Stanford vs. Yale vs. Georgetown

Penn95
Fri, 21 Apr 2017 00:11:39 +0000

@MileHighCity Not sure what you mean by saying the biggest ones amongst them are Yale, Stanford and Georgetown? I get Yale and Stanford, but Georgetown, while an awesome school, is not exactly on the same level the ivies, Stanford, Duke so in your list, imo Georgetown comes last in terms of overall strength,prestige, desirability etc. Personally I wouldn’t choose Georgetown over any of the other schools on your list and most people don’t either. Georgetown poli sci is not that strong. Stanford, Yale, Penn, Cornell and Duke have stronger poli sci departments.

I think your main choice comes down to Stanford vs Yale. Stanford has at least just as good a poli-sci department as Yale. In most major poli-sci rankings Stanford is ranked around the same and often higher than Yale, and it has great political connections and tradition in producing alumni in government, law etc. Also Yale and Stanford have 2 of the top 3 law schools in the country which adds to their tradition in the field and the connections they have.
https://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2010/10/28/harvard-stanford-yale-graduate-most-members-of-congress

Proximity to DC doesn’t really matter that much at this level. All they ivies, Stanford etc have amazing connections, and you won’t have trouble scoring top internships in DC.
For example: https://piw.sas.upenn.edu

I agree with you that Stanford has a more dynamic, innovative vibe than Yale. Also the number of students studying poli sci at Stanford is smaller you you will have smaller classes and a more intimate poli sci community.

Personally I would go with Stanford, but you can’t go wrong with either. It comes down to fit. Yale and Stanford have major differences in terms of vibe and atmosphere.