Help me! Northwestern v. Georgetown

Transfer Students
1

<p>The title of this thread sums up my dilemma. I recieved similar financial aid packages from both schools, so money is not a deciding factor. I have about a week to decide and am beached on the shores of indecision. Help!</p>

<p>Some factors I have considered/ am considering include but are not limited to:
-structure (quarters v. semesters. I went to a small LAC freshman year, organized into trimesters, and I liked the system. Less classes, more time to bond with profs., less stress during finals/midterms, etc.)
-school atmosphere (I have heard Nwestern is less of a party school/more academic)
-Location (both wash. and chi-town are going to be a lot of fun)
-programs (I am a hist./philosophy double major... does this mean Georgetown is the obvious choice? I know they have great programs in this, but Nwesters is also known for its history department, and has some great philosophy profs... Also, I'm not sure I want to go to a school dmominated only by humanities students. Some academic diversity is appreciated)
-Georgetown=Christian school. (Not so much a turn off, even though I am a Jew. I am intrigued to take theology classes and like how the Jesuit model of education is informed by a virtue of service to principles greater than ones self)
-Location (Georgetown would be a train ride for me, Northerstern a flight. Not a big factor in my opinion.)
-Grad/Law School (I want to go to law school. I know Nwestern has upwards of 90% law/grad school acceptance... can the same be said for Gtown? Furthermore, will I have an easier time finding faculty help at a school where I will not be one of thousands of Law School aspierees? (I.E., will less people be wanting to go to law school from Nwestern than Gtown, meaning less competion?))</p>

<p>These are some of my considerations... Please weigh in with comments/questions/criticisms/etc.</p>

2

<p>believe me, flight is a big deal.</p>

<p>both good schools. i would say g-town fits better</p>

3

<p>i completely agree flight is a big deal</p>

4

<p>
[quote]
-programs (I am a hist./philosophy double major... does this mean Georgetown is the obvious choice? I know they have great programs in this, but Nwesters is also known for its history department, and has some great philosophy profs... Also, I'm not sure I want to go to a school dmominated only by humanities students. Some academic diversity is appreciated)

[/quote]
</p>

<p>If you want academic diversity, you will not find it in Northwestern's philosophy department; the department is overwhelmingly lopsided toward continental philosophy, and in addition, is losing many faculty to other universities. The quintessential example of such an exodus is the former department chair, who left Northwestern for Georgetown. </p>

<p>Georgetown has a much more balanced department, though slightly continental-leaning. We offer courses both in the analytic tradition of philosophy, and have extensive coverage in the continental tradition. Additionally, Georgetown has the best bioethics department in the country, and thus, we have the best applied ethics courses and excellent theoretical ethics courses.</p>

<p>
[quote]
-Georgetown=Christian school. (Not so much a turn off, even though I am a Jew. I am intrigued to take theology classes and like how the Jesuit model of education is informed by a virtue of service to principles greater than ones self)

[/quote]
</p>

<p>1) I know you probably do not think this, but I should make it clear: the theology requirements are not Christianity requirements. I took "The Problem of God," and the only time 'Christianity' was uttered was when our professor said he did not belief in it (he is a self-proclaimed atheist). The course as more about how we experience religion and the common aspects among experiences of diverse religions.
2) Georgetown not has Christian as its Catholic identity may suggest: there are pro-choice protests, a lot of professors are agnostic or atheist, and no Christian-related activity has required attendance. In fact, I would say that Georgetown is one of the most religiously diverse campuses: for instance, we were the first university to hire an Islamic Priest (I am not sure what the proper name for them is), and we also have accomodations like "Islamic Housing," where students may reside with those of a similar faith.
3) The Jesuits are great. They never proselytize, and if you are really nice to them, they may invite you into the Jesuit Residence, which has great food. The experiences with chaplain-in-residences varies from dorm to dorm, but not in the way you think: the chaplains either do not care about your at all, or they will make every effort to provide help when you ask for it. My chaplain held trivial pursuit nights, made food for us if we wanted, had free-coffee Tuesdays at the Midnight Mug (an on-campus coffee-shop), and multifarious experiences to share.
4) Hilariously enough, a speaker on campus last year criticized Georgetown for being so liberal and "un-Catholic." </p>

<p>
[quote]
-Grad/Law School (I want to go to law school. I know Nwestern has upwards of 90% law/grad school acceptance... can the same be said for Gtown? Furthermore, will I have an easier time finding faculty help at a school where I will not be one of thousands of Law School aspierees? (I.E., will less people be wanting to go to law school from Nwestern than Gtown, meaning less competion?))

[/quote]
</p>

<p>This might help:
1)<a href="http://www.law.harvard.edu/admissions/jd/colleges.php%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.law.harvard.edu/admissions/jd/colleges.php&lt;/a>
Georgetown is one of the few that sends 30+ students to Harvard Law School. Last year the number was 37.
2) <a href="http://www3.georgetown.edu/career_center/prelaw/applying/8813.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www3.georgetown.edu/career_center/prelaw/applying/8813.html&lt;/a>
The average GPA/LSAT into HLS is a 3.82/172. That is excellent.
3) If you have a 3.8+ cumulative GPA by March of your junior year, you can apply for the Georgetown Law Center Early Assurance program. You need not take the LSAT, and if admitted, you will have a non-binding spot reserved for you at one of the nation's best law schools when you graduate. It is a pretty nice deal:)</p>

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<p>northwestern. I'm on the transfer waitlist for georgetown</p>

6

<p>hahaha gdubz is hilarious.
anyways, i don't really know much about the schools' history or philosophy departments, but i'd go to northwestern.</p>

7

<p>
[quote]
but i'd go to northwestern.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>...and I am quite sure you are giving Northwestern greater weight because they are ranked higher.</p>

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<p>Keep in mind the HSL list only shows the numbers of students enrolled, not numbers applied vs admitted. Schools that are on the east coast would naturally have more students at HSL since more students apply due to proximity. Georgetown would give you an edge, however, if you are happy to get into Georgetown law school (ranked #14). Similary, Northwestern undergrads are often most represented in UChicago (#6) and Northwestern (#12) law schools. However, Northwestern doesn't have anything equivalent to the Georgetown Law Center Early Assurance program.</p>

9

<p>
[quote]
Keep in mind the HSL list only shows the numbers of students enrolled, not numbers applied vs admitted.

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</p>

<p>Ack! I keep on forgetting this:)</p>

10

<p>Nspeds, thanks for the lengthly and informative reply. What year are you? What are you studying? One of the reasons I find myself leaning towards Gtown is the schools comparative course catalogues; Georgetown seems to have more classes numerically and more interesting classes.</p>

<p>Feel free to check out the links, to each school's respective register for the upcoming fall quarter, if you hav time, etc. </p>

<p>gtown: <a href="http://explore.georgetown.edu/courses/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://explore.georgetown.edu/courses/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>nwest: <a href="http://aquavite.northwestern.edu/cdesc/course-list.cgi?school_id=400&quarter=F06&pagetype=d%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://aquavite.northwestern.edu/cdesc/course-list.cgi?school_id=400&quarter=F06&pagetype=d&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Given this comparison, georgetown seems like the clear favorite, no?</p>

<p>And just because everyone on here seems to be praising Georgetown, what is so good about Northwestern anyway? Surely there are some positives to a school ranked and regarded as highly as it is...</p>

11

<p>
[quote]
What year are you? What are you studying?

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</p>

<p>I am beginning my junior year this fall, and I am studying philosophy.</p>

<p>
[quote]
what is so good about Northwestern anyway? Surely there are some positives to a school ranked and regarded as highly as it is...

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</p>

<p>Not that Northwestern does not have any positive aspects, but many schools play with numbers in order to boost their USNews ranking. Three such schools are UPenn, WUSTL, and Duke. Who would rank UPenn above Stanford or MIT? An idiot would.</p>

12

<p>Almost no school can claim to be better in everything. In your case, if you find that Georgetwon has more variety of classes you like, it's probably a good indication it's better in what you are interested. Don't worry about rankings. Northwestern is ranked higher probably because it has strength in a bit more diverse areas (e.g. econ, performing arts, journalism, sciences and engineering) but that's not really important to you.</p>

13

<p>
[quote]
Northwestern is ranked higher probably because it has strength in a bit more diverse areas (e.g. econ, performing arts, journalism, sciences and engineering) but that's not really important to you.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I agree completely. One would be remiss for choosing Georgetown to study in any of the disciplines SL listed. Likewise, one would be remiss for choosing Northwestern if one were interested in international relations, for instance.</p>

<p>Georgetown's philosophy and history departments are well-regarded, with the former on the rise. Northwestern suffered a huge blow to its program when the chair, one of the nation's best Hegelian scholars, departed for Georgetown, and will suffer yet another blow when Habermas retires, which should be this year.</p>

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<p>nspeds, you are absolutely correct, haha :]</p>

<p>GO HOYAS!!!</p>

15

<p>personally, i would go to Northwestern in a second over Gtown</p>

<p>think of it like this</p>

<p>money speaks</p>

<p>northwestern's endowment is like MANY TIMES larger than Gtown's (a very little endowment)</p>

<p>i wouldn't want to go to a school with a christian affiliation either</p>

<p>i think Chicago > D.C.</p>

<p>both feed pretty well</p>

<p>Northwestern has a better name in academia...has more esteemed professsors and has higher ranked departments acrossed the board</p>

16

<p>i know us news peer assessment scores are off</p>

<p>but hey, it's worth something in broad terms</p>

<p>Northwestern 4.4 out of 5.0
Upenn = 4.5
Brown = 4.4
Dartmouth = 4.4</p>

<p>Gtown = 4.0</p>

17

<p>hey bball, did you decide between northwestern and uchicago yet?</p>

18

<p>i just wanted to add--both are great schools</p>

<p>either way--u will be fine</p>

19

<p>would anyone try to stand up for northwestern on grounds other than endowment?</p>

20

<p>Northwestern is beautiful. Cheaper to play in Evanston and Chicago. DD flies back and forth from Albany NY for $200RT several times a year. Consider that the East is what you know. I noticed a big difference in the people of the Midwest (and I grew up & went to college in the middle of nowhere in the NW, lived in Seattle until it was invaded from CA, moved to Texas, Kentucky and then NY) Experience the Midwest. Much of what you know will come from the people around you.</p>