<p>Hi everyone! I am currently a third-year undergraduate student at GW majoring in American Studies. I'm also a tour guide in my spare time and love showing potential students & parents our campus (quick plug: if you're at all interested in applying, please try and come for a visit!). I'm here to answer any/all questions you have about GW, whether it's housing, student life, the city, academics, food, anything. I won't "chance" anyone but I can give you general tips about the application process having been through it myself. I'm doing this on my own time so I'll be completely honest with any questions you have about GW.</p>
<p>Hey, thanks for doing this!
I’m worried more about the social aspect than anything else!</p>
<p>I’ll be applying as a transfer for fall 2013 & I’ll be a year older than everyone because I’m supposed to be in the class of 2015 but according to GW, I’ll be a sophomore. How is it for transfers to adjust to little things like that and make friends? I’m a bit bummed about missing the whole freshman bonding experience, apparently this is when you make your long lasting friendships, etc. Are people open to making friends sophomore year and on?</p>
<p>What is the best dorm for sophomores? I like JKBO and Munston. What are the social/party dorm for sophomores? How is the Greek life for professional sororities such as DPE? I’m really interested in joining DPE. Also, would you shed some light on the initations? Are the like every other initiation, in public, etc?</p>
<p>heyy GWgirl!! im worried about the social aspect too 
how is the social life at GW?? i mean are there police everywhere bcoz of the white house n everything?? how easy is it to find weed lol??? and like is it easy to smoke weed or is there police everywhere waitng to arrest u lolz.</p>
<p>NYGirl101-</p>
<p>I actually have a handful of friends who came in as transfers (mostly sophomore year, some of them are older as well) and had absolutely no problem fitting in. I would suggest joining a club or student org - we have student organizations for pretty much anything you could be interested in. </p>
<p>Joining a sorority would also obviously help with the social aspects. About 25% of our undergrads are part of a frat or sorority. We also have “alternative” greek life (non-panhellenic) that are based in some common interest (such as community service or pre-law). Personally I am not in a sorority, but I have friends who are and have never heard any bad things. It obviously depends on you and which sorority you join (for example, alpha phi or ADPi are more known for parties, and kappa delta or chi o are more relaxed). You also don’t have to live in a house with your sorority, but you do have that option. I don’t know too much about initiations but since I’ve never seen them I’m guessing they’re not done in public. Professional sororities are definitely a good option - you’ll have a lot of good contacts when it comes to jobs and internships.</p>
<p>The only thing about JBKO and Munson - they are very close (next to) a major construction site (GW is building a new science building from the ground-up). While the rooms are really nice and spacious, I had friends who lived there who would complain every once in a while about the construction waking them up at 7 or 8 am (DC has certain rules about when construction can take place, so it won’t happen on weekends or at ridiculous hours, so in my opinion if you’re getting up for class on a weekday anyway it’s not too bad).</p>
<p>I lived in schenley sophomore year but they’re knocking it down. Dakota is definitely the nicest sophomore option, it’s a pretty new building so it will have a higher fee. FSK is not a bad option, although it is considered the party dorm for sophomores. I would avoid living in Fulbright - it’s basically forced triples (and also near that construction site). I don’t know how the housing process works for transfers, but Mitchell is always an option (it’s all singles, so you do have a communal bathroom). Honestly, JBKO and Munson are probably the best, if you’re willing to deal with the occasional construction noise (they’re also right across from a whole foods and near the metro).</p>
<p>JRswish - UPD (university police) mostly control the campus, there are a number of other police groups because we’re so close to the white house but they don’t deal with students. I generally say that if you use common sense (not smoking weed with your door open, not walking around campus obviously drunk, etc) you’ll be fine. GW is more concerned with student safety than getting people in trouble. At GW you get amnesty the first time you’re “emerged” (emerged meaning taken to the hospital because you’re too drunk), so you won’t get in trouble.</p>
<p>GW does have a pretty strict policy about drugs. Weed is probably as prevalent on campus as it is on any campus across the country; however, if UPD bust you, you could face serious penalties that include having your housing taken away, having study abroad privileges taken away, or suspension from the school. Because of this, people who choose to smoke are very careful about it or do it off-campus. It’s not like you’ll smell pot smoke in all of the dorms all the time.</p>
<p>What is GW’s policy for dual enrollment credits (aka taking college classes while in high school)? Do they transfer?</p>
<p>And of course the dorm issue. I applied RD so if I go to GW, I’ll have last pick of the dorms. I did a little research and by far my favorite is Lafayette, followed by Madison and Potomac. I’m worried I’ll end up on Mount Vernon. If I request my favorite dorms and none of them are available, what would happen to me? Would I end up on MV or just in Thurston? Neither option sounds great to me.</p>
<p>mmmgirl - as for dual enrollment, it usually depends on the high school/college. Generally if it’s from an accredited college they will transfer at least as credit, if not also covering some of your general course requirements or major requirements. That is something you would have to speak to your advisor about though.</p>
<p>As for housing - within the next 5 years or so, ALL incoming freshmen will be placed on the Vern, so yes, GW is trying to house more freshmen there. If you put a MV dorm anywhere on your housing preference list, you WILL be housed there. If you only put foggy dorms on your preference list, there’s a good chance you will live on foggy, however you may still be placed on the vern. Honestly, the vern is not that bad. The dorms are much nicer than the ones on foggy, it’s easy to get to the main campus, and it’s really pretty and quiet up there. Thurston is a party dorm, and since you’re RD you won’t have preference for the smaller rooms (doubles/triples - Thurston is mostly quads).</p>
<p>I lived in Madison freshman year but I was also ED. Personally, even though it’s an older building, its location is very convenient, the rooms are really spacious (mostly doubles), and it’s pretty quiet. (Lafayette and Crawford are similar.) Potomac is nice, but the rooms are actually much smaller, and there’s one bathroom for every two doubles. It’s also just across the street from Thurston, so the two are considered the biggest freshman party dorms. I hope that helps!</p>
<p>Thank you so much! I guess living on the Vern wouldn’t be that bad. I’m not sure whether that would be better or worse than Thurston for me. I’ve never lived in a big party dorm with 1000 people before so who’s to say whether I’d love it or hate it? My main problem isn’t with the Vern itself but with the hassle of living in one place, and having all my classes in another.</p>
<p>Thanks so much for doing this!</p>
<p>Honestly Thurston is a toss-up for most people and that’s why it can be worrisome. For myself, I knew that I enjoyed going out and partying but I wanted to be able to go back to my dorm in another quieter building and sleep. I’ve had friends who lived in Thurston and absolutely hated it, and I’ve had others who wouldn’t have had it any other way.</p>
<p>You can also try and schedule your classes so you have some on the vern. Those are more likely to be open when you do freshmen registration</p>
<p>Hi,
What are the students like at GW? Nice, snobby, easy to make friends with?</p>
<p>Recommend living on or off campus? </p>
<p>How to make friends if you live off campus?</p>
<p>Do most students live off campus?</p>
<p>Hi, I am an incoming freshman in the class of 2017! I was accepted ED 2 and I am interested in majoring in American studies as well. Could you tell me a little more about the major? Also, do you have any dorm recommendations?</p>
<p>ccbertrand - generally speaking I’ve had a good experience with people at GW. It gets a reputation of being mostly snobby, upper-class, suburban white kids but everyone I’ve met for the most part is really nice and friendly. Living in a dorm definitely helps meet people, as does joining a club or student org. Most people don’t have a problem finding their niche of friends.</p>
<p>I’m pretty sure it’s a requirement to live on campus at GW for two years. Most people live on-campus for three, and some seniors choose to live off-campus. Living on-campus is definitely a huge benefit. In my opinion dorms are one of the best things about student life, and GW is good at transitioning its students into a more independent, adult lifestyle as you get older. Some juniors and seniors choose to live off-campus, but it’s not a lot because housing is so expensive in DC. I am moving off-campus for senior year, and even in virginia in a tiny apartment we’re looking at $2000/month in rent.</p>
<p>klm200812 - Welcome! I figured out that I wanted to be an American Studies major first semester freshman year with my UW class and another class called Race, Gender, and Law. I love the major because it’s so interdisciplinary. You study history, public policy, law, literature, pop culture, media studies, economics, race studies, gender & sexuality studies, feminist studies, urban studies, pretty much everything. (To narrow it down, you choose a concentration - you can read more about it at the AMST website.) The professors are all wonderful, I haven’t had a bad experience with a single one. Some of the classes are pretty challenging but you learn a lot. And in terms of job/internship placement it’s pretty good because you can work in a number of different fields with such an interdisciplinary major.</p>
<p>As far as dorms, you’ll have a preference as an ED2. It really depends on what you’re looking for. If you want to meet a ton of new people, party every weekend, get the “true” freshman experience - live in Thurston. Potomac is similar to Thurston, slightly smaller and “nicer” (newer, although the rooms are smaller). I lived in Madison and loved it - older building, but the rooms are spacious and it’s a little quieter. Crawford is Madison’s sister dorm so it’s very similar. I’ve never been inside Lafayette since it only just reopened, but I’ve heard it’s nice and in a good location. You can also live on the Vern - while it is very pretty and the rooms are amazing, you have to take into consideration the commute between campuses as most classes are on Foggy.</p>
<p>Hope that helps</p>
<p>GWGIRL, I was hoping to one day transfer to GW, and I don’t know what to do, or if im even qualified. I currently have a 3.0 GPA at 90 credits, and thinking about taking time off from school because I want to transfer to GW and im at the point where i have to decide a major! And I want to major in International relations. Do I have any chance as a transfer? For fall 2013, or spring 2014?</p>
<p>How is greek life at GW? Is rush week really intense? Do most PNMs get at least a bid?</p>
<p>I hear people at GW are obsessed with politics. How bad is it really? I guess i can talk about it every once in a while but i really don’t want to be surrounded by it all day.</p>
<p>Hey! Since you are in the admissions office, is there anyyy info you can give us as to when decisions will come out? 
pleaseee!</p>
<p>How hard is it to get into the BA/MA program for political science?</p>
<p>D. is concerned about the universities unranked status. </p>
<p>How big of an impact should this have over her decision on choosing a school? </p>
<p>Will the school drop rank considerably once ranked again?</p>
<p>Thanks </p>
<p>Sent from my SGH-T989 using CC</p>
<p>i think it was supposed to be ranked #51 (assuming u mean usnews) before they decided to unrank it. so just consider #51. also rankings dont mean nothing.</p>
<p>Thank you for taking time to post here. My daughter’s app is still pending but she really likes the GW campus and curriculum. She’s interested in Korean language and culture. Do have experience or advice for that? The University’s website shows a rich curriculum for someone in an Asian Studies minor, but we haven’t figured out what the major would be yet.</p>