George Washington University or Notre Dame for political science: which is better for undergrads?

The biggest practical tradeoff is day-to-day access versus campus-centered academic structure. George Washington puts you in Washington, DC, where internships with Congress, think tanks, agencies, campaigns, and nonprofits are built into the student experience, while Notre Dame offers a more residential undergraduate environment with very strong faculty access, a cohesive campus culture, and excellent support for students heading into policy, law, or public service after graduation.

For political science specifically, GW has the obvious location advantage. Being in DC matters a lot because students can intern during the semester without needing a separate summer plan, and the university has deep connections across government and public policy spaces. If you want your undergraduate years to include regular exposure to political institutions, guest speakers, networking, and hands-on work in government, GW makes that unusually easy.

Notre Dame is strong in a different way. Its political science department has a serious academic reputation, undergraduates often benefit from close-knit advising, and the broader university culture tends to support thoughtful, discussion-heavy humanities and social science work. It is especially appealing if you want a classic residential college experience where academics, campus life, and faculty mentorship feel tightly integrated rather than split between campus and the city.

On academic experience alone, some students find Notre Dame more cohesive and undergraduate-focused, while GW can feel more professionally oriented and shaped by the opportunities around it. At Notre Dame, the structure is more likely to pull you into a strong academic community even outside internships.

For government or public policy, both can work very well, but they set you up differently. GW gives you the more immediate pipeline into internships and policy-adjacent work during college. Notre Dame may be the stronger pick if you want a rigorous political science education in a more traditional campus setting and are comfortable building internships more strategically through summers, alumni connections, and university programs.

If your priority is maximizing semester-time access to politics and policy work, I would lean GW. If you want the stronger all-around undergraduate campus experience with excellent political science training and still solid public service outcomes, I would pick Notre Dame.