<p>As mentioned in my previous threads S got into Connecticut ( Good Financial aid) and Mcgill ( awaiting a word on aid, but without aid comes to the same as Conn with aid). So money wise, I am going to be paying the same amount, in-case nothing is offered in Mcgill. </p>
<p>Now an ongoing debate about the choice is making me anxious. ( S feels Mcgill is better, but then that is again not based on any first-hand comments.)</p>
<p>Here are few remarks that I have heard from friends and family:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Mcgill is a world renowned university but employers prefer students from US when it comes to employment.</p></li>
<li><p>The class size in Mcgill is huge, while Connecticut is like a close knit one.</p></li>
<li><p>A degree from Canada vs degree : US always stands out.</p></li>
<li><p>From Connecticut he can go ahead and easily do his PG in a US uni. It might not be the case in Mcgill if he wants to come to US at the later stage.</p></li>
<li><p>Mcgil has a good standing Economics programe.</p></li>
<li><p>Connecticut is known only within US while Mcgill is world famous.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I am so puzzled. I have no idea which way to go. It is making exteremly anxious)</p>
<p>If it was your S or D or you yourself, which one will you prefer and why?</p>
<p>well im talking as a student. i would choose mcgill, montreal is an amazing city my dad went to university there and he has had no problem coming to the US he studied economics as well and he has a well standing job at a world wide company.</p>
<p>They are both fine schools, with some differences (as folks have pointed out, size is a big one; McGill is also more urban than Conn). At this point, it should really be your son’s decision: which school does he like better? At which school will he be happier? The school where he’s happiest is the one where he will excel and take the most advantage of everything they have to offer, and what he does with the resources (high grades, research opportunities, networking) is just as important as what resources there are in the first place in determining his future.</p>
<p>Is McGill still structured with yearlong classes with one giant exam at the end? (Or perhaps it was semester long classes with just a final?) My sister graduated from there back in the late 70s and found that to be a huge adjustment compared to American universities.</p>
<p>Also, at least back then, there was very little coddling (support, I guess you would say) for students at McGill. You were expected to deal with things pretty much on your own. She loved her experience there and thought it was a great education, but definitely different than most American colleges seem to approach things – but that was years ago, and I’m not sure what may have changed.</p>
<p>The only other things are the exchange rate – it does change, and that can throw some of the calculations off if the Canadian dollar gets a lot stronger, and the costs of living in a fairly expensive city (food wise, at least) rather than rather quiet New London.</p>
<p>You are right that McGill is better known than Conn. College worldwide.</p>
<p>It may even be better known within the US! Though Conn. College is a great liberal arts education, so I’m not saying it’s a “nobody” school - far from it - I know several U.S. citizens (my classmates) who chose to LEAVE the US for McGill! I do not know anyone who went to Conn. College and without CC I doubt I would have recognized the name. Again, Conn. College is very respected by those “in the know”, but it doesn’t exactly have the same brand name ring as a flagship state uni or a very well known private.</p>
<p>Worst comes to worst, I think a US employer is just as likely to have heard of McGill as he/she is to have heard of Conn. College. Certainly admissions people for post graduate programs would have heard of McGill and would have no issue admitting a student from such a university. </p>
<p>So, establishing that your concern about the Canadian degree “looking worse” than a U.S. degree is unfounded (esp. in this situation), it really comes down to environment and programs offered.</p>
<p>They are WORLDS apart, literally. Small residental LAC versus big city U. You should definitely let your S choose (and guide him in the direction of) the school which would cater most to his interests, strengths, and overall personality. I know I wanted the adventure of a big university, a big city…but several years into my academic degree I am wishing I had small classes, more individual attention from profs, etc. So, there may well be things he isn’t “seeing clearly,” but he is on the right track if he thinks both have good enough “names” to get him a job in the US.</p>
<p>This is purely a big urban university vs. small more remote LAC question. Both are fine academically. McGill is better known almost everywhere only because it is much bigger and much older, has had men as students for more than 40 years, and is probably the top university in its country. Getting into US graduate programs and professional schools from McGill is not a concern. But Conn College is perfectly well respected and by most accounts does a great job of being a college.</p>
<p>Any student will do better picking the one that makes him feel more excited about learning. The rest of the stuff is all of secondary importance.</p>
<p>Must I say, the replies have been very enlightening…Thanks to you all for taking time to reply and that too , too the point.</p>
<p>@umcp11- your reply is so insightful. It actually answers many asked /unasked queries. I am sure this has pushed me towards Mcgill more. Thanks so much</p>
<p>@ etselec,oldbatesieDoc,mythmom,JhS- Surely the last say would be S’s after all he is the one who has to be there</p>
<p>@sandrasccr- Thanks for giving a student’s view. Your dad’s situation has put me at ease , one of my concern was about PG and job.</p>
<p>@arabrab: Yes exchange rate will play a crucial role. Thanks</p>
<p>McGill parent here. S studying econ./Mandarin. LOVES his majors, Montreal…just about everything. I don’t think you could find 2 more different schools, though. S has not been able to find an internship in his major - I don’t know if that is the fault of school, present economic environment or what. Your S needs to be very independent. He only has 1-2 profs to ask for recs. Tuition has been very easy to handle. He lives in the ghetto. Rent is cheap, food cost very expensive. Chicken breasts are ~$9/lb!
PS Be mindful of grade deflation at McGill. S is scraping by with barely a 3.0 and he is a very bright kid. I know kids at Conn Coll who are whizzing through with 4.0s. Admittedly, he has a very heavy courseload but it might be the temptations of Montreal as well…</p>
<p>Most of the original poster’s listed “remarks” have to do with what other people, or employers, think. I don’t think that is a good basis for decision.</p>
<p>The potential experience of the son is what is important.</p>
<p>These two options are so different, that the choice should be fairly clear.</p>
<p>I think the parent should stay out of it as much as possible, especially since there are no financial differences at this point. Offer an opinion on specific questions that your son asks. He should not have the “last say,” but the first.</p>
<p>p.s. McGill students used to get their own apartments, rather than living in dorms. Is that still true?</p>
<p>@woody: My S also is going to go for Eco. What you said is actually first hand info …If the temptations are so many, I am sure the same thing will be applicable to my S also. </p>
<p>@compmom: Sure he is the one to decide, but to gather info and help him understand is the least I can do.</p>
<p>I may be asking the obvious but has he visited and spent at least a full day on each campus? Since these two schools are so different it is crucial I think. I have 2 daughter’s. One goes to UCLA (in the U.S. I know but still comparable to McGill) 25,000 undergrads, must be a self starter, no hand holding, etc. My older D is a senior at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, OR. Similar in size and style to Conn College. These schools are not interchangeable. My youngest daughter in a million years would not have wanted to go to a small LAC and my older D in a million years would not have wanted to go to UCLA or any large school over 15,000. If the two schools were similar it wouldn’t be such a big decision but they are so different. I feel that “fit” is more important than thinking about future job placement because you want him to be happy and successful where he is for 4 years. So visit each school again, stay on campus overnight if possible, spend time in the surrounding areas. Since the schools and locations are so different he is bound to feel more at home at one. Good luck.</p>
<p>@ Inquiringmind2 : thanks. I know what you mean. Unfortunately, S is an international student, very difficult to go and visit the campus. That in itself is a big expense. But yes I understand what you mean.</p>
<p>@ Woody: You have made me think about the problem of self starting and temptations. S although a self starter, can be easily swayed by distractions. This is what happened in this year. Thats why I am now thinking about this issue also. Thanks for pointing this.</p>
<p>Is he doing Honors or regular econ? PM me if you want some advice. Don’t be too swayed by my apparent negatives here. He is studying with a world-famous Chinese historian, and his econ courses are very focussed - economics of natural resources, etc. He loves them. Those first year math courses, however - differential equations and linear algebra, were real GPA killers.</p>
<p>Orangemoon: Well, there are winters and there are winters. I live in the Rocky Mountains, but I spent the coldest weekend of my life visiting my sister in Montreal in February. Deep, bone-shivering cold. (Funny story: she met me at Dorval airport, and took me on this complicated routing back to her apartment that involved a bus, a subway ride, and then another bus. In really, really cold weather. Cold. When I was ready to head back to the airport Sunday evening, I asked how much it would cost to take a cab? Five dollars! she said in a rather scandalized voice. I couldn’t believe it – for the simple sum of five dollars I could have avoided that incredible bus/subway/bus experience? In the cold? You can guess how I got back to the airport.)</p>