<p>My D is struggling with decision between Wash U and American University Global Scholars program in SIS. Wash U is terrific but D.C. is where she wants to end up. International Relations combined with Math is her likely field of study. I think Wash U is better all around but generous merit aid at American and 3-year program have my attention. </p>
<p>Grateful for any thoughts out there, particularly on Wash U to D.C. career path</p>
<p>If money is not a HUGE issue for your family. WashU’s a no brainer. WashU has a great DC program which is think your D would love. Have a look at it.</p>
<p>[DC</a> Programs | Washington University in St. Louis](<a href=“http://dc.wustl.edu%5DDC”>http://dc.wustl.edu)</p>
<p>Money is an important factor but not HUGE. Thanks for the reference.</p>
<p>If money is not a huge factor, American is not even close to WashU in terms of academic quality and school environment.</p>
<p>erkybk: Thanks. Just thought AU’s Global Scholars Program might close the gap a bit academically and also jump start DC career. </p>
<p>Agree that Wash U has terrific school environment though, hard for any school to match</p>
<p>Just visited AU campus for an overnight stay, have to say it was quite nice, good buzz and excitement around the place. The Honors program also seems to close the academic gap a bit with WashU.</p>
<p>So, we need a pep talk again re WashU, specifically:</p>
<p>Why does it make more sense to study International Relations at WashU compared to Wash DC?</p>
<p>Grateful for any thoughts, obviously struggling with this decision . . .</p>
<p>Honestly the gap is extremely large between the two, even with the honors program. Wash U has a very strong international relations program and many study abroad and DC programs for students. Just look at the link above.</p>
<p>Nothing wrong w/American U if your D is set on IR. Foreign Policy magazine has their IR program in their top 10 IR programs ranking. WashU isn’t in the list.</p>
<p>Lots to do in DC to augment her book learning.</p>
Hello,
My D is trying to decide between WashU and American Univ. I was searching CC and came across your post. Can I ask what your D decided? And why? My D received great merit scholarship from AU. WashU is full price. Any advise would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you in advance.
@nextlevel, the really important part of this conversation (which wasn’t really addressed in the thread) is $ and career path.
If your D wants to go some sort of IR/IA/PP direction, the #1 variable is money: if you can afford to pay for college with no debt to her- great. But you and she both should be aware that the coin of the realm in those fields is internships, and they are typically unpaid/barely paid, followed by entry level jobs that expect a lot of credentials for very little money. And an expensive Masters will be expected in 2-5 years. If $$ is finite (which it is not for a large % of WUSTL students), save it to help her with the Masters.