Hey! I need help deciding between the following schools: IIT and GWU.
For context, my major is currently computer science and I’m not fully decided yet. I am leaning between GWU and IIT but included Reed College in case it is worth attending.
Aside from financial differences, I’m very conflicted between IIT and GWU as engineering schools (in case I go down the route of engineering). I got into both IIT and GWU SEAS but I keep finding not-so-good comments about attending GW for engineering even though it apparently ranks higher (75) than IIT (88) as an engineering School.
I’m certain that I’ll fall back on CS but at times I would like to consider neuroscience/medical route or just go into engineering (aerospace/biomedical). I’m sort of all over the place with my major (which is why I’ve been leaning towards GWU since it has more majors to pick from). Also I’m not sure I’d like the environment of a tech institute.
I like both of their locations, my only question is: which is worth it for engineering/computer science? GWU is slightly more expensive, but if it is worth it then I’ll consider it.
Could anyone let me know if GWU SEAS is worth it over IIT?
As you can tell, I’m very confused as to what to do and some outside insight would be more than greatly appreciated!
Rankings tend to be useless when schools are that close. What does that ranking you look at actually measure?
I don’t think GWU CS is all that impressive. I think your choice should be between IIT (the one in Chicago, right?), and Reed (which sends a high proportion of kids to PhD programs so should be doing something right).
Hello! Current Reed student here (though I’m in the process of transferring out)! It’s worth noting that Reed’s CS department is fairly new/upcoming so it might not be as well established as the programs at the other schools you’re considering. I do think that it has the potential to grow into a strong CS program, but atm it’s still pretty new. It is also true, however, that Reed prepares you very well for grad school so if that’s what you’re planning on pursuing then Reed is a great place for that! I guess it just comes down to whether the quality/strength of the program matters more or the general grad school prep rigor
I cannot say anything about GWU but the IIT Engineering programs (there are 5 distinct engineering departments) are really quite strong. Rankings often depend on how big the departments are and IIT has relatively small departments so that the ranking for our bigger departments (mechanical materials & aerospace; electrical & computer engineering) are quite a bit higher than for smaller ones, like physics and chemical engineering but all of these have more or less the same amount of funding per faculty member.
As IIT is a tech school, there are not the variety of liberal arts majors available as other schools might have but if you are planning on CS or engineering, then all the majors that you might want are available at IIT.
it’s around a 10-15k difference. I got a 30k merit scholarship for IIT and 20k merit for GWU.
The thing is, I feel more comfortable going to DC since I know the area better than Chicago. After looking into IIT, I’m not sure I can see myself there. So I’m wondering, is GWU worth that ~55k/year or should I just pick IIT (~40k/yr).
Thank you! I’m really happy that I got insight from a Reedie. I do like the school it’s just that I wasn’t offered any financial aid and they don’t give merit scholarships sadly. So for now, I’ve put it to the side.
If you can afford it, comparing IIT to GWU, I would put GWU higher. Going into STEM and being in DC, the internship opportunities within the US Government will be expansive.