Mateo
Very tough. Tougher than what I expected. Not impossible but just very demanding.
Isabella
Academics are what you make of them. Professors are usually available outside of class, but you're going to have to make an effort to meet with them. Students are fairly competitive, but it kinda depends on the class and department. Required courses are really easy to get out of the way, and professors who teach these classes tend to know it. They'll push you, but they realize that most people take their classes to just get them out of the way.
Sarah
Teachers and classes - great (besides my experience with Economics and Prof Foster). However, every building besides the Elliott building has pretty much terrible classrooms. And the level of discussion was far underneath the standards I expected. It's not the classes that are disappointing - yet the other students in your classes that will surely slow down your ability to learn.
Iris
Many international students.
Ana
GW academics vary. I have had some of the best and worst professors at this university. There are professors that barely speak English, and those that you stare at with awe when you attend class, unable to believe that someone of this caliber and intelligence is teaching you. The amount of work and level of academic focus required for each course also varies, subject to subject and professor to professor. I am a Journalism and Mass Communication major in SMPA, and I have had the privilege of taking classes with professors that have changed the landscape of journalism. They are accessible, friendly and sincerely open to students who show interest. They are also great resources for internships and jobs, which are very important at GW. I have friends studying anything from International Affairs to Chemistry that say the same thing about GW academics: it varies. Therefore, you can choose how involved and academically challenged you will be. I would say most classes have a fair distribution of really competitive students as well as slackers, but overall, the students at GW are street smart and book smart, a combination you will rarely find elsewhere. Students study mainly during exam periods, when the aging library feels like it will explode with books, papers and tired faces, but the library is less populated throughout the semester. Participation is common and encouraged, and students here love to talk.
Kaitlin
Almost every student studies political science or international affairs, with the occasional pre-med and journalism students. The student body is made up of aspiring future lawyers, doctors, senators, and maybe one or two presidents. Everyone is overly concerned with getting perfect grades to get into Phi Beta Kappa...and every other honors organization offered at GW. But school is only important on the weekdays - the weekends are reserved for frat parties and hitting up the newest and "hottest" clubs around town. GW kids definitely live by this motto: "Study hard, play hard."
Becky
I am an international Affairs major and a Public Health Minor. I'm a student that loves school, and GW has been a great environment for me. I have made a point to get to know my professors and they have done the same. I am taking a class called Philosophy and Nonviolence this semester, and the professor had us introduce ourselves over blackboard before the semester began so that he knew all of our names on the first day. The summer after I took Global Health and Development, I worked for my professor, and he has always been a great asset, giving me career advice. GW professors often have a lot of real work experience in the fields that they teach, which is definitely a good thing if you ask me.
Your classes and relationships with professors are definitely dependent on what you put into them though. It's very possible that you won't get to know your professors like I have. The Elliott School has pretty strict requirements, but it's done by category so you can pick from a whole bunch of classes under each category and specialize in whatever you want. In the end you get a very interdisciplinary approach to learning.