<p>What are the highlights of GW's programs and internships?</p>
<p>I'm an International Affairs major, so being at GW is great for me. There is not a structured internship program because internships are so plentiful and different students have different needs. You can intern the minute after you moved in. There is a career center on campus that has internship listings, but many students find them on their own because they know what they want. My friends have interned on the Hill (both House and Senate), the White House, State Department, Treasury, Defense, Commerce, EPA, Kennedy Center, National Gallery of Art, Brookings Institute, etc. (I have a lot of international affairs/political science friends). DC runs on interns, so it's not hard to find one.</p>
<p>I am presuming that you attend Elliot. Are internships as easy to acquire if you are a CAS student?</p>
<p>My S is at GW in CAS. Yes, internships seem to be easy to find for CAS students as well. He and his friends have all had them - including the House / Senate. They don't seem to be limited to Elliot. </p>
<p>The internships are not all federal government related. There are internships at a myriad of not-for-profits that are headquartered in DC, connected to areas other than politics: health, education, general industry associations, etc.</p>
<p>Thank You.</p>
<p>This question is kind of a stretch, but do you know of any good internship opportunities for GW business students?</p>
<p>my daddy teaches at GW!
i don't think that helps much but he just started today soo it was exciting
oh and QYergrl, daddy is a prof in the business dept and used to be president of some businessish thing so i'll ask him if he knows of anything that might help you out</p>
<p>How interested are you in public policy? Many businesses and industries are associated with lobbying firms that push their agenda to policy makers. Being politically aware, this is the first internship that comes to mind. </p>
<p>Depending on what you want to focus on, there are opportunities for that. There are personal finance firms, business consulting firms, etc. If you're into human resources management there are plentiful opportunities in Washington both inside and outside the government.</p>
<p>In the School of Business, exceptional marketing students can take a course which is involved with a national marketing competition. Many students have turned their course experience into a marketing internship in NYC.</p>
<p>I'm sorry I can't be more specific. My specialty isn't business, but this is what I've noticed and heard.</p>
<p>
[quote]
How interested are you in public policy? Many businesses and industries are associated with lobbying firms that push their agenda to policy makers. Being politically aware, this is the first internship that comes to mind.
[/quote]
Hehe...I'm actually a political science major (I'm applying to GW as a Fall07 transfer), so that would be right up my alley. One of the reasons GW is so appealing is because of the politically astute student body. I know someone who goes there and he said there were rallies everyday leading up to election day. Political discussion/debate excites me. But the reason I'm applying to GW is because they offer a Sports Management concentration...</p>
<p>I know that every year, the Business School hosts a conference-like event for GW Business School students who are interested in Sports Management (from representation and law to marketing and operations). Being in ESIA, I don't know much about it other than it exists (aka I've seen the conference events in the classrooms). </p>
<p>Every Olympic year, a GW professor offers a short-term study abroad program to the Olympic city to study and observe the business aspects of the Games including ops and advertising.</p>
<p>Not related to the business school, NBC recruits at GW for interns to assist with their coverage of the Olympic Games. My friend says they'll be back for 2008.</p>
<p>Those are the things that come mind when you mentioned sports management. Let me know if you have other questions.</p>
<p>that sounds SO awesome! i basically wrote my entire essay about sports management...kinda sorta. but that sounds amazing!</p>
<p>I haven't been able to visit, so I have a few strange and superficial questions:</p>
<p>What type of buildings- modern, gothic, etc. - generally dominate the GWU campus?</p>
<p>Does the campus feel enclosed even though it's in the city?</p>
<p>Are most classes within a relative walking distance?</p>
<p>How large is the campus (I know GWU is the biggest landowner next to the U.S. Government in D.C.)?</p>
<p>Also, I haven't been admitted, but I'm considering dorms. So, what do you think of Madison, City Hall, Ivory Tower, and Fulbright?</p>
<p>How many classes do you take generally, as well?</p>
<p>Sorry, for asking so much.</p>
<p>The campus has mostly older buildings with a few newer buildings around, and some buildings being renovated. The campus is on the metro Foggy Bottom stop right at GWU hospital. The immediate schools are in a three square block radius, with dorms and such going another block or two outside. Most of the school is in this 3-5 block square. 90+% of buildings inside the square belong to GWU. Even though it's part of the city, it does have somehat of a campus feel as the vast majority of buildings in the campus all belong to GWU, unlike NYU. The only inside dorm we saw was Thurston. nothing special there. The Ivory Tower is newer, but I think it's pretty much juniors and seniors.</p>
<p>Those are actually good questions. If you get a chance, you really should visit. GW has a unique atmosphere, so you can't truly get a good feeling for it until you visit. The atmosphere is one of the things that sold me on GW - when I visited, I felt at home. Because it's so unique, it's not for everyone.</p>
<p>I've noticed three types of buildings on campus: old townhouses, 50s/60s modern and very new (meaning within the last 5/6 years). These are the types that stick out the most.</p>
<p>The old townhouses are usually office and academic departmental houses. There are a handful of townhouses controlled by housing for special themed upperclassmen housing. There's a fair amount of residence halls that are old apartment buildings built pre-50s (Schenley, Crawford, Madison, Thurston, FSK, Mitchell, Strong are examples). They've been retrofitted to meet the needs of the university. Not sure when exactly that occurred. Generally, all buildings have their own unique character and quirks.</p>
<p>The second set of buildings really reflect GW's expansion as an institution in the 50s and 60s. This time period, I must admint, isn't the prettiest. Buildings are box-y, grey and dreary. Gelman Library, Funger Hall, the Smith Center are prime examples as their are large and most noticable. Residence halls built at this time (JBKO, Munson, Fulbright) aren't so bad and the first two are preferable for sophomore housing.</p>
<p>The third set includes New Hall, Ivory Tower, the Lerner Health and Wellness Center, townhouse row (greek housing), Duques Hall (business school), Elliott School, SMPA, Potomac House. This group typifies the new push of GW. As you can see a lot of new classroom buildings and with that, new classroom technology. Who knows that these buildings will look like 10-20 years down the road, but they're nice now!</p>
<p>I would say GW is about 5x6 area blocks. Like mentioned above, it is 90%+ all GW. Many of the buildings are bannered. Campus is filled with students throughout the day, so you know when you're on campus and when you're not. Our off-campus neighbors include the State Department, the OAS, the White House and the Kennedy Center. A short walk (10 minutes) you can reach the Lincoln Memorial and the mall to the South and Dupont Circle to the North. The metro can also take you throughout the city, too.</p>
<p>The campus is very walkable. It takes maybe 15 minutes to walk from one end to another. There's really no need to take public transportation to get to class.</p>
<p>Madison, City and Ivory Tower aren't freshmen buildings, so that's something to aspire to when you matriculate through GW. Madison has a great location, but no kitchens. This isn't so attractive when you're a sophomore. City Hall is junior/senior housing. It's an old hotel, so you might luck out with a marble bathroom, but all rooms come with a TV and a pull-out couch (leftover hotel furniture). Ivory Tower is mostly quads with 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, full kitchen. It has a food court in the basement with one venue Pita Pit open till 2am on the weekends. On certain nights, you'll need it ;). Fulbright is the only freshmen hall on your list and the only freshmen hall with kitchens in each room. Because of the kitchen, space can get tighter than other freshmen halls. Each freshmen hall has a unique atmosphere and social dynamic. I'll address this more when everybody has questions about housing later in the year.</p>
<p>GW is on a 5x3 system meaning you take about 5 classes for 3 credits making one semester 15. It takes 120 credits to graduate, so if you come in with no APs/IBs/college credits, you'll be taking 15 credits all 8 semesters to graduate in 4 years. Not every class is 3 credits. Some art, theatre and dance, business modules are less than 3 credits. Some intensive intro foreign languages, intro to major (ie. intro to international affairs) are 4 credits. So that pans out to 2-3 classes per day where your classes are the normal 1hr 15min class time. Some classes are longer but once a week or shorter but 3 times a week (foreign languages). </p>
<p>Hope this answers your questions. Please let me know if you have more, you can even message me if you want. And I hope you get a chance to visit campus!</p>
<p>The Sports Management programs sounds awesome! I'm also really into Journalism so the NBC opportunity sounds really exciting and getting to study abroad for the Olympics...all I can say is "!!!!!!!!!!" I was thinking that if I am fortunate enough to be accepted to both GW and NYU's sport management programs, I'd definitely go to NYU b/c of location...but I'm definitely having second thoughts.</p>
<p>jg6273 - My essay also was almost entirely about my involvement and love of sports management! I'm only applying transfer to schools that have it...I sorely regret that I didn't do that out of high school.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the great information GWCS; you've been incredibly helpful. I was wondering if you could answer just a few more questions...sorry.</p>
<p>Do you find coursework flexible i.e. can you venture from your specific major and dabble?</p>
<p>Do you know anything of the Honors Program?</p>
<p>Is maintaining a high GPA an impossible task or just difficult? (I'm thinking about law school and I'll be a history and philosophy major)</p>
<p>Have you enjoyed your experience?</p>
<p>Which dorm would you recommend to someone who does NOT want to live in Thurston? I would like appartment-style rooms as well. Thankeeeee</p>
<p>There is plenty of room to dabble (within reason). Schools like engineering and business have more strict programs with most courses planned in a certain order. The others are pretty flexible. For example, in CCAS and ESIA, you'll have requirements, but you have a lot of classes that will satisfy your requirements. So if you're not great in math, you can take logic. If you're not great in physics, try physics of music. If you're a freshmen coming in with APs/IBs/college credit, you'll have a lot of flexibility in taking courses as (hopefully) those credits will take place of much of your gen-eds (called GCRs at GW - general curriculum requirements).</p>
<p>I'm not in Honors, but this is what I've heard. To be frank, the honors program is for students who are comfortable reading a lot and writing a lot. It's for students who want to be more engaged in their studies and explore themes deeper that the normal curriculum. Honors professors are very interesting (from what I've heard). One to note writes theatre critiques for the Washington Post. His class "Writing Washington Theatre" goes to shows each week and even to opening night parties. If you're not comfortable with more reading and more writing than the normal GW student, then the Honors Program is going to be tough for you. I, personally and honestly, wouldn't be able to keep up with the program.</p>
<p>As long as you're on top of your stuff, you'll have a good GPA. If you know coming in that you want to go to law school (or med school or other grad programs), you're in better shape than someone who is deciding midway through. It is possible to graduate from GW with a high GPA just as long as you're putting in the effort.</p>
<p>Apartment-style for freshmen housing is far and few between. Freshmen housing at GW is better than the national average. The vast majority of halls have private bathrooms. Fulbright has kitchens. Lafayette is smaller, quieter, but hard to get because it houses honors students, BA/MD students, special engineering students. Housing options change every year, so it's tough to know what halls are designated freshmen. I'm sure this will be a hotly discuss topic in the coming months as you all receive your decisions and look closely at each school.</p>
<p>I wouldn't be in this forum answering these questions at length if I didn't enjoy my time at GW. GW is not your typical college experience - it's a GW experience. You get to learn from amazing people, not only professors who know their stuff and research interesting topic, but have real world experience. My weather and climate professor worked on environmental policy at the White House. Business profs have experience at ibanks and major corporations. On the student end, you too can get that real world experience. It's the GW way - blending the real world with the academic world. Your location is prime to find internships as early as freshmen year. Intern at the Hill, the White House, the Secret Service. Intern at the Supreme Court, State Department, Homeland Security. Intern at the National Gallery of Art, the Kennedy Center, the Shakespeare Theatre. Intern at Verizon, Boston Consulting Group, MassMutual. Intern with the Wizards, Mystics, Capitols, Redskins. </p>
<p>DC is an amazingly fun place, too. Bond with floormates at 2am on the steps of the Lincoln (drunk or not). Explore events at all the embassies. Take in free shows at the Kennedy Center. Cheer on the Colonial basketball teams in the Smith Center. DC is a clean and green city. The area in which GW is located is one of the safest in the district. Once you're 21 it gets more fun ;).</p>
<p>I've done a lot of the things I've just listed. GW is a school where you develop academically, professionally and socially in a setting that no other school can match.</p>
<p>GWCS has pretty much covered everything but I would like to add on to the comments about the honors program.</p>
<p>I am a Freshman and am currently in the honors program. I have found that the Honors Program is much like honors or AP level courses in high school. The teachers trust that their students are all very capable and hard working individuals so they assign a lot of reading but are not going to surprize you with quizes to make sure you are on top of things. They trust you to get done what you need to get done. As far as the amount of readings goes I would disagree with what GWCS said. The reading that I have had to do for my honors courses is about equal with the reading I have done for my regular courses.</p>
<p>The main benefit for being in the Honors Program is the class sizes. As a freshman I have taken honors classes on microeconomics, macroeconomics, and intro to comparative politics. All of these classes would normally be 100 - 200 people however all honors classes are capped at 20 people. Also, since honors classes are only open to honors students they allow a lot more flexibility in your schedule.</p>
<p>In short, if you are interested in the honors program then apply. They are slowly decreasing what percentage of each class is in the honors program but it is a terrific opportunity.</p>
<p>I would definitely take sethlyon's opinion and insight over mine concerning the Honors Program. Trust somebody on the inside rather than somebody on the outside.</p>