I want to get a smart dog for my beginner dog. what should i get?

My best friend has a really really smart german shepherd. She walks her to and from school and always stays with her when she walks her without a leash. She knows all these awesome tricks and she wakes her up in the morning for school and makes sure she goes to bed on time to. She even figured out how to unlock, lock, open and close doors so she can get out to walk her home. Her dog even taught herself to say her name and i love you. Should i get a german shepherd like her and get her to train my dog like hers or get a different dog with similiar intelligence as a german shepherd?