What are a few words that come to mind with these schools?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Daughter, a very good student who is highly accomplished considering three schools to apply early decision to.

George Washington
Johns Hopkins
UNC-Chapel Hill

All three are obviously great schools and each offer the program she is looking for. What is your impression of these schools?

GW us a rich kids school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:GW gets a world rating in the top 100 colleges in North America...

Not surprised. GW is an excellent school. My son chose it over Brown, NYU and a host of other great schools and never once regretted it. He got a fabulous job and several internships while in school, world class professors. Cannot comment on UNC, don't know much and JHU I think for premed is unrivaled (besides the Ivies)

Not surprised that GW makes a "world rating" as a "top 100" college in N. America? Top 100 is meaningless. There are maybe 10-20 truly elite schools in the country and then another 20 great ones. Top 100? What's that, like winning 27th place in a contest? I don't believe anyone that says they chose GW over [insert much better school here] unless [much better school] gave 0 money and you couldn't afford it, and GW gave a full ride. I assume GW would give a full ride to someone that could also get into Brown.

The GW boosters on this thread are hilarious! Elite school. LOL.

I am here to say I am a GW alum and wouldn't trade my experience for anything. I went onto Duke Law school so clearly my start at GW got me somewhere. And I think considering its been a top 50 school for years (its on probation this year) that yes, its considered to be a darn good school. I had a wonderful time, amazing professors, got the internship of a lifetime at the state dept. It was fabulous! So unless you have been and had a bad experience of some kind....please refrain from making blanket statements that have no merit. I personally of several instances where kids chose GW over schools that were possibly ranked higher including my own brother who chose GW over Vanderbilt. It's what you make of it and highly personal in terms of what is deemed a "great school".

[Anonymous]

No familiarity with GW or JHU, but I attended UNC-CH. Frankly, I was unimpressed and thought it was overrated. I've been at some other schools that aren't as well ranked and had much better instructors (would have been nice if those "rate my professor" sites were around then). Everyone's experience is different and this is my own anecdote, so obviously YMMV.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:GW gets a world rating in the top 100 colleges in North America...

Not surprised. GW is an excellent school. My son chose it over Brown, NYU and a host of other great schools and never once regretted it. He got a fabulous job and several internships while in school, world class professors. Cannot comment on UNC, don't know much and JHU I think for premed is unrivaled (besides the Ivies)

Not surprised that GW makes a "world rating" as a "top 100" college in N. America? Top 100 is meaningless. There are maybe 10-20 truly elite schools in the country and then another 20 great ones. Top 100? What's that, like winning 27th place in a contest? I don't believe anyone that says they chose GW over [insert much better school here] unless [much better school] gave 0 money and you couldn't afford it, and GW gave a full ride. I assume GW would give a full ride to someone that could also get into Brown.

The GW boosters on this thread are hilarious! Elite school. LOL.

I am here to say I am a GW alum and wouldn't trade my experience for anything. I went onto Duke Law school so clearly my start at GW got me somewhere. And I think considering its been a top 50 school for years (its on probation this year) that yes, its considered to be a darn good school. I had a wonderful time, amazing professors, got the internship of a lifetime at the state dept. It was fabulous! So unless you have been and had a bad experience of some kind....please refrain from making blanket statements that have no merit. I personally of several instances where kids chose GW over schools that were possibly ranked higher including my own brother who chose GW over Vanderbilt. It's what you make of it and highly personal in terms of what is deemed a "great school".

Well, that's cute and all, but blanket statements about the comparative quality of schools are pretty much what every ranking in the country (and world) is about. No, of course I don't have any personal experience with GW -- my only experience is knowing what it's ranked and who generally attends. I think that's enough to form an opinion. And OP wasn't asking about people's personal experiences -- she was asking "what comes to mind when...." Well, what comes to mind when someone tells me they went to Johns Hopkins v. what comes to mind when someone tells me they went to GW is very different, and is informed by the likelihood that someone that went to Johns Hopkins -- by virtue of better grades and SAT scores -- is smarter. It's great that you loved your school. Most people that go to American and Catholic and SUNY Buffalo and Rutgers love their schools, too. Doesn't make them top notch. Sorry.

[Anonymous]

Johns Hopkins is for intellectuals and very focused on academics. UNC is one of the best state schools in the country. GWU (got my masters there) is a so so school academically and not in the same league as the others.

[Anonymous]

Aside from the rankings, which may vary considerably depending on a student's major, these schools are very different from one another in terms of culture. Although they all offer a similar program which interests your child, OP, I would urge you both to consider whether s/he will feel comfortable and happy with the vibe. If you don't find the right fit, college can feel like a 4-year slog, no matter what the academics are like. And, keep in mind, that not a few 18-y.o.'s have been known to change their majors, so the school you pick for international business might not be the right school when you decide to switch to graphic design.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Johns Hopkins is for intellectuals and very focused on academics. UNC is one of the best state schools in the country. GWU (got my masters there) is a so so school academically and not in the same league as the others.

One of the best state schools in the country? Ugh, sorry to inform you, you are mistaken. GWU (also got my masters there) at #51 on US News and World report is not a so- so school. Indiana Univ. is a so so school....get your facts straight. Only one you were right on is JHU. My eldest son went there transferred after his first year but for the most part (except the athletes) it is a rather intellectual school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Johns Hopkins is for intellectuals and very focused on academics. UNC is one of the best state schools in the country. GWU (got my masters there) is a so so school academically and not in the same league as the others.

One of the best state schools in the country? Ugh, sorry to inform you, you are mistaken. GWU (also got my masters there) at #51 on US News and World report is not a so- so school. Indiana Univ. is a so so school....get your facts straight. Only one you were right on is JHU. My eldest son went there transferred after his first year but for the most part (except the athletes) it is a rather intellectual school.

According to your beloved USNWR UNC is over 20 places higher than GWU, which is a little less than the difference between George Washington and "so so" Indiana that you singled out for whatever reason.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:GW gets a world rating in the top 100 colleges in North America...

Not surprised. GW is an excellent school. My son chose it over Brown, NYU and a host of other great schools and never once regretted it. He got a fabulous job and several internships while in school, world class professors. Cannot comment on UNC, don't know much and JHU I think for premed is unrivaled (besides the Ivies)

Not surprised that GW makes a "world rating" as a "top 100" college in N. America? Top 100 is meaningless. There are maybe 10-20 truly elite schools in the country and then another 20 great ones. Top 100? What's that, like winning 27th place in a contest? I don't believe anyone that says they chose GW over [insert much better school here] unless [much better school] gave 0 money and you couldn't afford it, and GW gave a full ride. I assume GW would give a full ride to someone that could also get into Brown.

The GW boosters on this thread are hilarious! Elite school. LOL.

I am here to say I am a GW alum and wouldn't trade my experience for anything. I went onto Duke Law school so clearly my start at GW got me somewhere. And I think considering its been a top 50 school for years (its on probation this year) that yes, its considered to be a darn good school. I had a wonderful time, amazing professors, got the internship of a lifetime at the state dept. It was fabulous! So unless you have been and had a bad experience of some kind....please refrain from making blanket statements that have no merit. I personally of several instances where kids chose GW over schools that were possibly ranked higher including my own brother who chose GW over Vanderbilt. It's what you make of it and highly personal in terms of what is deemed a "great school".

Well, that's cute and all, but blanket statements about the comparative quality of schools are pretty much what every ranking in the country (and world) is about. No, of course I don't have any personal experience with GW -- my only experience is knowing what it's ranked and who generally attends. I think that's enough to form an opinion. And OP wasn't asking about people's personal experiences -- she was asking "what comes to mind when...." Well, what comes to mind when someone tells me they went to Johns Hopkins v. what comes to mind when someone tells me they went to GW is very different, and is informed by the likelihood that someone that went to Johns Hopkins -- by virtue of better grades and SAT scores -- is smarter. It's great that you loved your school. Most people that go to American and Catholic and SUNY Buffalo and Rutgers love their schools, too. Doesn't make them top notch. Sorry.

Exactly! OP wasn't asking for an informed opinion, just "what comes to mind" which can included parroting what US news tells you to think

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:GW gets a world rating in the top 100 colleges in North America...

Not surprised. GW is an excellent school. My son chose it over Brown, NYU and a host of other great schools and never once regretted it. He got a fabulous job and several internships while in school, world class professors. Cannot comment on UNC, don't know much and JHU I think for premed is unrivaled (besides the Ivies)

Not surprised that GW makes a "world rating" as a "top 100" college in N. America? Top 100 is meaningless. There are maybe 10-20 truly elite schools in the country and then another 20 great ones. Top 100? What's that, like winning 27th place in a contest? I don't believe anyone that says they chose GW over [insert much better school here] unless [much better school] gave 0 money and you couldn't afford it, and GW gave a full ride. I assume GW would give a full ride to someone that could also get into Brown.

The GW boosters on this thread are hilarious! Elite school. LOL.

I am here to say I am a GW alum and wouldn't trade my experience for anything. I went onto Duke Law school so clearly my start at GW got me somewhere. And I think considering its been a top 50 school for years (its on probation this year) that yes, its considered to be a darn good school. I had a wonderful time, amazing professors, got the internship of a lifetime at the state dept. It was fabulous! So unless you have been and had a bad experience of some kind....please refrain from making blanket statements that have no merit. I personally of several instances where kids chose GW over schools that were possibly ranked higher including my own brother who chose GW over Vanderbilt. It's what you make of it and highly personal in terms of what is deemed a "great school".

Well, that's cute and all, but blanket statements about the comparative quality of schools are pretty much what every ranking in the country (and world) is about. No, of course I don't have any personal experience with GW -- my only experience is knowing what it's ranked and who generally attends. I think that's enough to form an opinion. And OP wasn't asking about people's personal experiences -- she was asking "what comes to mind when...." Well, what comes to mind when someone tells me they went to Johns Hopkins v. what comes to mind when someone tells me they went to GW is very different, and is informed by the likelihood that someone that went to Johns Hopkins -- by virtue of better grades and SAT scores -- is smarter. It's great that you loved your school. Most people that go to American and Catholic and SUNY Buffalo and Rutgers love their schools, too. Doesn't make them top notch. Sorry.

Exactly! OP wasn't asking for an informed opinion, just "what comes to mind" which can included parroting what US news tells you to think

I'm perfectly happy to rely on USNWR to tell me how schools rank comparatively, particularly when it generally is borne out by real-life experience. For example, Harvard kids? Generally smarter than GW kids. That means I'm more likely to hire a Harvard kid than a GW kid. I'm sorry if USNWR doesn't give your alma mater enough points for being totally awesome.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:GW gets a world rating in the top 100 colleges in North America...

Not surprised. GW is an excellent school. My son chose it over Brown, NYU and a host of other great schools and never once regretted it. He got a fabulous job and several internships while in school, world class professors. Cannot comment on UNC, don't know much and JHU I think for premed is unrivaled (besides the Ivies)

Not surprised that GW makes a "world rating" as a "top 100" college in N. America? Top 100 is meaningless. There are maybe 10-20 truly elite schools in the country and then another 20 great ones. Top 100? What's that, like winning 27th place in a contest? I don't believe anyone that says they chose GW over [insert much better school here] unless [much better school] gave 0 money and you couldn't afford it, and GW gave a full ride. I assume GW would give a full ride to someone that could also get into Brown.

The GW boosters on this thread are hilarious! Elite school. LOL.

I am here to say I am a GW alum and wouldn't trade my experience for anything. I went onto Duke Law school so clearly my start at GW got me somewhere. And I think considering its been a top 50 school for years (its on probation this year) that yes, its considered to be a darn good school. I had a wonderful time, amazing professors, got the internship of a lifetime at the state dept. It was fabulous! So unless you have been and had a bad experience of some kind....please refrain from making blanket statements that have no merit. I personally of several instances where kids chose GW over schools that were possibly ranked higher including my own brother who chose GW over Vanderbilt. It's what you make of it and highly personal in terms of what is deemed a "great school".

Well, that's cute and all, but blanket statements about the comparative quality of schools are pretty much what every ranking in the country (and world) is about. No, of course I don't have any personal experience with GW -- my only experience is knowing what it's ranked and who generally attends. I think that's enough to form an opinion. And OP wasn't asking about people's personal experiences -- she was asking "what comes to mind when...." Well, what comes to mind when someone tells me they went to Johns Hopkins v. what comes to mind when someone tells me they went to GW is very different, and is informed by the likelihood that someone that went to Johns Hopkins -- by virtue of better grades and SAT scores -- is smarter. It's great that you loved your school. Most people that go to American and Catholic and SUNY Buffalo and Rutgers love their schools, too. Doesn't make them top notch. Sorry.

Exactly! OP wasn't asking for an informed opinion, just "what comes to mind" which can included parroting what US news tells you to think

I'm perfectly happy to rely on USNWR to tell me how schools rank comparatively, particularly when it generally is borne out by real-life experience. For example, Harvard kids? Generally smarter than GW kids. That means I'm more likely to hire a Harvard kid than a GW kid. I'm sorry if USNWR doesn't give your alma mater enough points for being totally awesome.

I'm perfectly happy to look at things like internships, real world experience and core competency displayed the interview and not leave it up to USNWR to tell me who to hire out of college. My experience (and anyone I've asked has concurred) is that it comes down more to the individual and less to the university. My own alma mater (not GW) wasn't that great of a school although US News is enamored by it for some reason, so I really don't care "awesome" it does in their rankings.

[Anonymous]

Wow this has turned ugly. OP to reply to your question-

I only have experience with two of the school. UNC I am not familiar with so cannot comment. My son is at GW and studying under their highly esteemed Elliott School of Intentional Affairs (#8 or 9 in the country) it is considered to be one of the best in the country so we are big fans of both the school and program. He has had unparallelled opportunities thus far.

My husband is an JHU alum, and is a physician. He has a strong family tie to the University but honestly it wasn't his first choice. He did say it was an excellent institution well known obliviously for their medical school, but for undergrad other than premed he would not have attended.

Hope your daughter makes a decision that is based solely on where she sees a school that she will fit into. They are by most accounts all excellent schools with many happy students mulling about, at the end of the day, its all about fit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Johns Hopkins is for intellectuals and very focused on academics. UNC is one of the best state schools in the country. GWU (got my masters there) is a so so school academically and not in the same league as the others.

One of the best state schools in the country? Ugh, sorry to inform you, you are mistaken. GWU (also got my masters there) at #51 on US News and World report is not a so- so school. Indiana Univ. is a so so school....get your facts straight. Only one you were right on is JHU. My eldest son went there transferred after his first year but for the most part (except the athletes) it is a rather intellectual school.

GW doesn't have a ranking

http://blogs.gwhatchet.com/newsroom/2012/11/14/u-s-news-kicks-gw-out-of-rankings-after-data-misreporting/

http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/george-washington-university-1444

I played on a Div I team and we competed against JHU, and the guys that I got to know were in the more difficult STEM majors. They might not have been the intellectual liberal arts type, but they were all pretty sharp.

[Anonymous]

Yes GW lost their ranking this year. Rumbles of others schools about to be in the same boat. Good school but man what were they thinking?

JHU is worth living in such a dreadful area IF you are premed.

[Anonymous]

JHU- Medical school, tough neighborhood, think tank for intellectuals, great lacrosse!

GWU- Awesome opportunities, good education, politics, lots of rich kids

UNC- Good school, wholesome, fun community, safe, great school spirit with athletics