<p>Very sorry for one more "v." thread. While there are certainly biases in those who respond to posts on the Vanderbilt board, I am hoping to find as much of an objective response as I can. I have narrowed my choices to two schools: GW and Vanderbilt. I am a biology major. I have a completely free ride to GW, and I currently live in DC. I have been lucky to get a good amount of money for Vanderbilt, and will graduate with ~$20K in loan debt. Certainly, no debt is better than having debt, but my question is: is Vanderbilt worth that amount of debt, over being debt free from GW. Since I am a biology major, and not political science or international affairs, which school has a better reputation among graduate schools, and does that really matter?</p>
<p>Oh yeah, and all of this is complicated by the fact that I have a guaranteed transfer to Cornell for my sophomore year. So, I could go to GW for a year for free and transfer. </p>
<p>I know this is late, but like you, I have to make a decision very soon. Any advice?</p>
<p>In-DC: GPA is king; do you know how competitive the bio major is at GW? Vandy suffers from grade deflation, according to students there, especially in the sciences…</p>
<p>and if you are going to grad school, $20,000 is not spare change…</p>
<p>That being said, these two schools could not be more different, IMO (and I have been to both at least twice)…</p>
<p>Not a bad idea about the GW for free and then decide…</p>
<p>While Vanderbilt may have a higher prestige factor, when it comes to med/grad school, GPA is very important.</p>
<p>From what I’ve heard from students at both schools, you will have an easier time earning high grades in the sciences at GW than at Vandy. Why not go to GW to maximize your GPA potential, then go somewhere outside the DC area for med/grad school?</p>
<p>If you are pre-med bound than GPA is king.
If you are graduate school bound research is king.</p>
<p>This is a CRITICIAL distinction. Furthermore, if you are graduate school bound (as in biomedical research) you will NOT be paying for graduate school. In that respect 20k is not as much as it would be in the context of medical school cost.</p>
<p>If you plan on transferring to Cornell anyway, than go to GW for free. Your freshmen year at Vandy would be a waste of many.</p>
<p>I intend to attend graduate school for research, not pre-med. With that distinction, which I agree is critical, is Vanderbilt superior to GW regarding research? Therefore, would I have better opportunities to get into a better graduate school with money from Vanderbilt vice GW?</p>
<p>As well, while I am not completely committed to transferring to Cornell (and if I attend Vanderbilt, I would not plan on transferring), does Cornell offer much better undergraduate research opportunities than Vanderbilt? In other words, would I have better graduate school opportunities from Cornell over Vanderbilt?</p>
<p>I can’t speak for Cornell. However if your goal is research I think Vanderbilt will be a good fit. Whether it be in the medical center or in the Bio Sciences department. There are great opportunities for students to get involved EARLY in their academic career with meaningful research. I feel that all I ever talk about on CC is the research opportunities at Vandy haha. </p>
<p>~20k is not alot of debt to have coming out of college (especially Vandy), and unlike other disciplines you will be getting payed to go to grad school (average stipend is 28k annually).</p>
<p>if you have specific questions about Bio research, look up a few of the threads posted earlier. I’m currently preparing for my honors thesis next year, so I can answer some questions as well.</p>
<p>edit: I should say that your academic pedigree will not be as important as your research experience when applying to graduate school. So when you are looking at the schools, look at which one you will give you the most exposure to meaningful research. Name means nothing without the work to back it up.</p>
<p>I almost chose GW over Emory before I visited the campus.</p>
<p>Like someome said, the two can be no more different.</p>
<p>GW completely lacks a campus, and Vandy has one of the most beautiful campuses in the country. Going to GW would have been the worst mistake of my life. But I guess you’ve already seen the campus (or lack thereof) at GW since you live in DC… and I still don’t know how you are still debating between these two!</p>
<p>I know Vandy has the research opportunities, but I doubt GW has some that can compare.</p>