Laura N.
Yelp
Word of caution: I probably have a biased opinion on this University....
I am hard of hearing and do NOT like this college.....
I've had the chance to visit three times: once for a National Academic Bowl competition, once for Deaflympic volleyball tryouts, and another time just because -- I was in town for a weekend trip with my college and decided to spend half of that trip visiting friends here.
The campus is a fenced, gated campus in a rough [seriously -- lots of crime right outside the fence of the campus] neighborhood of Washington D.C. It's a small college, with approximately a few thousand students, but THE most well-known college for deaf/Deaf and hard of hearing individuals, as well as hearing students who wish to purse studies within the deaf culture (like interpretation). There's even an option to be an 'exchange' student and spend a semester here -- I had looked into it one time. The dorms, dining halls, student center, and academic buildings are your typical collegiate buildings. Gallaudet does have, however, a little hotel/conference center, to host events -- which is neat. I enjoyed my time there as a competitor for the Academic Bowl competition. You can also live off-campus, as many people I knew did. There's no shortage of apartments for rent in that rough neighborhood.
For people who really want to immerse themselves into Deaf culture, this is definitely one place to do so. Every class, sport, activity, etc. is instructed and done in ASL. The surrounding community is very Deaf-friendly. There's a lot of history here for the deaf culture.
If you want to thrive within a bubble of Deafness, this is the place for you.
If you're eager to explore, see the world, learn, and grow, this may not suit you.....
I've known dozens of people that have attended Gallaudet. A handful of them were very successful and went on to wonderful careers. A handful of them got by fine and are doing just fine. A large majority of them? Well.... I heard about people partying and failing way too much. And then some just stay here for years because they couldn't graduate. I suppose it depends on your individual level of discipline and what you want to do with your life beyond college....