<p>So i committed to GWU and i was waitlisted to Brandeis but jsut today they took me off waitlist and accepted me. I plan to major in a science and do pre-med as well. Financially, GW is 2.5k cheaper per year. Anyone's input on should i stay wit GWU or switch to Brandeis?</p>
<p>bumpppppppppppppp</p>
<p>I have no idea.</p>
<p>location? do you like DC or Boston.</p>
<p>ANECDOTALLY:</p>
<p>My parents both went to Brandeis and LOVED it. (they met there). However, they went to LSU for grad school because boston is so cold.</p>
<p>You might find Brandeis to be urban, liberal, jewishy, northern, while GW is more southern, conservative, old money.</p>
<p>Note: my experience only having boston parents and living in virgina!</p>
<p>The clear choice for me in terms of academics, opportunities and location would be Brandeis. </p>
<p>To begn with, GWU is not an academic peer of Brandeis. Brandeis combines a nurturing, small liberal arts college and world-class research university-with the smallest undergraduate student body I believe—approx 3000 students–of any top tier national research university. The total student body, including graduate students, is around 5000. And that small student body is matched with high-powered professors who actually teach in small classes (this recent Newsweek article featuring a Brandeis professor, William Flesch is an example of a great professor who can positively change the lives of undergrads is one example: [Four</a> Great College Professors - Newsweek.com](<a href=“http://www.newsweek.com/id/210908]Four”>Four Great College Professors). </p>
<p>As you can imagine, given this size advantage, the research opportunities are tremendous. Plus Brandeis is quite close to Boston, which is the world’s best college town, but on its own suburban campus full of activity–really the best of both worlds.</p>
<p>As I’ve mentioned to others on CC, for undergraduate students, Brandeis is truly amazing. Its intellectual environment is comparable in many ways to its University Athletic Association sister school, U Chicago (perhaps no coincidence that the President of U Chicago is a Brandeis alum). Yet its students are down-to-earth, friendly and non-competitive with one another. In a recent Forbes national college rankings survey, Brandeis was ranked among the top 15 research universities and 30th overall among all private univerities and LAC’s–a testament to its focus on undergraduate education. Larger schools, including some Ivies.</p>
<p>Despite Brandeis’ small size and relative youth, Brandeis’ alumni are very distinguished–to name just a few: Nobel Prize winner for chemistry Rod Mackinnon, Fields Medal winning physicist Edward Witten (often called “Einstein’s successor”), 3-time Pulitzer Prize winner Tom Friedman of the NY Times, The Earth is Flat etc; Mitch Albom of Tuesday’s with Morrie (about his Brandeis professor), the Creators/Producers of Friends; actress Debra Messing; Robert FX Sillerman (billionaire businessman–currently owner of American Idol and Graceland), Jeff Lurie, billionaire owner of the Philadelphia Eagles football team and Christy Hefner, former CEO of Playboy). Also, if you’re into theater/music/art or social justice, it’s a very exciting place to be (FYI Angela Davis and Abbie Hoffman are alumni as well.)</p>
<p>Good luck with your decision!</p>
<p>Both are fine schools but Brandeis has the clear edge, particularly in the sciences (if you were going to major in political science, it would be a closer call). Brandeis is much smaller and more nurturing–in many ways more like a liberal arts college than the research university it is. Brandeis students are more intellectual and academic as a group (that’s not to say that you can’t find intellectual students at GW–you certainly can but they are a minority). It also has a real campus, as opposed to a collection of buildings in Foggy Bottom. </p>
<p>My wife went to GW and she has warm feelings for the place. However, when our kids were looking at colleges, she didn’t want them to look at GW.</p>
<p>problem is my gut tells me GWU and i would regret going to brandeis knowing i could have went to gw here is my list of pros and cons</p>
<p>George Washington University (pros)
- In the city- More internship opportunities- Diverse student body- Offers twice as many majors for self-exploration.- More extracurricular activities - Better Dorms- One urban, one suburban campus- Better food- Standout more from the crowd- More student connections- Has it’s own hospital- Near museums and national monuments.- Early Assurance into GW medical.- Cheaper tuition</p>
<p>Brandeis University (pros)
- Stronger pre-med program- More pre-med students- Smaller classes- 75% acceptance into Med schools- Good Professors- Near Boston- Ranked higher than GW- Early assurance into Tufts medical.
GW Cons - More distractions- Not as academically strong as Brandeis- Unreported statistics for acceptance rate into med schools</p>
<p>brandeis Cons
- Mostly Jewish People- Quiet environment- Grade deflation- OK dorms- Chances of not being able to handle pre-med courses</p>
<p>i copied it from a word document so it is formatted weird</p>
<p>Brandeis will have a stronger science curriculum but GW will still offer a very respectable, solid base. For any one individual student putting in similar amounts of work, doubt there will be any measurable difference in med school admission probability. The early acceptance programs at both will be very difficult to get into. GW’s med school and hospital will offer a chance to explore medicine as a career option during the school year, but really won’t impact your chances applying (anywhere, including GW Med most likely). Money differences are pretty small and probably shouldn’t impact decision.</p>
<p>Think you should go where you think you’d be happiest (and it sounds likes that’s GW).</p>
<p>Mostly Jewish people is a con? Hey, if that’s how you roll then that’s how you roll, but know that GW will have plenty of Jews as well.</p>
<p>If you prefer the larger, urban school with less rigourous academics and prestige, then by all means go to GWU. However, you are incorrect about the diversity of Brandeis. Brandeis is very diverse undergraduate and graduate, with a strong international flavor. Brandeis is not a Jewish school. It is and has always been a secular institution. Although founded by the Jewish community in the spirit of other great private, secular schools (e.g. Protestant Harvard and Presbyterian Princeton), its student body is less than half Jewish and about 20-30% minorities and internationals (in fact the majority of The Brandeis International Business School is international students from many different countries).</p>
<p>The nature of its student body is very similar to other top schools you might not single out as “Jewish” because of their founding–e.g. Barnard, NYU and Penn GWU has lots of Jewish students as well. Thse examples suggest that Brandeis is not unique in having a significant Jewish population. However, it is unique in providing a truly small and intellectually stimulating liberal arts college environment within a major research university</p>
<p>Good luck with your decision!</p>
<p>What’s wrong with jewish people going to Brandeis? there are plenty of christian schools…</p>
<p>They are both really good schools, so you can’t go wrong either way. They are two totally different environments. You should choose the environment that you are likely to thrive in.</p>
<p>This is clearly an old thread, but, as a professor in the field you brought up, I can tell you that the GW name resonates across far more channels than Brandeis. Very few people outside of the northeast or even New England have any clue that Brandeis exists.</p>