Did get admitted to a specific college in Georgetown (College, SFS etc.) or he’s truly undeclared? They may have more programs to explore than a LAC, especially if he’s interested in say business or finance. But if he want’s econ say or place to learn for the sake of learning, then one of those LACs could be better. I know it’s college confidential but it could be helpful if you mentioned the other two LACs.
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Georgetown doesn’t have a lot of $$. That catches many people by surprise.
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Does anyone know as to why that is? How does a school of their caliber survive with such a relatively low endowment?
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Yes. That’s what I am wondering as well. I grew up attending Catholic schools that were no frills but rigorous and centered on educational outcomes. I don’t know if that is coming into play here at this Jesuit school.
When analyzed along these lines, Georgetown performed respectably, designated by the “survive” category (see internal link in article):
Although not included in this graphic, Georgetown places in seemingly good company:
As an opinion, the “perish” designation seems unnecessary harsh for the included schools, which offer varied characteristics and attributes. Many have survived quite well for a long time and may have good futures for reasons that may not be accessible to this type of analysis.
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Don’t Catholic schools generally pay their teachers lower salaries?
Catholic universities are founded and supported by orders, in Georgetown’s case the Jesuits. When most were founded, they had cheap labor (priests and nuns) who taught for room and board; they have taken a vow of poverty after all.
Their budgets just look different than other schools that aren’t religious.
I don’t think G’town, BC, Fordham are worried about running out of money.
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Yes, they used to call them “our living endowment.”
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And shall we point out that the Pope is a Jesuit?
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Disagree on that. Good healthy food and a nice place to live gives kids the chance to focus on school. And meal plans are EXPENSIVE. It stinks when you’re paying $50 a day and the kids have to go out to eat or stock their rooms with groceries.
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Good review…but I will say that Bowdoin’s dorms are pretty darn perfect! If the OP’s son wants very comfortable living spaces and amazing food plus all of the academics he could dream up, and Bowdoin was one of the NESCACs he got into, he should be considering it. Will it be a repeat of his high school? I think that’s up to him. A NESCAC experience will indeed be different than Georgetown. Out son at Bowdoin did not like Georgetown at all when we visited. The campus is so tight with very little green space and seemed dirty to us. The town is gorgeous but expensive and he didn’t see himself being able to afford eating out there all of the time and good food was part of his checklist.
If the OP’s son is truly undecided, he really needs to be looking at the range of majors offered at each school.
I think comparing food and dorms between institutions is valid if academics, opportunities, alumni networks, size, location, etc. are either commensurate or equally attractive to the applicant.
The LACs we visited were too small, remote, and camp-like for my child. The international presence and global awareness promoted throughout Georgetown’s campus and vicinity also appealed. We are a very culturally diverse family with relatives abroad, so such factors were significant.
I know two Bowdoin students who recently transferred to UVA for better perceived fit, but I am sure there are others who move the opposite way. And although there exist important differences between research universities and LACs, anyone attending either type of institution, particularly if the former also prioritize undergraduate education, can successfully learn and grow.
For what it is worth, we thought Georgetown’s campus was beautiful and liked that it was relatively more compact compared to others of similar population. It felt more social and spirited with everyone less spread out.
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I think looking at food and dorms is relevant - period. Not just to break a tie.
How grouchy/cranky do you get when you haven’t eaten ? Or get low blood sugar and be out of it.
I have no doubt that people consider UMASS or Va Tech for food or High Point for dorms, etc.
In fact the schools know this - and that’s why they advertise this.
Four years is a long time to eat poorly. Not sure why some schools can’t get it right - maybe not gourmet but at least passable.
For some it doesn’t matter. My daughte’rs dorm - Berry Hall at Charleston - the Honors dorm - is - disgusting would be an understatement. That wasn’t a factor for her. My son - he’d sleep on a park bench before he walked in there - and sure enough, that’s why he chose his school - the dorm.
We are all different beings - and for some, dorm and/or food are huge considerations. So if someone puts their quality of living space and what’s going into their body as a primary input to their decision - I don’t see an issue.
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I see it more as a choice given one’s personal situation, health, and constitution.
My husband lived on peanut butter each Friday through the weekend for years whilst studying for his PhD. His TA allowance did not stretch far enough. He lived in a studio so small he had to mount his bike on the wall to fit. This was while his college friends took jobs early and earned great initial salaries…something he had turned down for further study. He never regretted any of it.
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The important word is - choice.
Whether someone comes from money, has aid, etc. - is white, black, chines, male, female, straight, younger, older, etc. - everyone has a choice.
And some might pursue a school based on aesthetics (not just the dorms) or ratings of food quality. Others sports teams (schools know a top team draws students), ranking/reputation, academics, cost, or otherwise.
There’s just so many reasons kids choose a school - that’s the point - and if they do it for food or dorms, that’s ok. We are all different.
However choice of college can be more limited if one’s parents have no money to contribute, or the parents make the choice to impose other restrictions not related to finances or academics.
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One always has choice - in this case, the discussion was picking a school based on food/dorms over - maybe academics or rank - i think the actual discussion was if one can’t choose between Gtown and Bowdoin, maybe Bowdoin’s nicer living facilities would be the differential.
In the case of no money, the choice may be a state school, community college, online school or otherwise, including not going to school at all.
We all have a choice 
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In terms of the options available to the OP"s son, one difference might be that the LACs receive greater recognition for the research opportunities offered to undergraduates. Note that six NESCAC LACs appear in this site, for example: https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/undergrad-research-programs.
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A school with 7,300 students and a $300,000,000 endowment known nationally for basketball and little if nothing else is going to “thrive” and Brown University, a school with 10,000 students and a $7.0 billion endowment and is known globally as an elite academic powerhouse is going to just get by. I’m not trying to bash Gonzaga, but come on here.
Smith, also wealthy and also enjoying an historic and national reputation will just cut it and Bates, an excellent LAC more well known in those circles and not on the same financial footing as Smith, is going places? CMC and UAB or Ole Miss?
Someone will have to convince me to bother to reacquaint myself with this guy’s work. What I recall having read about him is that he’s the academic equivalent of a “shock jock” whose primary aim in this study was likely to get people like me to write the post I just wrote. No bad publicity, right?
Sometimes the bottom line is the bottom line. Here, that bottom line is that Georgetown has its draw backs like any school and doesn’t have a huge endowment-per-student figure relative to many schools in its academic category. What it does have is a national name and brand that is synonymous with the notion of elite education and is located in our country’s capital. It’s also really good at a lot of things and tippy top in a few. That’s all hard to deny or debate.
Yeah, fair to say it leans way more pre-professional than, say, Amherst, Wesleyan or Mac, but there are kids there who are quite intellectual and not preparing for law school, Wall St. or medical school. But, sure, if your idea of college involves sitting outside in a small discussion group digging in to Madeline Pape’s work on biofeminism and gender equity in sport, then Georgetown is probably not going to be your first choice.
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Not only national elite reputation but global elite reputation that, in Europe, Latin America and the Middle East at a minimum, is on par with HYP, Oxbridge, etc. in international affairs, business, the humanities and social sciences and law.
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