George Washington University School of Medicine

[drhenderson]

George Washington University
2300 1 Street, N.W., Room 615
Washington, D.C. 20037
Admissions: (202) 994-3506 http://www.gwumc.edu/

Deadline: 12/01

Tuition: about $31,500
Enrollment: around 650

Average MCAT: typically

Please post any experiences you have with this school.

This is part of the big guide at http://www.studentdoctor.net

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[atchoo]

Bottom line: GW is VERY expensive.

Though your clinical exposure will be diverse and intense (it is Washington, DC after all), the quality of education really doesn't justify the enormous price tag. At my interview, I found the students very nice...but a little less "impressive" than those at other schools I visited. The area of northwest DC can't be beat...but make sure you read up on the state of DC healthcare before you decide to apply to GW or Georgetown. Both of these schools were/have been having major trouble with hospital funding and have merged with profit/non-profit organizations. I didn't get the sense of turbulence at GW that I got at Georgetown (GW is recovering), but the financial scenario still merits consideration. Students are graded H/P/F...there are some gunners in the class because of this. GW is building a new hospital...the plans are impressive but students are doubtful that it'll be up and running in 4 years.

If DC is a must, then go to GW...but for anything else (considering the tuition, living expenses, and overall quality of the school), I think you'd be better off elsewhere.

AAATCHHOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN '04

 

[s2417]

The DC area is one of the best places in the US to practice and learn medicine. The area is culturally and politically active and the education at GW emphasizes patient contact beginning the 2nd week of medical school! They are builiding a hospital with a private HMO. This is not the exception but the norm for most medical school in the US. GW has done this for many years but this cooperatiion has yielded a lot of benefit for both sides. The new hospital is nearly completed and will be ready for the students entering Fall 2001. Anyone starting med school in this year will be able to do their clinical rotations 3rd and 4th year at the state-of-the are hospital which has one of only 2 dozen trama 1 centers in the US! The tuition is $33K/yr but this is expected from a private school although most privates are around $27-30K. The financial status of GW is extremely stable. While many schools (MCP, Stanford, UCSF) had or are currently experiencing financial difficulties, GW is actually spending millions (the hospital costs $180 million over the next 10years to operate...and they have already secured funding for it) to build a new hospital (an average size). The tuition seems expensive (and it definitely is), but one should look at the total average indebtedness of med school gradutes because this is what really determines how much med school is going to cost you (since most of the yearly costs are through loans). Looking at this information for many private schools, GW is actually average in terms of how much you end up in debt. Just my 2 pennies!

 

[VAD]

I interviewed and was subsequently waitlisted at GWU. Although I have no hard feelings toward the school, I did not have a great feeling about the environment during my visit there. The issue with GWU isn't so much the sky-high tuition but the lack of financial aid given to students in the form of grants. Much of the financial aid you receive is in the form of loans, and other schools with a similar price tag are able to supply students with more grants than GWU. While there, I met more than one student who was there because they didn't get into Univ. of Maryland (a great state school w/great in-state tuition). While I don't think it's a bad school, I don't think it's worth the cost IF you have other options. I know it has a reputation for producing good clinicians. And their MD/MPH program is great b/c you can complete it in 4 years (at the expense of electives during 4th year).

Just my $.02.

VAD

 

[tmesis]

When I interviewed there, I believe the figure quoted for the average debt was ~$120k.