G'Town's I.T. infrastructure bad ??

Colleges and Universities A-Z Georgetown University
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<p>I pulled this out of another thread to start this new one.</p>

<p>In another thread, an insider (student?) at G'Town says: "Surprisingly, Georgetown isn't as technologically advanced as you'd think (either as to admissions or when you get there--in terms of how much of the campus is wireless, web resources, etc)."</p>

<p>I have seen that same sentiment on here in other Georgetown threads. I remember when Mario (from admissions) used to post last Fall, he referred more than once to how primitive the I.T. is at Georgetown. In other college ratings publications (books & web, like pro.wler, etc) G'Town consistently gets a very low ranking for on-campus computing and infrastructure. I wonder why schools like this -- at the absolute pinnacle of higher education in most people's minds -- end up letting themselves fall behind in areas that are so important to the basic productivity and learning experience of their students? It can't be a money issue.... is it a mindset?</p>

<p>Just trying to help my sis put together her decision matrix (lol -- assuming the letter comes with good news next week) and the matrix has a spot for computers & I.T. resources. Anyone who is intimate with G'Town able to comment on their experiences -- good or bad? Thanks.</p>

<p>Gabby</p>

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<p>(I used to work for University Information Services at Gtown, for all 4 years)</p>

<p>Georgetown is definitely behind in technology. However, I would say that it does what it needs to do. The one big issue that most students would look at is wireless access. It is only available in a few areas, and only one freshman dorm has it (New South). All rooms have wired connections for each student. There are computer labs around campus, with both Apple and Windows-based computers. So when students complain about the technology, they are really referring to the wireless network, which isn't everywhere, and in the library, it sometimes doesn't work when it is PACKED. They tried to fix this by adding more wireless access points, not sure what the situation is now. Also, in certain dorms, students need to use a "media adapter" to connect to the wired connection. The University provides these for free to students (if you break part of it, you pay for that part), and all you need is the ethernet cord (that you need for all wired connections anywhere, in the world, basically). The University a long time ago thought that a fiber optic connection would be the thing of the future, and when it turned out that it wasn't, media adapters were necessary to convert the fiber optic connection to one that can be used by computers. It is very expensive to simply replace these fiber connections, which is why media adapters have been used for so long.</p>

<p>The Email system was also ancient. However it has been upgraded, using a Gmail system, is already available to faculty and staff, and should be available to students by the beginning of the fall. This new system provides MUCH more space than before. Also they are overhauling Student Access+, which is the system students use to register for classes, check bills, check transcripts, etc. They're moving to a more advanced system, which will also make the application process better.</p>

<p>So, the main issue your sister will (hopefully!) see is that wireless is not everywhere on campus, and that (at least when i was there) when you're in the library, if the library is REALLY busy, with everyone on wireless, it cuts out sometimes, which is annoying.</p>