<p>I will share some information with you that, hopefully, maybe helpful to you. My son is an advanced PhD student at Brandeis in Politics with subspecialities in IR and comparative politics. His final choice of PhD programs came down to GW and Brandeis. Both offered him free rides with identical stipends so money wasnt’ a factor in the decision. He choose Brandeis, mostly because of the opportunity to study with Bob Art. Prof. Art is probably among the top 5, and certainly in the top 10, of IR/strategic studies professors in the US. He is universally respected. Although GW’s department is much larger and, consequently much more diverse in terms of specializations, and although GW has a number of up and coming stars, it has no one comparable to Bob Art. My son is very happy with his choice although, to be fair, it was a very close call. </p>
<p>I don’t think, however, that the strength of any particular department should be a deciding factor in choosing an undergraduate school. Unlike graduate school, department strength simply isn’t going to make that much of a difference to an undergraduate. More important, in my view, is overall strength of the university and the school’s culture and undergraduate climate. In those areas, I think that Brandeis is a better choice for most people. Brandeis is far smaller and more cohesive as a community–more like a liberal arts college but with the research advantages and better faculty characteristic of a top research university. It is also an enclosed residential community. GW is a medium size urban university and, like others of that ilk it is more a part of the greater community (in GW’s case, Foggy Bottom) than its own university based community. Brandeis also carries more “panache” if that’s important to you. For example, Brandeis is comparable to Tufts; GW is comparable to BU. Now that might not make a world of difference to some people (and you can argue that it shouldn’t), but to others it does. Despite being far older than Brandeis, GW does not have a strong alumni network (almost no one goes to reunions, for example) whereas Brandeis has a pretty loyal alumni network. </p>
<p>Also, having lived in both cities, I think that Boston is a better and more fun college town than DC is (although not by a wide margin–DC is pretty good). Yes, Brandeis is in Waltham, not Boston, but you are within Rt 128 (comparable to the DC Beltway) and Boston is readily accessible. </p>
<p>Good luck with your choice.</p>