topics. I have no experience with the online app (I used the paper one), but you could certainly get the topics by opening the .pdf files of the paper applications just to read the topics and then use the online app to send them. You won’t be able to do any of that until probably Monday though because of a scheduled outage of Georgetown’s technology systems.</p>

<p>Anyway, everyone has to write a general “about me” essay. Many use the Common App essay, but you could really write anything that conveys your personality. The second essay is different on a school-by-school basis. From what I remember, they are: Tell us why Georgetown is right for you (College), explain why you have decided to study business (MSB), address an issue of international concern (SFS), and I just don’t remember the NHS essay. I hope that helps.</p>

17

<p>What can you tell me about the LXR dorm? (Just got my housing assignment)</p>

18

<p>LXR: It’s known as LX-Far because it’s far away from everything. But really it’s okay - it’s on the southeast end of campus. You’re closer to the city, and if you have classes in Walsh, it’s really convenient. The facilities in the dorm itself are par for the course for Freshman dorms. Wisey’s, an awesome deli, is right across the street; you’re somewhat far away from Leo’s (the dining hall) so you might want to plan on eating fewer meals there and more at Wisey’s or in the city and get a cheaper meal plan.</p>

19

<p>This might be too specific of a question but… do you know how open (if at all) access to pianos are? At my local community college I know it’s possible to just step into one of the “studios” and practice on their pianos if it isn’t booked by a current student. I’d like to keep my piano up to par while at G-town but obviously can’t bring mine with me LOL.</p>

20

<p>Mine is a little odd, but bare with me: I’ve been going through my closet and pruning for the first time in maybe four years. Now I don’t have a ridiculous amount of clothes, at least not clothes that I wear, and so I am likely bringing most of it with me to Georgetown. My question is: Come winter, do the dorms stay open? I’ll be flying back across the country to San Diego, and should I expect to take all the clothes I take with me back with me for winter?</p>