<p>Hi Friends, I am an international professional looking for a good Phd program in Canada in the field of tropical river ecology. I haver seen the web page of Mcgill university and I am thinking to apply to this university. But I have read very bad comments by undergrads students about this university in the internet. I would like to hear some comments from grad students or anybody that could help me to decide if this could be a good choice. I need finnancial aid and there seems to be some good scholarships for international grad students in this university. thanks for any comment.</p>
<p>McGill is certainly a top research institution in Canada and tuition is relatively cheaper. The only bad comment I heard about the school/city of Montreal is that it's too "fashion sensitive". lol, I guess that's why Montreal is called the fashion capital of Canada.</p>
<p>Out of curiousity, what "very bad comments" did those undergrads say about McGill?</p>
<p>You know, every school is for different people. I go to the University of Toronto and a lot of people don't like it here, most grad students I've met who didn't do their undergrad here say they can't imagine it and are glad they didn't. Still, UofT is a well respected school, and it is challenging academically. Personally, I really like it, it is definitely for me. But, I know I'm in the minority when I say that, most people don't like it. You just have to find out if it suits <em>you</em>. </p>
<p>Montreal is a good city. It is cheap to live there, that's for sure (and grad school stipends reflect that, it seems). In order to have any park-time work, you would need to be bilingual though, which was always a down-fall for me, but wont matter much I guess since you probably don't care about that. </p>
<p>I liked the city, been a few times, but it is too small for me. It is a mix between a typical American city and European city, I'd say. I have NO idea what McGill's research is like in your field.. I know it is awesome for what I'm interested in, neuroscience. I'm not sure about tropical river ecology.. I mean, just think about the location of the institution.. but I don't know. </p>
<p>Grad and undergrad are WAY different, so, I wouldn't listen to the comments too much. I don't know any grad students there, but all of my friends that go there for undergrad, seem to like it quite a bit.</p>
<p>Thank you for your respond. In general, I found the comments in the internet and in the Mcgill newspaper (The tribune) telling that around the school you can see a lot of drunk students mainly tough americans, that as a student you are just a number because the classes hold too many students, that the education is not so good, etc. I dont care much about the party atmosphere because I am not party person, but I wonder of the quality of the teaching.
thanks</p>
<p>Some of their grad programs are good, but McGill is generally seen within Canada as a school whose best days were maybe three decades ago and which now lives on past reputation and a very good marketing department. I know their hard sciences are quite good though so biology would probably be worth checking out.</p>
<p>jmlead that's pure BS. It is still arguably the best school in the country with the likes of UBC and UofT in terms of research and academics. Very academically oriented, the whole bit about drunkards, well it's the McGill Tribune. It's like looking at the state of the Ivy league by reading Ivy Gate.</p>
<p>For that kind of stuff they have some association with the Smithsonian but I'll look into. It contends for having the best ecology program in the country along with Queen's.</p>
<p>It seems there is actually a conspiracy against McGill in many forums, if anything McGill is horrible at advertising itself. Which university do you attend jmlead and where did you get your information?</p>
<p>What university I attend is inconsequential to the debate. For your part, it seems obvious that you must either currently be attending McGill or be an alumni.</p>
<p>All I said in my post was that:</p>
<p>A) McGill isn't what it was several decades ago. Reasons here range from the lack of government funding to the generally acrimonious educational climate in the province of Quebec as well as the parallel increases in private and public funding for schools it competed with in the 50s and 60s.</p>
<p>B) They have always excelled in hard sciences.</p>
<p>I dont see how any of that was "anti-McGill" or disparaging towards what is still a very good university. If I were to rephrase my advice to the OP, I would say that McGill is a great choice for almost every hard science in Canada and that its ressources and reputation within the country are matched only by UBC and Toronto. I would also contend that McGill is a good place to live, especially for a student, and has much more to offer than any other city in Canada.</p>
<p>I have nothing against McGill students but you guys seem extremely quick to jump on anyone who may believe that its best days are behind it, which I dont find to be a particularly controversial position to take.</p>
<p>It may surprise you that I may become a McGill alumni (it's one of my grad picks), but I'm actually the only non-McGillian in my family. My only other association with McGill is that I went to the daycare. :P</p>
<p>You're absolutely correct and I have the stats to back it up. In the years McGill went up by 27% in funding, UofT went up by 76%. Surprisingly, it's still largely considered the best and even more surprisingly competes with the best in terms of research, but there's a general downward trend. This is perhaps a bit true for both UofT (local competition, afterall they're all public schools) and UBC as well. Queen's is out of contention. UofA is the wave of the future!</p>
<p>What many are hoping is that the Liberal government will raise in-province tuition and private investors will help the university out. However, the university admin isn't just sitting there and doing nothing about it either. McGill is organizing some of the most ambitious fundraising campaigns among Canadian universities, and they've met with relative success. They're also finding clever ways of stealing accomplished faculty from other universities.</p>
<p>I guess that's one of the unfortunate things about going to a public school though.</p>
<p>About the UBC comment, I guess it depends on the program. What is it that you study there? And how do you know it's very easy and that you're not just extremely smart?</p>
<p>I think the reasons for choosing a school for UG vs. a PhD are entirely different. And the experience for undergraduates would be very different for PhD students.</p>
<p>You need to disregard the school rep. and focus on the stature and rep. of the school in the FIELD you are interested in. It varies by field and makes a huge difference. </p>
<p>How do you find out that information? Not on CC :) Instead:</p>
<ol>
<li>Talk to faculty you know closest to your field of interest to get you started. </li>
<li>Identify and look up on the web the professional association that the professors in your field of interest belong to and visit it. </li>
<li>Talk to or email professors doing research in the area- find them on the web. Likewise, seek out current PhD students in your field (also found on the web) and ask for their perceptions of top schools (and whatever else you want to know).</li>
<li>Identify the primary journals in which those in this field publish and look at the editors and editorial boards of those journals--- all on the web. Now at what schools are the editors and editorial board? At what schools are the most published researchers working out of? </li>
</ol>
<p>The idea is to go to the most highly regarding publishing powerhouse in your field (that will take you). From there you launch the best career after a PhD.</p>