WashU v. Duke v. G-town

College Search & Selection
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<p>Brown man1987</p>

<p>Again, your comments tell us more about you rather than WashU. If you have some facts or unique insight about WashU, tell us. We don’t really need to know about you. If you really don’t know anything else about WashU’s college experience except your interpretation of their admission practices, then your opinion isn’t much help to those trying to get useful information about the educaton they would receive at the school.</p>

<p>Try again with some useful information.</p>

<p>What about WashU makes it inferior to GT or Duke? Despite your comments, it is known for a few things and they do seem to fill up their class each year with capable students with a few left over who didn’t get in.</p>

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<p>

  1. If what you said is true, I guess George Washington U must also be one of the most important “societal” institutions too; American U isn’t far behind either.<br>
  2. not all of those people you named did their undergrad at GT.
  3. please don’t tell me they “learned” how to rule at GT. Is there such a class called “how to become a high ranking politician” at GT? The fact that GWU and AU are also feeder schools for political career shows that GT isn’t really all that special. Put it in another way; if GT were not in DC, I doubt it’d have the kind of alums you bragged about regardless of what kind of programs GT throws out.<br>
  4. some (probably most) of the heads of State were either on their way to getting or already holding high posts BEFORE going to GT for their master degrees. Location-Wash DC is the primary reason (some picked GWU or AU).
  5. as an “academic” institution, GT pales when compared to almost all of its peers as far as advancing or producing breakthrough research and knowledge go. The niche program in foreign service and its location help offset the weakness but don’t completely override it. It just doesn’t become one of the “most important” institutions by being a one-trick pony. I don’t think it’s that easy.</p>
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<p>Sam Lee-I think the Toastman is right on. I personally hope that both you and I never face a nuclear holocaust, and that General Jones and Secretary Gates are up to their jobs. I would even feel that way if they were graduates of American U or GWU. I mean that really-I do want to live. I would even feel that way if both Gates’ PhD training and Jones BSFS have nothing to do with their position and that each one just drank from a magic drinking fountain in one of the older Georgetown buildings that conferred wisdom. Some positions, are so important that you have to hope the occupants succeed no matter what prejudice you have toward their alma maters.</p>

<p>I even feel that way about VP BIden who is a Syracuse alum-Geogetown’s arch enemy on the basketball court.</p>

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<p>Sam Lee-in addition, it is a long way from being a “run of the mill politician” to the most important rooms in the world-the situation room at the White House, The main chamber of the Federal Reserve Board and the Supreme Court conference room. There are about five or six people in the first room, five in the second and nine in the third. The occupants are not just run of the mill politicians but are the folks who determine our lives and whether we live or die, prosper or perish. That you confuse these rooms with the sixty or seventy fold larger floor of the US Congress and the many lesser important government bureaus points toward your failure to respond to the other guy’s point. Where the occupants of those 3 critical rooms come from and what prejudices and capabilities they bring are enormously important to all of us,and many seem to come from one place.</p>

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<p>For all that advantage in location and its heavy focus in the niche field, GT only got one US President that went there. Seems like an underachievment to me. Looks like most of the most important people on Obama’s team went to the Ivies.</p>

<p>“one place”? Supreme Court? That’s HARVARD. The current Majority Leader and the former Secretary of State went to George Washington. </p>

<p>

If thinking you are just a puppet or worshipping them makes you feel better, please do so by all means. I happen to have a very different outlook; I came from China and what your just said makes me think of MAO!</p>

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<p>

Well, then let’s compare.</p>

<p>Duke, WUStL, Georgetown
Art History Unranked, #33, Unranked
Classics #15, Unranked, Unranked
Comparative Lit #2, #25, Unranked
English #6, #50, Unranked
French #3, #24, Unranked
German Unranked, #7, #28
Linguistics Unranked, Unranked, #19
Music Theory #22, #33, Unranked
Philosophy #43, #44, #40
Religion #4, Unranked, Unranked
Spanish #2, #27, #30
Biochemistry #15, #13, #84
Ecology/Evolution #3, #13, Unranked
Neuroscience #16, #8, #48
Chemistry #44, #55, #102
Computer Science #28, #51, Unranked
Geology #41, #30, Unranked
Math #34, #37, Unranked
Physics #42, #51, Unranked
Anthropology #19, #17, Unranked
Economics #22, #29, #54
History #15, #44, #50
Political Science #14, #24, #37
Psychology #33, #63, #126
Sociology #20, Unranked, Unranked</p>

<p>Duke is clearly the strongest from this listing. WUStL is ranked higher than Georgetown in 9 of the 10 fields they have in common and is behind by only four spots in the other.</p>

<p>Let’s also compare the Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index.</p>

<p>Duke
Ecology/Evolution #9
Molecular Biology #10
Neuroscience #5
Classics #6
German #3
Math #2
Physics #8
Public Policy #1
Anthropology #5
Economics #7
Sociology #6</p>

<p>WUStL
Ecology/Evolution #1
Molecular Biology #4
East Asian Languages #10
English #4
French #4
Anthropology #2
Political Science #1</p>

<p>Georgetown
Spanish #6</p>

<p>That speaks for itself.</p>

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<p>Wow I look at those statistics and I am even more impressed with schools like Berkeley and Michigan in comparison to Duke, WUStL, and Georgetown. Thanks for listing them IBclass06. :-)</p>

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<p>I think that WashU probably has the edge if you’re at all planning to go into medicine. </p>

<p>Duke seems to clearly be the best of the three for most humanities, although Georgetown of course has its advantages in specific areas.</p>

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<p>Everyone’s opinions are very interesting. Thanks for the information IBclass06!</p>

<p>With regards to the OP:</p>

<p>I think they are all great schools and you should chose which seems the best for YOU. Maybe someone else doesn’t like a surrounding, but you do. Also you may like a certain student body better than another. You may not care about sports so you could take that out of consideration. Only you will know what is best for you. Good luck with your decisions! :)</p>