Georgetown vs. Brown

Hello all, I was accepted to a couple of schools and the decision ultimately came down to Brown vs. Georgetown (College), and I’d love your help on this difficult decision.

Here are a couple of details about me: I’m very interested in government, (NOT IR, which is why i didnt apply to SFS), looking at the pre-law/grad school track. I might go into some sort of STEM, maybe both, i’m not very sure. I’m very familiar with both campuses and Gtown’s campus wins my heart.

Brown:

Pro: It’s a better school as a whole, so i’ll have a wider option; a LOT of my friends are going there; open curriculum; student atmosphere; “Ivy” reputation

Con: I’m from RI and dont want to stay here for the next 4 years; not a lot of internship (but i might want to go into academia??); mostly just the location

Georgetown:

Pro: Great political science program, one of the top in the country; Location: it doesn’t get better than DC to study government; more internship opportunities

Con: other than government, i feel like the rest of the fields arent as strong as brown; very slightly more expensive every year but i feel like i can probably appeal that (can i ? let me know); the curriculum forces me to take religion classes (ugh)

Please let me know what you think! I’m not very familiar with Gtown’s student atmosphere/social experience so any info on the whole experience would be great!!

Georgetown doesn’t make your take “religion” classes in the traditional sense–they are theology classes. It’s basically a philosophy class centered on the concept of religion and its effect on society. There’s a notorious theology class that fulfills the requirement called “Problem of God” where one discusses why religion is problematic in society.

If you are relatively confident you want to study government, Georgetown is THE place to be. And that being said, Georgetown isn’t all that weak in other fields, although it is probably somewhat weaker than Brown. Regardless, I think, for this reason if for no other, you should choose Georgetown. Your internship opportunities will be unmatched.

Personally, I want to get out of my home state for college. Also don’t choose a school because your friends are going there (or at least don’t let that be the only reason). I think Georgetown is the way to go.

JungleJim,

Congratulations on being accepted to two great universities!

I wouldn’t worry about taking Theology courses. They are designed to explore theological issues, not to indoctrinate. The Theology Department also offers some wonderful professors.

The bigger issue is that these Theology courses are part of a comprehensive system of core requirements at Georgetown – one that highlights the different educational paradigms Georgetown and Brown follow.

In contrast to Brown’s Open Curriculum, Georgetown requires students in the College to fulfill a broad spectrum of core requirements (i.e. History, Philosophy, Math/Science, Theology, Foreign Language, and Writing).

Reasonable people can differ about whether Georgetown or Brown offers the best curricular approach. Some people like the diversity and balance of Georgetown’s core requirements. Others prefer the freedom Brown offers.

In my view, there’s no categorically right or wrong answer to this debate. The most important thing is what curricular approach works best for you. I wish you good luck in making this decision!

It’s the most fascinating Presidental election of the past 50 years. Where does a government student want to spend its final months - Providence or Washington? Inauguration Day 2017 is a school holiday at Georgetown. And by your senior year, candidates will be staffing up for the 2020 election. Interning on a campaign might be a fun way to spend the summer before your senior year.