So I have 5 days left to make my decision and its still a toss up. When I was deciding where to apply early, Northwestern was pretty much my #1 choice overall because I love just about everything about its student life as well as how it would give very flexible career options with its quarter system. The only problem though is through the college process and the recent election cycle I have realized that the only thing that I know of that I am passionate about is politics, and I have started to think more and more that I want a career in government. I didn’t think that when I was initially looking at Georgetown, but now I am heavily weighing choosing it over Northwestern based on its location in D.C. and government program. Regardless, I still like Northwestern a bit more, and they have a great polisci program, but its not quite Georgetown’s, and they don’t offer the same access to internships. Based on this I would think I would pick Georgetown, but I’ve changed my mind about a future career many times, and if I ultimately choose against going into politics later I would have given up Northwestern, which is better at almost everything else other than politics. On the other side, however, if I do end up going into government work I would have given up Georgetown and all of its advantages in that field. Also both are offering awesome financial aid, so that’s not really a factor. Do you have any thoughts on a career in politics (in any aspect of it other than journalism), on either school, or this decision overall? The main questions are how good exactly would Northwestern’s polisci program be/connections in politics or how flexible Georgetown would be at a backup career in business in case I ultimately don’t do politics.
Thank you!
What exactly do you like at Northwestern that Georgetown doesn’t have? Are those deal breakers?
They seem rather similar to me: high level academics, driven students, elite reputation, good recruiting in many areas, good location…
I would say they’re peer schools in pretty much every academic area (except for things one doesn’t offer, obviously, like engineering, and in journalism). What things do you like about each of them?
Get ready to flip a coin and choose the school that you find yourself hoping the coin will choose. That’s where you should go. If this doesn’t work, Georgetown is better if you want to go into politics or study poly sci
For Northwestern I like the flexibility that you can have because of the quarter system, so if I ultimately don’t go into politics, I can easily have double majored in econ or something else. Beyond that I feel like I would have a more fun four years there, they seem to have more school spirit, the people seem more down to earth, less old money rich kind of vibe although that isn’t really a deal breaker for georgetown. Also I’m told that Northwestern is a bit more prestigious. Ranking is not the most important thing, but I would imagine down the line that could become somewhat of a factor, however, the other option is Georgetown which is still very prestigious. But overall, I think I would have a happier four years at Northwestern and have more flexible career options afterward. Is Georgetown that beneficial for a career in politics? Also how helpful would a business administration minor be if I ultimately just went into business instead of politics? Where I’m at right now is I’m 90% sure I will go into government work as a career and I think it would be more professionally responsible to go to Georgetown, but do you guys have any thoughts or advice? I honestly like both a lot just northwestern a bit more
They’re peers schools so don’t worry about prestige. Northwestern might have a slight plus in the Midwest and Georgetown on the East Coast but basically they’ll offer the same opportunities and the same resources.
You don’t need to major in business to work at a business. From these universities, you can major in anything and find a job, if you did internships and took advantage of the resources provided. Both have excellent career centers and post graduation placements.
To go into politics at the state level it’s important to be involved in your state. If you want to get into politics in Chicago or Illinois, Northwestern has an edge. For politics at the national level as well as think tanks etc. Georgetown has the edge due to its location.
If you feel you’ll be happier at Northwestern go there and make it work - do internships in DC, spend a semester there.