Hi, so I'm currently a Junior in high school. Since I will be applying to colleges this fall, I've decided to start figuring out where I will be going. Given that I have a pretty competitive GPA, I have a good shot at going to Johns Hopkins University, George Washington University, American University, or the University of Pittsburgh (all of these are among the best International Relations schools in the nation, with GWU and AU consistently ranking the top 10 for undergraduates). However, with the exception of maybe UofP, all these schools have hefty price tags that run upwards to 40k-50k a year including room and board. Since I want to pursue a career in government after the military, it's pretty important that I go to a school in or around D.C. so that I can easily get internships at various agencies or think tanks. Since the fore mentioned Universities are so expensive, I have thought about just moving to D.C. and going to Community College for the first year to get my Gen Ed's out of the way. Is it worth it, or is it a waste of time? For those who went to a 4 year institution straight away, do you wish that you just went to C.C. your first year? Or does your Freshman year at a Uni really matter that much? - M.T.