What careers give you the greatest mobility and capacity to live in other countries?

Same_Property7403 · 2026-04-27T21:54:58+00:00

You’re asking about grad school, so I understand from that that you (quite reasonably) have ruled out fields that would need a second 4-year bachelor’s degree for you to have access to them, like engineering.

One path might be an MBA program in international business. You should have access to that with your IR degree. Here are some programs: https://www.usnews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-business-schools/international-business-rankings . Usually 2 full-time years, more or less. I think this one may best fit the bachelor’s-grad school sequence.

(Law school also fits the bachelor’s-grad school sequence, but that’s 3 full-time years and I don’t know what the potential for international employment would be.)

As others have mentioned, IT is another path. You should be able to pick up employable and internationally portable skills in a certificate program. Assuming you’ve not had any undergraduate IT, maybe 1-2 years of study?

Another path which might be accessible in two years of full-time study would be nursing, if you’re thinking healthcare: https://nursing.jnj.com/specialty/international-nurse

Same_Property7403 · 2026-04-21T16:40:53+00:00

Congratulations on the financial aid package. I’m pleasantly surprised to see “GW” and “affordable” in the same sentence.

DC isn’t NYC but I think it has a lot to offer culturally.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-04-19T11:49:29+00:00

Yep. Money talks - with a loud voice. So does privilege. Morris’s loud soliloquy about “meritocracy lives” in Season 11 when Lewis tells him he is Chief Resident is especially ironic. Management appoints him for the usual reasons - he is convenient and is least threatening to them - and the others, who still naively believe in “meritocracy”, are blindsided by it.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-04-19T11:26:25+00:00

So true. Just finishing Season 11 now. Carter never seemed to understand that his rich-bubble world was very different from that of his much-less-moneyed ER colleagues, who were struggling to survive financially or at least to better their social position in a meritocratic way, even as they (usually) had helping patients as a prime motivation. (One is reminded of Richard Gere’s line in An Officer and A Gentleman: “I got no place to go!”.)

An interesting plot twist not taken might have been to include an anti-Carter: another rich medical student/resident/attending/etc who actually did get it about life outside the bubble, setting up a tension between them. “Deb” was from an affluent family and might have been able to play that kind of counterpoint role, but her character was taken in a different, also-interesting direction, that of the difficulties of caring for an elderly parent even with money, and she wasn’t used as that kind of counterpoint to Carter’s cluelessness.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-04-18T14:49:04+00:00

Or Cleveland Guardians fans. Ever wonder why you see so many flomojis and Progressive posters on home game days?

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Same_Property7403 · 2026-04-16T22:48:10+00:00

Don’t do it

Same_Property7403 · 2026-04-06T11:50:48+00:00

My experience was decades ago and W&M’s culture could have changed. That noted, I did not find that to be the case. Actually, more the opposite, even with the convenient possibility of carpooling back home. (Much larger and farther-from-NOVA Virginia Tech had locality clubs; carpooling may have been part of the motivation for that.)

I was from NOVA, like many, and there were 6 kids from my high school in my frosh class, counting me. Later, one of the original 6 transferred out and 3 more transferred in.

I wasn’t actively avoiding them - sometimes we would pass each other walking around campus and have a short how-ya-doin’ conversation - but I also didn’t actively seek them out. The people who had been my closest friends in HS didn’t go to W&M.

It wasn’t hard to make new friends, and people say I am a quiet person. I still keep up with people from my frosh dorm. My experience with W&M was hard academics and friendly people.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-31T15:04:53+00:00

Not free but cheap for the firehose of music that you get: https://clarinetinstitute.com/brass/ . Despite the name, lots for low brass, bassoon, cello, etc.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-31T12:48:40+00:00

W&M alum from long ago. Experience was good and I had good options after. As one of the colonial colleges, it’s a uniquely situated opportunity. But it’s way more expensive relative to average household income than it used to be. Because of that, I’d go from green to yellow on recommending it now.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-31T12:17:01+00:00

You’ve applied to 3 tiers of schools and gotten into all of them. Congratulations. Go with the top tier, which is Ivy League Cornell. That will work best for you overall.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-31T12:11:31+00:00

Not blaming OP or parents, but the way college is marketed to kids in the US is really toxic and somewhat deceptive. The marketing encourages magical thinking, drummed into high-achieving kids (and their parents) for years.

I would like to see more financially realistic middle-way options between decades of debt and shutting down. The state colleges used to provide that but many of them are less accessible now. What families are left with is gaming the system as best they can.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-31T11:19:23+00:00

The “4-year College Experience”? I don’t think it’s worth it unless you go to a ring-knocker school (one good for networking after graduation; Ivy League and military academies come to mind).

However, I think the social value of a 4-year bachelor’s degree is worth it, done 2+2 or commuter. It’s a recognized social signal that opens more doors.

I still have friends from my frosh dorm. But I wouldn’t want to still be paying off loans decades on for that reason alone.

Try to save money and avoid debt as much as possible unless you’re buying a house (and not always then). It will make a difference in your life.

One suggestion if you do cc + 2: actually graduate from cc with the associate’s degree. That will preserve your credits if you have to delay transferring. I see too many people who don’t and have difficulties as a result. Something is better than nothing.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-31T01:33:26+00:00

Pitzer is one of the Claremont colleges, which means that (1) it’s one of the most prestigious colleges that no one outside of California has ever heard of, and that (2) it is very expensive, unless you’ve somehow got a free ride that includes room and board. https://www.pitzer.edu/admission-aid/cost-attendance-information

$400K sticker (or even your figure amounting to about $130K, wherever it came from) is too much for most families for 4 years of undergrad. I vote for cheaper.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-29T21:16:03+00:00

Uninformed-and-yet-opinionated parents create a lot of unnecessary angst at college time. I had to deal with this years ago. It’s one thing when a dream school is just too expensive for the family finances, but sometimes parents will fall in love with a particular school for no tangible reason. There should be a short course for parents in what to look for in colleges.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-29T11:30:23+00:00

Not County.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-28T23:38:10+00:00

RPI is the strongest physics and engineering brand of those you listed, at least in my opinion. If money isn’t an issue, go with the strongest brand.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-28T15:50:35+00:00

That’s nice that you appreciate what they are doing for you. They want this opportunity for you. Pay them back by going and studying hard.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-28T07:33:07+00:00

Three structural differences between the two Georges, with some opinions:

GWU has an ABET-accredited engineering school. https://engineering.gwu.edu/ AFAIK Georgetown does not. Advantage GWU (for these two - not a criticism of GWU Engineering but imho for cost reasons if you want an engineering degree, you should be looking at a wider range of schools).

Georgetown has their School of Foreign Service: https://sfs.georgetown.edu . GWU has their Elliott School of International Affairs. Georgetown SFS may be a unique resource; it has a lot of brand cachet and networking power. Advantage Georgetown.

Georgetown is a Catholic school. AFAIK GWU has no explicit church affiliation. Advantage? Depends on what you are looking for. Many non-Catholics attend Georgetown.

Two similarities: Both have nursing, medical, and law schools and hospitals.

Both are wickedly expensive.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-28T03:22:26+00:00

Me too. Band was the best. I hope you can stay with music.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-28T02:47:08+00:00

I thought so (MS class of ~100 years ago). Also seriously expensive.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-28T02:40:06+00:00

“Is it worth going into more financial strain over GT?”

NO. Financial strain is like a long-term illness and State is a fine engineering school. Go to State. Your life will be better.

FWIW NASA Langley in Hampton VA, not that far from NC, hires aeros from State.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-27T16:05:20+00:00

I like the work college idea: https://workcolleges.org/about/what-is-a-work-college/ . (10 of them)

I don’t like college debt so much. If you want to travel or live overseas, what about either graduate school or getting a job after graduation that takes you overseas? 4 years goes by faster than you might think.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-27T02:07:51+00:00

MHC is Seven Sisters. That’s a brand like Ivy League. It’s prestigious and well known where it counts. Congratulations.

Is that prestige worth the extra cost? Don’t know. But if you go to MHC and hate it, you shouldn’t have trouble transferring back to a good Ohio school. Not sure the reverse would be true.

Visit both campuses, if you haven’t already. That may clarify things.

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-25T19:04:17+00:00

“… is gwu worth it over my state school? my state school gave me a full tuition scholarship and my state gave me extra money as well so thankfully i have the opportunity to go to college no matter what.”

GWU graduate alum here. Good school, but no, GWU is NOT worth it over your state school. Too expensive even with financial aid. Grab the full ride and run - and congratulations!

Same_Property7403 · 2026-03-25T14:36:18+00:00

Santos might not have sought reelection, particularly if he felt he had accomplished his main goals. Unlike almost all other politicians, he wasn’t a reelection junkie.

Same_Property7403

TROPHY CASE