George Washington University Top Questions

I love GW. Though 10,000 undergrad sounds big, it never seems like it. I see people I recognize everywhere I go, and even though I don't know my whole class it almost feels like I do. Employers in DC look favorably on GW student. We tend to be very politically active and so close to the action that we don't hesitate to get involved. DC is really what drew to this school and it hasn't disappointed. Throughout my three years at GW, I have always made a point to get off campus a few times every week. At the same time, I like that the campus is not completely integrated into the city - there is a distinct campus area where all the buildings are owned by GW. The meal system here is different from any other school - no all you can eat meal plan, but the food is getting better and your student card works at a bunch of restaurants/sandwich places in the area, now including a Whole Foods. People used to complain about having to go to the "Vern" campus, but they just made it a LOT nicer. It's still kind of a pain to have to take a bus to campus, but it you want some more grass and a liberal arts feeling, it's there. School pride really isn't our thing at GW. You'll still find the occasional GW basketball enthusiast, but we generally don't get super excited about sports. The State of the Union is a bigger deal here.

Overall I am extremely pleased with my decision to go to GW! GW gives excellent opportunities to students. I am in the business school, and both the academic and professional advisers are excellent. DC is an amazing city to live in with plenty of places to work and have a good time. The best part of GW is that I have met some of my best friends here who I am going to keep for the rest of my life.

- Best thing is living in the city - If I could change on thing is would be to reduce the amount of preppiness - The size is just right - When I tell people I go to GW, they are usually somewhat impressed - On campus, I usually spend most of my time in my room or in the library - Foggy Bottom is all about college students. This changes as soon as you go off campus. - The school's administration is very bureaucratic but overall effective. - The biggest recent controversy on campus was probably an armed robbery of some sort - There is not a lot of school pride - There is nothing unusual about GW per se - I'll never forget move in day when I was a freshman - The most frequent student complaints are about the food.

While I do like GW very much, a lot of that has to do with its location (D.C. is a very young, very accessible city, with easily navigable public transportation and a growing number of fantastic burger places), and my own personal experiences with the faculty in the English Department here, who are fabulous. In terms of faculty in general, professors can very often be hit-or-miss, with certain academic areas in need of reorganizing (though the administration has tried, academic advisors in the liberal arts college are still pretty terrible), and others exceeding expectations (everyone in the Creative Writing Department). But like any school, of any size or reputation, ratemyprofessors.com is, always, every student's best friend. When I tell people I go to GW, the reveal normally generates one of two reactions, depending on whom I'm talking to: If it's an adult, he or she is generally impressed, or at least enthusiastic. If it's another student, however, I normally have to work harder in the conversation to prove I'm not one of the two previously mentioned stereotypes (unfortunately, the entitled rich kid is more often than not the one I run up against). Both adults and other students, however, are almost always surprised when I tell them I study creative writing at GW as, understandably, the university's political and international studies are what it's more widely known for. However, GW is one of only a handful of schools that offers creative writing as a separate major, not just a minor. It's a little-known secret how strong some of the university's liberal arts departments are, but an important one. Overall, I'd say if you're willing to take advantage of its location (internships are a big deal here, but luckily, there's no short supply of them!) and be proactive in getting involved in your specific area of interest, whatever that might be, GW is certainly there to provide you with the right resources.

The best thing about GW is the diversity. Almost every student has some sort of international experience to tell about or have an interesting story behind where they grew up. One thing to possibly change would be the size, which is quite big so at first it is hard to meet people if you are not a "social butterfly." Joining clubs, groups or Greek life definitely are a great way to cut the size down. Of course the price of the school is a big issue for many people because it is one of the most pricey in the country, but there is a great deal of aid as well as job opportunity. The location of the school is great for those who want to be in the city. While GW has somewhat of a "campus," the city of DC definitely bleeds into campus and vise versa. It is easy to get around the city by metro, bus or on foot. The monuments are walking distance, clubs and shopping are a metro ride away and everything else is accessible by bus. Unfortunately, there isn't very much school pride in terms of sports. Our basketball team gets little recognition and other sports teams hardly get spectators. However, thats not to say that there is no pride among the students to attend games or wear school paraphernalia. Sports just aren't really a big part of the campus life, so it is likely that you'll be friends with someone from the crew team or the lacrosse team and think little of it.

I love GW, but I also know people who don't so will give reasons for both sides. Positives: Being at GW you have a world of opportunities at your feet. For starters you are in the heart of DC with the white house, the IMF building and needless to say a million internship and job opportunities at your feet. Being in a city has so many advantages 24/7 restaurants, convenient stores... Shopping galore, phone stores, studying abroad? every embassy is here. DC itself is such a great city as wel. It's one of the most unique cities I've ever visited. Major events and celebrations happen on the mall once a month at least. My favorite is Earth Day. The people you can find at this city and this school are so international, so unique, so different. It's amazing. GW truley does value a diverse community and that is apparent in all your class discussions, all parties, even shopping in the grocery store. The going out scene here is legit. No matter what you like it's here. Clubs for the dancers, frat parties for everyone to enjoy, bars in the city (that I've heard of people getting into with fakes), ice skating downtown for sober fun. There are even a bunch of house parties around cause of all the kids that live "off campus" (off campus being two blocks down) Best memory: storming the white house when Obama won tied with DC's epic snowball fight during SNowmagedon 2009 Negatives: some people complain that there's little school spirit here. We have a basketball team that's pretty big but there's little following besides those who are directly involved. There are a few other sports but unless you know someone on the team your not likely to go out for a game, especially when most of GW sports are on GWs second campus which is a school bus drive away. I think the best kind of person to suit GW is an independent one. If you're the kind of person that relies a lot on your parents, or gets scared of big cities and crowds of people, and the idea of looking for a job in a huge city is overwhelming, this maybe isnt the school for you. Not to say it couldnt be but people who love and flourish in this school are those that get excited by those things previously mentioned. GW is expensive as shit! and there's a lot of controversy surrounding presidents and board members getting overpaid. For how much GW costs there's def a case for not getting the bang for your buck students deserve.

The education here is a hit or miss with your professors. So far (three years in), I've had an interest mix of terrific classes and professors...but also a bunch of weird or new adjunct professors. Overall, you're here for the location and the internship opportunities presented to students.

Living in Washington D.C. has been such a wonderful/scary/insane time that I wouldn't trade for the world. Hearing and seeing motorcades drive past my window every other day still gives my goosebumps and makes my mother scream over the phone. If you are looking to truly feel like a "grown up" but still be considered a "student," GW is the place for you. The internships one can gain here range from working within the State Department, National Peace Corp building, to even walking around that big white house just 3 blocks away. The possibilities are endless and your future is almost guaranteed to look bright. Campus life is also great, although I personally am not involved with Greek life or that many organizations, there are always opportunities for students to get involved. I love that there is no pressure to either go Greek or have no social life, everybody kind of drums to their beat and meets people who dance to the same tune along the way. I spend a lot of my time studying in our 8 floor library but always make time to fit in a good midnight monument walk or stroll along the Georgetown waterfront. Everything is right at your fingertips here at GW, but its your job to grab as much as you can within 4 years!

GW has a very strong alumni network. Since GW is quite popular internationally, its alumni networking is spread out all over the world. And for most times, you can get access to these alumni easily. As the nearest school to the White House, GW has tons of great opportunities, for example great internship in various departments of U.S. government, almost guest speech in different topics offering everyday, and etc.

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