<p>I really like both schools, and after extensive research, have found that both Duke and Georgetown have excellent political connections at home and abroad. But for someone who wants to go into politics and/or business, which would be the better choice?</p>
<p>For politics, it's Georgetown, hands down - the location, as well as GU's government and political focus, stands out. Business is a bit trickier, but the I-Econ and IPEC majors are highly respected in the financial sector (I know several people going off to work in financial consulting in New York with those degrees).</p>
<p>SFS is a very prestigious program. For business Duke has a definite edge, but overall for what you want I would go with Georgetown (especially if you are very interested in politics).</p>
<p>I wouldn't say Duke has an edge in business. For one, I'm certain that Georgetown is more represented on Wall Street than Duke (if Wall St is how you want to measure business schools)... don't get me wrong, Duke is a great school, but I think depends on where you think you'll fit in best.</p>
<p>I chose Georgetown MSB over Duke, because I fitted in better at Georgetown.</p>
<p>I was actually in the same position you are in right now and I'm choosing Duke over Georgetown SFS. As much as I liked GT SFS program, I wasn't exactly sure if I wanted to go in it 100%. If you do choose it, make sure that it is what you want to do because the program is very specific, some say narrow, because of its strict/rigit core requirements, thus allowing few electives.
Other things I took into account:
-The people. SFS people are really intense, competitive maybe, at least compared to Duke's people and people from other GT schools. I want to work hard, but at the same time I want to have fun and not be surrounded by a competitive vibe. I figured I leave that for grad school.
-Will you have time to do an internships? I have work study, so that's like 10 hours a week. Moreover, I don't want to do it freshman year or junior year (study abroad), thus leaving sophomore year and senior year. If I were to do internships these years, it would only be two. Make sure if you do go to DC that you plan on taking full advantage of its resources, otherwise, it wouldn't be worth it. Also, if you plan to do it during the summer, remember that you would have to apply/pay for room and board. Personally, I rather do an internship in my hometown instead of going to DC and paying for the room and boarding. GT just started a program that will finance it for 5 students for summer boarding, but it is only 5 so the application process will probably be competitive. Read this in the newspaper.
-These are just a few things. I can go on, but just pm if you need to know more.</p>
<p>But again, this is from my point of view, having talked to several students, browsed several websites, and visited both schools. Do tell us what you choose eventually.</p>
<p>No, Georgetown doesn't do better on Wall Street actually at all (especially now). I've seen the data. If you are looking at information/studies of people currently in the industry that are older it wouldn't take into account Duke's huge rise in reputation and placement in NYC.</p>
<p>davida1... I think we're just trading opinions then... Georgetown is consistently mentioned by recruiters (GS, MS, MER, LEH etc) as one of the top school (I mean top 5) that they recruit from. Maybe Duke is more heavily recruited by other firms, I have to admit I don't know much about it. My previous point was not to argue which school places better on Wall Street, my point is that you can't go wrong with either, so choose which school fit you best. </p>
<p>I'm afraid if we get into that argument, we would be swapping opinions. I would be, however, to see the "data" you speak out - out of curiosity.</p>
<p>"For one, I'm certain that Georgetown is more represented on Wall Street than Duke (if Wall St is how you want to measure business schools)"</p>
<p>This is one of the dumbest things I've ever read on College Confidential, and it makes me upset that posters like you say unsubstantiated, ridiculous things that mislead people asking questions. I realize you were posting your opinion, but stating opinion as fact never helped anyone. </p>
<p>I worked in the investment banking division of one of the 4 firms you mentioned as a summer analyst last summer, sophomore12, and since I actually worked on Wall Street (I literally lived on the intersection of Wall Street and Water Street) that comment irked me.</p>
<p>First off, the bulge bracket investment banks DO NOT consider Georgetown a target school in any sense of the word - Duke is completely superior to Georgetown in any area of investment banking, trading, consulting, etc. in terms of undergraduate recruitment and placement. Second, Duke is one of the best schools you can attend in this country/world if you want to do any type of business - whether IB/finance, consulting, or even sales/trading.</p>
<p>Do you really think any recruiter in their right mind would choose Georgetown over Harvard, Princeton, Stanford, Wharton, Columbia, Dartmouth, Duke, MIT, Northwestern...especially not on Wall Street, since business is not one of Gtowns strong points. </p>
<p>Georgetown might be comparable to Duke in international relations or something, but I'd still take Duke over Georgetown SFS for most areas of political science and public policy. My reasons: Duke students are MUCH stronger, Duke has much more rep internationally (based on international rankings), Duke students place much better in international scholarships, Duke students are much more heavily recruited by any company, etc.</p>
<p>At the same time, both are excellent schools and though I believe Duke is better overall, it IS about fit at the end of the day, and Gtown SFS is a great program, especially for IR and diplomacy.</p>
<p>I think I put this on another thread when someone was hyperventilating like our last poster. When a school is one of only two undergraduate institutions out of 2200 in America to have a Rhodes, Marshall, Mitchell and Truman scholars in the past year, someone looks like a complete fool saying defintively and absolutely that any other institution is superior to the institution with that record of accomplishment.</p>
<p>Total of Rhodes, Marshall, Truman, Goldwater, and Udall scholars since 1986</p>
<ol>
<li>Harvard</li>
<li>Yale</li>
<li>Stanford</li>
<li>Princeton</li>
<li>Duke</li>
<li>Brown</li>
<li>Chicago</li>
<li>Cornell</li>
<li>MIT</li>
</ol>
<p>[url=<a href="http://consider.k-state.edu/scholars/index.htm%5Dscholars%5B/url">http://consider.k-state.edu/scholars/index.htm]scholars[/url</a>]</p>
<p>What is your source? I don't see Georgetown in the top 10, but I see duke in the top 5. Anyways, most of my response was geared towards debasing any notion that Georgetown held a candle to Duke in Wall Street placement.</p>
<p>Georgetown has had about two dozen since 1984 and since they are all probably dumber than the other ones on your list, would probably kick the ass of the other schools in a rhodes football tournament.</p>
<p>and that is even allowing for Yale and Harvard to have unlimited substitutions.</p>
<p>As to the other stuff outside of Rhodes-Georgetown totals( Yeah,TP, they are all bozos but please humor me)</p>
<p>• 23 Rhodes Scholarships for study at Oxford University since 1984
• 18 Marshall Scholarships for study in England
• 19 Mellon Fellowships for graduate study in the United States
• 10 Luce Foundation Scholarships for study in the Far East
• 18 Truman Scholarships for study leading to public service since 1977
• 32 Clare Boothe Luce Scholarships for women in the study of science and engineering
• 9 Mitchell Scholarships for study in Ireland
• 13 Jack Kent Cooke Scholarships for undergraduate and graduate study
• 27 Goldwater Scholarships for study in math, science and engineering </p>
<p>Note this list has not been updated for 3 years.</p>
<p>Well, in the only ranking of "international scholarships" that I could find, Duke is 5th and Georgetown isn't on the top 10, which is why I said "Duke is better than Georgetown in terms of students getting international scholarships." I feel like I didn't do anything unfair there. I'd love to see more rankings and data to back up my assertions, I just couldn't find any. And yes, I certainly agree that Georgetown has a lot of scholars and is a great school. </p>
<p>Anyways, even though Duke does have more international scholars in the five that were noted, I personally care more about the Wall Street/IB/consulting side of things which, again, was my main point in post 8.</p>
<p>You know what they say about arguments on the Internet...</p>
<p>Anyways.</p>
<p>If you're looking to go into international politics, the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown beats Duke, hands down. While Duke may enjoy the name recognition and the strength of its program in the business world, Georgetown offers unparalleled access to both leading academics and practitioners (I emphasize the latter more than anything) in the world of international relations. How many schools can say they have a former Secretary of State, National Security Advisor, President of Poland, Prime Minister of Spain, Administrator for USAID, Director of the CIA, etc. in their faculty, working with not only graduate students but undergraduates as well? On the academic front... John Esposito, a professor that deals mostly with Arab and Islamic studies, is incredibly well known for his academic work even here in London. Charles King -- someone you might become familiar with if you do decide to join us in the SFS -- is a leading scholar on the Balkans. The list goes on and on for the academic front.</p>
<p>Although I have a biased opinion as an SFSer, Georgetown provides a happy marriage between academic theory in international relations and the engagement of the practice of IR through the undergrad SFS program. We're not too shabby on the domestic government aspect, either. </p>
<p>Having said that, while the IECON and IPEC majors are incredibly strong for their respective fields, and many IECON/IPEC majors go into investment banking at top firms, other schools have dedicated programs to finance, etc. that are more specialized than our respective programs in the SFS. I'm sure the MSB probably has a greater ratio of students going into IBanking, etc. than the SFS, but do realize that the SFS curriculum isn't really geared specifically towards that, although the opportunity is certainly there.</p>
<p>I don't think anyone here, aside from maybe the OP and prospective students still deciding between Georgetown and (School X) has an unbiased take about choosing between schools (thethoughtprocess, being either a student at Duke or an alum, and those who are in favor of Georgetown).</p>
<p>To the OP: it all comes down to what becomes more of a priority for you in the end. If it's international (or even national) politics, I'd say go for Georgetown. If you're strictly considering business and nothing else, go to Duke. If you're evenly split down the middle, consider what school would give you the best degree of flexibility and opportunity to fully explore both arenas, then make your decision.</p>
<p>thethoughtprocess...</p>
<p>What irks me is completely biased comment as yours. I offered (though slightly biased) my best opinion when I choose between Georgetown and Duke to OP. Duke is a great school, no one is denying that... but to say it is superior to Georgetown in wall street recruiting (esp. BB) is ignorant... GS recruits 2nd here, LEH recruits 2nd, MER 3rd... Georgetown is definitely a core school for BB firms... you were summer, don't speak for the entire firm...</p>
<p>though I do commend you on landing an internship in IBD... harder and harder these days...</p>
<p>btw: Georgetown is also a strong feeder to elite boutiques (ie evercore, perrella weinberg, greenhill)</p>
<p>are you kidding? go to duke!</p>
<p>"but to say it is superior to Georgetown in wall street recruiting (esp. BB) is ignorant... GS recruits 2nd here, LEH recruits 2nd, MER 3rd... Georgetown is definitely a core school for BB firms... you were summer, don't speak for the entire firm..."</p>
<p>Sophomore12, I reiterate, Duke is completely superior to Georgetown on Wall Street, in finance in general, and in consulting. </p>
<p>Since this is a fact that pretty much anyone on Wall Street or consulting can verify, here it goes: GEORGETOWN IS NOT A CORE TARGET SCHOOL FOR INVESTMENT BANKING! OR CONSULTING! I'm not just giving my opinion, that is reality. It DOES NOT compare to Duke on Wall Street, investment banking on the East Coast, or consulting anywhere in the country. </p>
<p>If you don't believe me, go to websites such as WallStreetOasis.com</a> | ...where monkeys come to play or ask ANYONE who works in banking.</p>
<p>Georgetown is likely in the top 15-20 or so schools that banks recruit at, though, since it IS a really strong school. But its by no means a core target.</p>
<p>Sophmore12:</p>
<p>Let me give you a proof based on the information you've given about yourself by posting:</p>
<p>Given: You don't know what bias is. </p>
<p>Given: You don't know the difference between fact an opinion. </p>
<p>Given: You don't know anything about the industry.</p>
<p>Conclusion: You are an idiot. </p>
<p>It's not me, its just logic and the proof. Not that I mean to muddy the tenor of the debate or anything.</p>
<p>and* opinion</p>
<p>Georgetown has 30 full time analysts starting at Goldman Sachs this fall. That ranks third out of all the schools in the nation. For some strange reason my gut suggests that Duke is not number one or 2. But I guess if Georgetown is the third most represented in this year's analyst class at the most prestigious investment bank (right now, not before Duke gained prominence or any of that) it still doesn't make Georgetown a core target in your esteemed opinion. Do us all a favor and take the Duke propaganda and Georgetown bashing of this message board.</p>