Details

• United States of America
• BBE-18
• Undergraduate
• WS 2025
• Time spent at the partner university: 4 months

1. Preparation

For the application process, I advise to create a coherent narrative combining your motivation, engagement and social & intercultural skills sections. I had the impression that does have a certain weight if you can make build a compelling story about yourself why you, over other people, deserve to go abroad. Head into your experience abroad with an open mind. In my experience and comparing to several collegues, the more you let yourself go and enjoy it, the better it will be at the end! Usually, I would say you are in totally new space abroad and it is great to explore yourself and new places during that time. You can really take away a lot!

2. Accommodation

George Washington Unversity (GWU) offers student housing for all students interested. There are always places available. There is a dozen of student dorms on campus. The main options are flats shared by 4 people and affinity housing. I lived in affinity housing. I was lodged in District House (2121 H St NW, 20052 Washington D.C.) in the South Affinity of the 3rd floor. The concept of an affinity is that 20 people live in their own, common space. 10 rooms à 2 people are located on the floor, that include a bed, desk, windows and storage opportunities. 2 rooms together (i.e. 4 people) share a bathroom and toilet. On top of that, there are large common spaces, including a lounge area with TV, that can be used to plug in personal devices, a large study area and two huge kitchen spaces. The price per month was around 1500 euros. This is the cheapest option to live on campus. If you are early, you can get a private flat in D.C. for a cheaper price. However, I do not recommend it, as you are cut off from university life in many ways, in my opinion. The location of District House is in the center of campus. It is completely safe, with a security guard sitting at the entrance 24/7 and the university police station is 3 minutes away. I had to walk a maximum of 10 minutes to get to all buildings on campus. I strongly advise choosing affinity housing. I chose the options for exchange students, so I was only housed with 19 other exchange students on my floor. We had great fun together, could organize parties and spent many evenings together, especially at the beginning and end of the exchange. Flats shared by 4 people are good, but if your suitemates already know each other or are more introverted, you may loose valuable connections to other people, which cannot really happen in an affinity, as there are 19 other people with you!

3. Academic life at host university

Campus infrastructure is very good at George Washington University (GWU). All buildings seem in good condition. Most of the courses offered are located on the main campus, Foggy Bottom Campus, in which most housing opportunities also are. Some courses are offered on the second (and sport) campus, Mount Vernon Campus. A bus from GWU connects both campusses. Drive time is around 20 minutes, depending on traffic (10-40 minutes). The academic culture is more open that at WU. Professors are more approachable and the culture is generally more informal, espeically as the semester progresses. Teaching styles are simular as at WU, with many interactive components during lectures and less of frontal talk by the professor. GW offers a wide range of courses, I was happy with all the courses I selected. Participation was valued more at GW than at WU.

5. Every day life in the host country

Public transport is very good in Washington D.C. Every student gets a free "UPass" card, which provides access to all public transports in the city. You have to tap your card before each ride. The metro is very reliable, clean and frequented in the city. Buses are a bit less consistent, but still got the job done for me. You can get (nearly) everywhere in D.C. with public transportation. Compared to Vienna, public transportation is still a bit worse. Safety in Washington D.C. was barely an issue during my time. There is so much police on campus and in the city that you feel safe. On top of that, the National Guard was in the city during my exchange. While crimes rates are higher than in Vienna, my subjective sense of safety was rarely tingled. Social activities on campus include hundreds of clubs you can join on campus. From all sports over religion, academia to hobbies, the university offers so many clubs, all led by students. I strongly advise joining clubs, as the people you meet stay with you if you are active in the club. I was part of the tennis club and we had practices 3x a week + tournaments on the weekend, all free of charge. Other leisure activities in D.C. include going for long walks, the city is very rich in history and has great museums. Hikes and runs are also great. Going into sports in more detail, the campus offers so much of sports, from raquet sports over to more niche interests. The infrastructure is good-great with many people playing sports and in clubs. It can be competitive to get into uni teams in clubs if you are a competitive person, like I am. There is a full gym on campus, indoor pool and race track, as well as Mount Vernon campus with 11 tennis courts, an outdoor pool, football field etc

6. Testimonial

I loved my exchange semester at GW! It was the time of my life and spent every day of it studying, travelling all across the country and spending time with friends I made. I was active constantly and that gave me so many new experiences in the United States with so many new people which really made the time unforgettable! Washington D.C. is a city of tremendous opportunity due to its proximity to many international organizations. The people are all very friendly and made me enjoy my time very much! I really recommend doing an exchange in the heart of the United States!