<p>Is it worth paying all that money for GWU? I got into St. John's University in Queens with approx. $28K off per year! I like NYC a little more than DC, so what do you think I should do?</p>
<p>What do you mean by pay? Can you/your parents afford the full price tag of GW? If so, why wouldn’t it be worth it?!</p>
<p>Not many people can afford nearly $60K per year for college. I can take out loans yes, but I may leave college with over $100K to owe. What do you think I should do, I would be paying less than $20K for STJ instead of the $44K it is.</p>
<p>One thing I found on the Elliott School site was the graduate employment statistics. This looks pretty promising actually - may justify going more into debt with the good starting salaries (although this may be eaten up by high cost-of-living assuming many of the top jobs are in high-cost cities like DC). I have not looked at other schools within GW to find similar stats.</p>
<p>[Employment</a> Data - Graduate Student Career Development - The Elliott School of International Affairs](<a href=“http://elliott.gwu.edu/gscd/data/index.cfm]Employment”>http://elliott.gwu.edu/gscd/data/index.cfm)</p>
<p>I saw a suggestion somewhere that you don’t take out more debt than you can expect to receive in your first job out of college (annual salary). So that would put many people in the $40-60K range as a max.</p>
<p>So if the only way I can go to GWU is if I take mostly loans and some cash likely 20K out of pocket, would GW be worth it? But if I were to got to STJ, I would likely not have to take out loans. The only issue I see is that STJ may not be as respected as GWU. I don’t want to be looked down upon after college. Advice CCers?</p>
<p>No, it isn’t worth it. Your first job out of college might have a salary that’s equivalent to the student debt you pay per year (60k), but who’s to say that that’s your only debt. You also have to factor in other costs like housing, food, transportation, and other necessities for life after college. Let’s face it, nobody likes debt. It can affect your credit, applications for future loans, and disposable income. Additionally, it doesn’t really matter where you get your bachelors degree from; masters is usually more important.
My friend’s brother went to a state school with a full ride. He then went to UTexas for law and around 30k/year. After graduation, he landed a job with a 6 figure salary and is now living the high life. He’s able to have that kinda life because he graduated with little debt to pay off, not just because of his high salary.
So go to STJ, it’s cheaper and you love NYC! It’s a great bargain! Don’t let pride get the best of you.</p>
<p>i love GW so much … but if i was in your predicament i wouldnt do it. go to St Johns. its a great school too . and the school you go to doesnt define you . you do</p>
<p>@phillydad1, I’m pretty sure that information is for graduate students, as on the second page they separate it by MA, JD, MBA, etc. </p>
<p>OP, I would wait a week or so until you get financial aid information from GW. GW is usually very good with need based aid, so you could end up getting quite a good package to make it more affordable. Financial aid info will be mailed on April 4th I believe.</p>
<p>Thank you all for the responses, but esthetique and others I have a quick question- I am majoring in finance, meaning I will have to land a job somewhere before going to grad school (I have seen everywhere you need some experience before going to biz grad school) with that in mind, you think I can land a good job even with a bachelors at St. Johns?</p>
<p>Yes, it is def possible. And it’s NYC, so you’ll have lots of opportunities! You’re probably going to have to work a bit harder than NYU Sternies and Columbians–the target schools-- though. Even GWSB is not a target school for most firms, so we have to work our butts off through networking and being knowledgeable about markets. However, the key here is to land internships first and then secure jobs.
Also, like keabie said, wait for financial aid info to come out first. You might still be able to attend GW if you decide that STJ really isn’t the one for you.</p>