Georgetown and GWU

[Jolie South]

What experiences do people have with these 2 schools? I'm looking to hear from med students or folks that have already interviewed there.

How happy are the students? What's the environment like (cutthroat, cooperative, etc.)?

Just looking to have some honest info before I go for my interviews.

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[Quix]

Georgetown:

Donna is awesome. You will know what I mean post-interview.

The students were very enthusiatic about their experience, and they noted that while there are some gunners, there's more camaraderie.

 

[Jolie South]

Come on people .. .

 

[polycon7]

First year here. I really like it so far. Definitely not cut throat. I must say I'm more impressed each day from the faculty. When they spoke of a nurturing environement at our white coat ceremony...they really DO mean a nurturing environment here!

 

[Jolie South]

First year here. I really like it so far. Definitely not cut throat. I must say I'm more impressed each day from the faculty. When they spoke of a nurturing environement at our white coat ceremony...they really DO mean a nurturing environment here!

what's the clinical exposure like in the 1st year?

 

[Quix]

Patient exposure begins in the first semester at Georgetown.

 

[Phoenix.]

I had my GWU interview today. It was great. Hands down awesome, in fact. But that might be because I was thrilled by the health care policy track (which allows you to do some pretty amazing "internships" with congressmen/policy makers/etc.), and their global health track (35 students went abroad last year through GWU). They have an Office of Student Opportunities that helps find you opportunities and programs that fit your interests. The majority of the students that I spoke with said that everyone was really friendly and cooperative. Only one admitted that there are "some gunners," but I figure that's true of any school. The schpiel we got at the beginning stressed that people who have a policy or international focus would love it at GWU, and that they like laid back students. They also made a point of saying that they don't even try to compete with the big research schools, but that anyone that's interested in research can do amazing research at NIH (and of course there's also research directly at GWU as well). They seem to have great clinical training programs and facilities, and I can say that overall I was even more impressed than I expected to be. The opportunities there are exactly what I'm interested in, and I really like the laid back atmosphere.

The only draw back I saw was that first year classes (and second year I believe) go from 8-5. The classes are on mp3 as well, but I'm less of a classroom learner, so I was hoping it'd be like some other schools that have cut down on the classroom time. Anyway, if anyone has any specific questions, feel free to PM me. Oh, and they made a point of saying that they welcome and seek out non-trad students. Their class this year ranges from 21-49, and from the students I spoke to, it's a good distribution. And they said that they get incredible matches particularly because your fourth year you only have to spend 3 months at GWU, so if there's a hospital that you're particularly interested in in Cali, Chicago, etc., you're able to spend time there doing a rotation and making connections. Overall, I thought it would be an amazing place to study medicine, and I hope they liked me as much as I liked them!

As for interviews - they tell you in the intro that they're laid back, and indeed they are. Very conversational, and closed file. One doc and one student. You have lunch with the other interviewees, and 1st and 2nd year students drop by to introduce themselves and answer anything you'd like to know. Oh, and the tour and all of the info is presented before your interviews, which is also really nice. Ok, done babbling. Overall: great school!

 

[ladyluck3]

Georgetown:

Donna is awesome. You will know what I mean post-interview.

The students were very enthusiatic about their experience, and they noted that while there are some gunners, there's more camaraderie.

i interviewed at both and to be honest, i really didn't like georgetown at all. ms. sullivan's speech was fine, but kind of long when she started getting into existentialistic (sp?) questions and such. truth of the matter is, i do agree with cura personalis, but i dont appreciate the research requirement or the lack of international and internship opportunities (when compared with gwu; i.e. lack of an mph program). also, i find the campus to be pretty dreary and i prefer the center of the city to georgetown (many do not agree with this, so don't start flaming, i'm just stating my opinion).

obviously i'd be blessed to get into either, but if i somehow get into both, i definitely prefer gwu--by a longshot. see phoenix's post for pretty much all the reasons.

 

[tch001]

i interviewed at both and to be honest, i really didn't like georgetown at all. ms. sullivan's speech was fine, but kind of long when she started getting into existentialistic (sp?) questions and such. truth of the matter is, i do agree with cura personalis, but i dont appreciate the research requirement or the lack of international and internship opportunities (when compared with gwu; i.e. lack of an mph program). also, i find the campus to be pretty dreary and i prefer the center of the city to georgetown (many do not agree with this, so don't start flaming, i'm just stating my opinion).

obviously i'd be blessed to get into either, but if i somehow get into both, i definitely prefer gwu--by a longshot. see phoenix's post for pretty much all the reasons.

I also was not impressed with georgetown last year. I'm a very not religious person and their catholic bend on thing defineitly put me off. I didn't interview at GW though, so I don't really have any basis for comparison.

 

[Quix]

I'm not sure what you mean by the "Catholic bend" on things, considering that they don't push any particular religious concepts in the education, you have the opportunity to rotate through practices offering services antithetical to Catholicism, etc. The only thing that might be considered "Catholic" about the education is the emphasis on caring for underserved populations.

 

[greg1184]

I'm not sure what you mean by the "Catholic bend" on things, considering that they don't push any particular religious concepts in the education, you have the opportunity to rotate through practices offering services antithetical to Catholicism, etc. The only thing that might be considered "Catholic" about the education is the emphasis on caring for underserved populations.

Yeah, the Jesuits are the most down to earth religious order. I have a great deal of respect for them. They do not impose religion on people.

 

[montessori2md]

I interviewed at both, and I think it's a personal preference sort of thing.
Both are really expensive.
Both had laid-back interviews (in my experience).
Both will basically let you do whatever extracurriculars you want, including international/public policy/etc etc medicine. Honestly, how much time are you going to have for ECs?
Both have a full-day schedule M-1 and M-2.
Both are in DC, albeit in different parts of the city.

I liked GWU's day much better, because I was able to talk to at least 6 students, 2 of whom were M-3s, so was able to ask about what clinicals were like, and we were actually shown their sim stuff, which Gtown's tour didn't include (to be fair, it was the guy's first tour, and we did see the anatomy lab, which GWU didn't show). The faculty and staff can tell you whatever they want, but you're not going to be one of them, you're going to be one of the students.

I personally found the "lecture" portion of the Georgetown's Day (aka Donna) to be dour, but I was also under the impression that she was attempting to scare us off, so that was an appropriate attitude. Scaring people off, when you get 10,000 apps/year, is not an unreasonable way to weed applicants. But GWU also tells you upfront that if you don't like public policy or international health, they aren't the school for you -their Dean just has a different style.

The big difference, that I noted, is that Gtown is completely revising their M1 and M2 curriculum starting with the class of '12, to be not PBL, but integrated systems blocks.

So you could choose between the 2 based on:
1) clinical year schedules
2) M1/M2 learning style
3) Location/hospital/facilities
4) you want an MPH to go with your MD (GWU)
5) Complementary med/Catholicism/new curriculum/Ivy League "feel" vs.
International/Public Health/liberal "feel"

*note: I understand it is possible that an adcom may read this, and while this post is honest, I did not state a preference for one school or the other in order to avoid "tipping my hand" on SDN.

 

[Phoenix.]

So you could choose between the 2 based on:
1) clinical year schedules
2) M1/M2 learning style
3) Location/hospital/facilities
4) you want an MPH to go with your MD (GWU)
5) Complementary med/Catholicism/new curriculum/Ivy League "feel" vs.
International/Public Health/liberal "feel"

I liked your analysis, but personally, I don't think that you need to want an MPH to enjoy or go to GWU. I thought that their point was that you can do their health care policy track by attending lectures, doing research, etc. over the course of four years at med school instead of doing a full year MPH. You don't end up with an MPH by doing the track, but you'll learn a lot about the topic (in this case healthcare policy) that you're interested in. They sold it to me like it was an alternative to an MPH if you didn't want to put in the extra year (and tuition) and in-depth course-work but had an interest in the field. Also, you can only select one track. They were just as big on selling their global health track. And they did talk about their new alternative medicine track.

 

[154465]

So I'm assuming GWU is more of an urban school, because thats what I'm looking for. Can anyone confirm this or give me more insight, it's tough to get any real idea about these schools without having ever visited.

 

[Phoenix.]

So I'm assuming GWU is more of an urban school, because thats what I'm looking for. Can anyone confirm this or give me more insight, it's tough to get any real idea about these schools without having ever visited.

Is GWU an urban school? Absolutely. It's in the middle of DC.

EDIT: Actually, depends on your definition/opinion of "urban" and what you're looking for.

 

[154465]

Is GWU an urban school? Absolutely. It's in the middle of DC.

EDIT: Actually, depends on your definition/opinion of "urban" and what you're looking for.

Large "downtown" type area with a high population density, usually under served. I'm not so big on suburbia, although I would go anywhere if I had to.

 

[tacrum43]

Large "downtown" type area with a high population density, usually under served. I'm not so big on suburbia, although I would go anywhere if I had to.

Well, neither GW or Georgetown are in underserved areas (Howard is the school to go to in DC if you want to be in an underserved area). GW definitely has a more urban feel to it than Georgetown and is right on top of a Metro stop, so it has easy access to other parts of the city. At GW, a new student run clinic was recently started in an underserved area. Georgetown may well have something similar, I'm not sure.

 

[Jolie South]

Well, neither GW or Georgetown are in underserved areas (Howard is the school to go to in DC if you want to be in an underserved area). GW definitely has a more urban feel to it than Georgetown and is right on top of a Metro stop, so it has easy access to other parts of the city. At GW, a new student run clinic was recently started in an underserved area. Georgetown may well have something similar, I'm not sure.

just interviewed at Georgetown and they opened the clinic this year. I loved it, especially the cura personalis thing!

 

[montessori2md]

I liked your analysis, but personally, I don't think that you need to want an MPH to enjoy or go to GWU. I thought that their point was that you can do their health care policy track by attending lectures, doing research, etc. over the course of four years at med school instead of doing a full year MPH. You don't end up with an MPH by doing the track, but you'll learn a lot about the topic (in this case healthcare policy) that you're interested in. They sold it to me like it was an alternative to an MPH if you didn't want to put in the extra year (and tuition) and in-depth course-work but had an interest in the field. Also, you can only select one track. They were just as big on selling their global health track. And they did talk about their new alternative medicine track.

You're right about the "track" system being unique to GWU, I should have included that in my list. I also probably should have stated something about Gtown's research requirement (you have to write one paper that could theoretically be published), and GWU's required "opportunity" -neither of which is a very large quantity of time, but are unique to each program.

I also think you're right about the MPH being an unnecessary factor. Personally, I think everything in my list = unnecessary factors, you should really decide based on how you felt about each school during your visit. But, if you're only going to apply to one of the two, then you may not have the luxury of visiting first, and have to rely on what's there on paper.

Oh, I should add to the list of similarities:
institutional need based financial aid is essentially the same "average" per student who receives it and number of students who are determined eligible at each school (approx 30% of the students, average assistance is approx $15,000).

 

[tacrum43]

just interviewed at Georgetown and they opened the clinic this year. I loved it, especially the cura personalis thing!

So have you interviewed at GW now too? What did you think?

 

[Blondnuttyboy]

is is true that to be competitive for GW, you have to submit a secondary like literally in june/july?

I was complete the very beg on sept and i guess im just going to pray

 

[chickenlittle84]

I was complete at the very end of August and I got an interview with less than perfect stats...

 

[tacrum43]

is is true that to be competitive for GW, you have to submit a secondary like literally in june/july?

I was complete the very beg on sept and i guess im just going to pray

Well, I submitted my secondary in July but because of an LOR issue, I wasn't complete until September 1. Then I got an interview a few weeks later.

 

[Phoenix.]

So have you interviewed at GW now too? What did you think?

Yeah, Jolie - spill the beans! What'd you think of GWU?

 

[microgin]

For those of you who have interviewed at Georgetown already, I'm just looking over the pdf file that they sent with their interview invite, and I just want to make sure of the timing of things.... the day begins at 9:30am, but what time is a safe bet for the end of the day (interviews begin at 2pm or 2:45pm)? I'm just trying to work out the details of my trip back home. Thanks!

 

[Jolie South]

I think they are fairly similar schools, but I got a really negative impression of GWU from several things that might have little to do with the school.

First, we only met with M1s. I mean how useless is that. Second, my student interviewer was completely clueless about the schedule of the interview day (i.e. "so what have you guys been doing? When is your second interview?). Lastly, the whole time they're stressing how unique and important this surgical simulation room is. And, it's not unique. Both of the Texas schools I've interviewed at have the same thing and they're state schools! So, the quarter of a million you'll be spending really isn't getting you much that's special.

I personally liked Georgetown a lot better. I LIKED Donna's speech. I liked the straight talk instead of the glossy "our school is great" speech. I happen to really agree with the philosophy as well.

Furthermore, people are all down on Gtown because they say you'll get like no clinical experience. Not true. You can do rotations at one of 6 DC area hospitals. You get to pick for each clerkship. They also mentioned how prepared their students are for intern year and that 40% place in Top 25 (?) residencies.

 

[Jolie South]

I don't want to be down on GWU. It totally has some good points as well. Huge trauma center, 2 blocks from White House, awesome area, on metro stop, and the international opportunities.

I just wasn't feeling it.

 

[Phoenix.]

I don't want to be down on GWU. It totally has some good points as well. Huge trauma center, 2 blocks from White House, awesome area, on metro stop, and the international opportunities.

I just wasn't feeling it.

Hey, to each their own! Schools are like individuals, and not everyone loves everyone else.

As for the surgical simulation room - alas, I have been to a couple of schools that don't have that at all (UIC I think), or only have one dummy (or just a torso for a heart beat - Tulane). It's all starting to blur in my mind. And I met with mostly second years, and my student interviewer was on the ball. The only thing that didn't float my boat was the 9-5 lecture hours. I guess one other thing I've learned since going on some other interviews, is that GWU also doesn't have as social or tight-knit a student body (i.e., Tulane and Loyola do). My GWU student interviewer told me they didn't, but I didn't really see what he was talking about until I went on a few more interviews. But I felt that their health care policy and global opportunities were pretty stellar. I guess it all just depends on your interests, who you meet when you're there, and where you've inteviewed for comparison.

 

[medstylee]

Hey, to each their own! Schools are like individuals, and not everyone loves everyone else.

As for the surgical simulation room - alas, I have been to a couple of schools that don't have that at all (UIC I think), or only have one dummy (or just a torso for a heart beat - Tulane). It's all starting to blur in my mind. And I met with mostly second years, and my student interviewer was on the ball. The only thing that didn't float my boat was the 9-5 lecture hours. I guess one other thing I've learned since going on some other interviews, is that GWU also doesn't have as social or tight-knit a student body (i.e., Tulane and Loyola do). My GWU student interviewer told me they didn't, but I didn't really see what he was talking about until I went on a few more interviews. But I felt that their health care policy and global opportunities were pretty stellar. I guess it all just depends on your interests, who you meet when you're there, and where you've inteviewed for comparison.

i haven't posted on this site in a while, but i have to butt-in here. as a 2nd year student at GW, i can tell you that there is actually a particularly cohesive and socially out-going student body here, probably more so than at many other medical schools. i'm sorry your student interviewer gave you the wrong impression - there certainly are students that choose not to socialize with their classmates. but, i can tell you with confidence that many of us hang out together and take advantage of living in DC on a regular basis. i have college friends at a number of other medical school that are a few years ahead of me, and based on what i heard from them, i was very pleasantly surprised by the social-ness of the students here at GW. take it from me, if you are the least bit social, you will find it easy to fit in here.

as for the simulation suite and the clinical skills center (entire 6th floor or our hospital) - i agree, it's a bit over-glamorized during the interview tour. i know a lot of other medical schools have some of these tools. but, we make great use of these things, from day one - and i think our practice of medicine course is a lot more thorough and involved than those at some other schools (definitely more so than at the other 4 schools i was accepted at). sure, we'll all learn clinic skills by the end of our 4 years in med school. it's a personal preference, but i really like that we're learning a lot now. i see my preceptor every other week and he's already confident enough in my skills to do let me do most of the work while he sits back and observes. my roommate happens to share a preceptor with a 2nd year student from another dc medical school (which will remain nameless). my roommate does the H&P's and gets some good hands on experience while the other student sits in the corner and does nothign because she has not yet learned any of the skills. i mean, in the end, my roommate and this other student will come out of med school with the same clinical training. but for me, it's exciting and worthwhile to be able to use those skills now. just my thoughts. good luck to all you guys.

 

[Phoenix.]

Medstylee: Yeah, my second year student interviewer brought up the fact that he was disappointed by the lack of social get-togethers on his own (i.e., I hadn't even asked about it). He said they really only hang out together at organized bar events after a big exam.

Anyway, what I *am* interested in is the fact that GWU seems to have a 9-5 lecture curriculum. Most students I asked while I was there said they only have 1 or 2 hours a day to do something other than go to class or study. That has not been the impression I got at some other schools, where classes end around 12 or 1pm, and students engage in community service, intermurals, etc. Thoughts? For me, that was the only real GWU negative.... I'm not a big lecture learner, but at the same time, have a hard time just skipping (one student said he never went to a single class his first year. Meh). Anyway, thanks for your input!

 

[medstylee]

Medstylee: Yeah, my second year student interviewer brought up the fact that he was disappointed by the lack of social get-togethers on his own (i.e., I hadn't even asked about it). He said they really only hang out together at organized bar events after a big exam.

Anyway, what I *am* interested in is the fact that GWU seems to have a 9-5 lecture curriculum. Most students I asked while I was there said they only have 1 or 2 hours a day to do something other than go to class or study. That has not been the impression I got at some other schools, where classes end around 12 or 1pm, and students engage in community service, intermurals, etc. Thoughts? For me, that was the only real GWU negative.... I'm not a big lecture learner, but at the same time, have a hard time just skipping (one student said he never went to a single class his first year. Meh). Anyway, thanks for your input!

well, that definitely is a concern, especially if you're not a lecture learner. the schedule says 9-5, but it's definitely not set in stone. typically, you'll have half a day off on either tuesday or thursday or sometimes both. 1st semester of first year is a lot of class, because there are labs. but, second semester of 1st year, i was probably in class a total of 4 hours a day. usually the schools that end class at 12PM daily have a heavy problem-based learning or small group component to their curricula. don't kid yourself and think that students at those schools go home at 12 and play frisbee or go shopping or watch tv all day. they probably usually go home and learn (LEARN, not study). for me, i like to learn from lecturers (it's just my style, and i've found most of the lecturers at gw to be good). the whole sitting in a small group discussion and trying to learn medicine from a small group of medical students is not my cup of tea. in any case, it's a personal decision and curriculum is different from school to school. yes, there are some days when i'm beat after a long set of lectures (definitely second year, not so much first year), but overall, i have never found the curriculum here to be stifling. it's working well for me; it suits my learning style.

as for the student who said he never went to class; that's probably not working out too well for him... just my guess! if you have any other questions, let me know, although i haven't been checking this site regularly for sometime. best of luck.