William and Mary vs. GWU - Elliott vs. McGill

Colleges and Universities A-Z College of William and Mary
1

Help me crack at it, guys!

-Want to major in IR/Poli Sci
-I realize this is unfeasibly un-lucrative in the job market, so I will minor/double major in a marketable science as well, such as Econ or Computer Engineering or Finance. It is kind of important to have all those departments relatively well-rounded/reputed.
-Realizing that internships are important, those are also important for me, i.e. connections and networks the university has to offer.
-I do want to go to a good, probably Ivy grad school after this. So grad school (law, in particular) prospects are very important to me in this decision.
-I’m a self-admitted snob, so I guess an academic environment would be nice, but the idea of tailgates and huge party scenes doesn’t deter me from the perspective of exposing myself to something completely different.
-I like big cities (which I do not consider DC to be) with tons of things to do (beating heart cities, like NY - yes, Columbia rejected me), but I also realize that with so much to do on campus, there is less need for a big city than in other cases.
-Money being a semi-issue, GWU is offering me quite a bit of aid, making it my cheapest option of all 3. Followed by McGill, topped by W/M.
-I do want to practice my French, but I’ve been told McGill is kind of bad for that. The city, especially the university, are Anglo-centric.
-Coming from a small high school, I do need a bit of hand-holding, I’ll admit. Surely less than for some people. I know one or two of the schools I listed are known for throwing you to the wolves to fend for yourself, but I don’t think this will be a huge problem for me.

I hail from DC, growing up very close to GWU’s campus. I’ve had a lot of exposure to the university; it doesn’t even feel like a university to me, just an extension of everyday experiences. Elliott would be amazing if it wasn’t basically home for me. The other issue is the lack of an ability to take on coursework/double major from the sciences or economics, so graduating with just a degree in International Relations does worry me. GWU’s ranking does seem troublesome, but at the same time, Elliott is always distinguished in these rankings as being a premier IA program.

William and Mary seems to have the lowest academic repute of all three, but seems to be the “funnest.” it has the knowledge for knowledge’s sake sort of thing going on as with Reed or UChicago. I’ve heard it’s a pressure cooker and incredibly stressful, but hey, college is supposed to be tough, right? The only things I feel afraid of with W/M are the costs (though I haven’t received my final FA letter yet), the idea of cabin fever creeping up on me, and the small size. I’ve heard one (just one) person say that William and Mary tries to be a public LAC, but fails at doing so, due to the disorganization of the school. I also don’t know how well it is recognized on the job market/opportunities it provides. I also do not know the quality of its Government department (the closest thing they have to IA/Poli Sci).

McGill seems like an awesome school with an amazing opportunity to have an “interfaculty” degree bridged through arts faculty and the sciences faculty, allowing you to double major in Poli Sci and Comp Sci with relative ease. Montreal is also a huge, very vibrant city that seems to be loads fun. My only concern is that McGill seems to be: a) incredibly bureaucratic, with tons of Canadian loopholes and inefficiencies to climb over, which I hope does not interfere with education quality; b) too large - I’ve heard it is a perfect analogy of UMich, except a lot less organized; c) I have heard - at the same time - that it has GREAT repute in America and that it has AWFUL repute in America. This makes me a bit worried about grad school and hiring prospects, since I do intend to return to the states afterwards.

Thanks, guys!!!

2

You’ll have no problem practicing your french in Montreal once you get off campus. I would not agree that the city is anglo-centric, far from it.

Confused by your remarks re: W&M and an IR major. They have an IR major with a good reputation. Also, I would not say that W&M has “the lowest academic repute” of the 3 schools. Sounds like cost might be an issue, however, but I would await your final FA notification.

3

Weird, did not see that they had an IR major. NVM, sorry.

4

I was in a similar position and my main concern was how W&M seems to have very little alumni loyalty.
Also, they seem to be not particularly selective with all the instate kids. Good luck with your decision!

5

fwiw, W&M SAT scores are higher than McGill and GWU, despite the “non selective” in state students. Not sure how this translates into a lower academic reputation.

what do you mean by “alumni loyalty”? Do you mean that W&M has less money than many of its peers?

for the OP, if GW is noticeably cheaper, I would go there. If you desperately want to be in a city, don’t go to W&M. I don’t really see why you are considering McGill, aside from the “Montreal” aspect. If you are going to choose a school for its city, go for it, but I’m not sure that is the best criteria for you to use. Of course it’s your decision and it’s up to you.

6

My experience is opposite re: W & M loyalty – the alums I’ve known do look out for each other, and given its small size and deep tradition, there is pretty strong support. It is true that W & M’s endowment is somewhat smaller, but that doesn’t seem to affect the prestige nor the quality of its humanities-based undergrad curriculum.

And I also doubt you’d have trouble advancing your French if you choose McGill, which is a very fine school. If it were my choice, I would see what I can do to make either the costs for McGill or W & M reasonable. While I don’t advocate too much debt for undergrad, I do feel the academics at these two are a notch or more above GWU – though GWU’s IR is certainly respectable.

7

I have visited have visited GW and have had friends that go to McGill, however, I will stick to what I am know and comment on William and Mary as that is what I am most familiar with.

In terms of international relations, the program here is top-notch. I am only in my first year but I am already doing international relations research over the summer and it is well regarded in the field. However, the IR major here is very intensive and interdisciplinary pulling from econ, languages, government, and statistics giving you a foundation in many different areas. If planning to double major outside those fields, it may be more difficult. The IR club is one of the largest groups on campus, there are cultural immersion language house, and WM has its own international relations journal that undergraduates can publish in. The courses I have taken with IR/Gov professors have been great and it is a popular major on campus.

William and Mary does not have computer engineering, although it does have a computer science major. (If you are so inclined, there is the 3:2 program with Colombia for engineering majors). If planning to do finance, you will have to apply to the business school after you are accepted. I would definitely describe WM as an academic environment, though there is plenty of other things to do on campus.

Perhaps the biggest difference between GW and WM is the campus and the campus culture. At WM, most of the events take place on campus and when students do venture into town it is to Colonial Williamsburg, Busch Gardens, or restaurants/club events. This leads to a strong campus community. With GW, it is very integrated into the city with less on-campus “green” space per se, which means students will likely spend a good amount of time off campus, which may mean some less on campus events. It’s really about what you prefer.

I’m not too familiar with McGill, but I have heard that Canadian schools traditionally have less hand-holding than American ones. Students tend to be more independent. Are you instate or out of state? All else aside, GW and WM’s IR departments are comparable, so you can’t go wrong with either. WM has many alumni in DC and has a strong reputation in the Mid-Atlantic states. However, if you really want a city or cost is an issue, you may want to take another look at the other schools on your list.