<p>as far as i know, you either need college or AP credits in Calc I and Calc II in order to be exempted from Math 140 and Math 141, respectively. High school level without AP credits is not enough to pass out of these, I believe. Moreover, I am not particularly familiar with the econ department (I am assuming in the faculty of management, because econ also exists in the faculty of arts), but for most honors-type programs you are only admitted after obtaining a certain GPA at McGill, nobody as far as I am aware of, enters directly into the honors program from hs. If you want to pass out of the Math 141, then yes a community college course should suffice, though McGill is often strict on which schools credit can be obtained from so I would check this out first. On the other hand, if you want, you can decide not to submit your Math 140 or potential 141 exemption status and instead retake these courses for A’s. I myself would have retaken physics and statistics just to get a guaranteed 4.0, as I too passed out with APs and instead had to take second-year courses in first year.</p>
<p>tomoftheboston - I e-mailed the economics undergrad dept.</p>
<p>klmnop - sorry I didn’t clarify:
I took the AP AB Calc test (scored 5), which from what I gather covers all of 140 and like 1/3 of 141. I’m in the Faculty of Arts. </p>
<p>& in terms of entering out of hs - So what happens if you enter U1? Can only U0 students take honours? I doubt that is the case, but maybe it is for econ? x.x I’ll probably be entering as U1 because of IB diploma credit.</p>
<p>Most students actually start in U1 (that’d be the 2/3 Quebec residents coming from cegep). Honours programs usually have the same 200 level core courses as majors, at least during the first semester of U1, so you don’t have to worry about that right away (you still need to maintain B average). It’s in U2 and U3 that honours and majors are really different streams, with separate 300 and 400 level courses (500 level grad courses automatically count for honours too).</p>
<p>Hey Tom.</p>
<p>I’m a junior about 40 minutes from Boston, I go to Boston pretty regularly with friends and family for sports and concerts and know the city pretty well. I also went to Montreal about 4 or 5 years ago and loved it. I guess I’m wondering how comparative the two cities are since I’m assuming you know both really well. I mean obviously Montreal can be considered one of the international capitals of the world and from what I remember has a ton of culture and chill people, but if there’s any distinct differences that I should know about apart from it being in a different country, clubbing atmosphere with the low drinking age, and hockey-crazy.</p>
<p>Furthermore, I probably want to major in something along the lines of International Business or International Relations, how renowned and interesting is the program since I believe you mentioned you majored in one of these as I was skimming some of the thread. To put things in perspective, I’m also looking into Northeastern, maybe you looked into it as well since your from the area, which is in the top 20 in the US for it and is ranked 2nd for colleges on the rise. However, I don’t want to go on rankings alone so it’d be cool to hear from an alum about it. I plan on visiting Montreal in the summer to check it out. Thanks in advance</p>
<p>@bruin17:
I found Boston and Montreal to be very similar in many ways. The metropolitan areas are about the same size and both downtown areas are relatively compact. There are four subway lines in each city so I didn’t feel overwhelmed the way I did when I first rode the New York City subway. Like Boston, you can walk or take the metro anywhere you need to go. A car is not necessary and would be a pain in both cities. In this sense I found it easier to adjust than some students coming from small cities and towns in Canada. Town/gown relations are good, quite different than in Boston. The City of Montreal isn’t at war with its universities like Boston is. The city contributed $4 million to McGill towards the $42 million needed for the rebuilding of its stadium! Boston would never do that, in fact, Boston would try and tax the new stadium. The Milton Park/McGill Ghetto area is pretty much all students so there are not many complaints from non-student neighbors. Outside of that area, there are no majority student areas like Allston/Brighton where neighbors are trying to ban students etc. Montreal is also a very safe city. You will not be warned at orientation to avoid certain areas like students at Boston area schools are told. That said, it is a big city so normal urban precautions should be taken of course. </p>
<p>The “atmosphere” in Montreal is very different from Boston though, and only part of that is due to the French influence. You realize that you are in a very different country yet only 40 miles from the US border. It’s kinda hard to explain, you have to see it to appreciate it. Suggest to your parents that you visit there this summer. Take a look at the pics and short videos in this thread if you haven’t already:
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/mcgill-university/874708-city-you-will-live-four-years.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/mcgill-university/874708-city-you-will-live-four-years.html</a></p>
<p>@bruin17
Actually, my dad graduated from Northeastern’s business school back in the 70’s. He does not recognize the school today neither physically nor academically, It has changed so much. International business is a special program at NU and is very well regarded. Northeastern is not what I would call an “international university” though. When I was looking at colleges, I wanted to get away from Boston, to be somewhere else. I would assume that if you went to NU/BU/BC you would live on campus. Still, you would be in the same metro area where you grew up. If you want to get into international business, it may be beneficial to get out of your “safe space” (that’s what I called it when I was 18). </p>
<p>I did not plan on international business as a major, I sort of drifted into it at McGill based on intro courses and friendships that developed with some other students I met there. The international component at Desautels is sort of woven into the whole program. There are also a lot of international students in the faculty, not all concentrating in intl business. McGill does not offer international relations, a field that prepares you more for the life of a diplomat or government professional. </p>
<p>I hope this helps!!</p>
<p>Hey thanks man, that helped a ton! </p>
<p>My dad also graduated from Northeastern, in the early 80s I believe, and is really in awe of how different it is. Like you said, I also want to get away to an extent but also be relatively close to home which makes Montreal perfect distance-wise. Northeastern’s the only school around here I’ll be looking into since I really liked it when I visited (also visited BU and it didn’t appeal to me).</p>
<p>One more thing if you don’t mind, how are the study abroad options at McGill? Are the connections solid around the world other than places like France and Africa where it’s predominantly French-speaking? Also, if you or people you know did study abroad, is it successful and is it easy to incorporate into a 4-year degree? Thanks again</p>
<p>@bruin17</p>
<p>Study abroad in Desautels Management:</p>
<p>[International</a> Exchange Program](<a href=“http://www.mcgill.ca/desautels/bcom/program_info/exchange/]International”>http://www.mcgill.ca/desautels/bcom/program_info/exchange/)</p>
<p>I’ll PM you.</p>
<p>Bump…</p>
<p>What is the best way for wiring money? Should I set up a Canadian bank account so that I have some cash to make checks to people in Canada?</p>
<p>this is what i did. i live near the border so my parents could just go to the bank in canada if necessary. there are some US banks that have affiliations with canadian banks, in that you can use their atms free of charge or for reduced rate. but i think the easiest way is to open a simple checking account in a canadian bank. otherwise your american checks have to take 10 business days to clear, you have to worry about the exchange rate, and you have to worry about what atms you can use and if you can use debit. with a canadian bank, all your money is with you, your checks are immediate, you can use the bank’s atms for free, and the money is already in canadian dollars.</p>
<p>^ Do you pull tuition money from the Canadian bank, or is that just for living expenses? Do the banks hurt you on the exchange rate if you open a Canadian account and then get a check from your parents at a US bank?</p>
<p>the banks do not hurt you on the exchange rates significantly, the exchange rates are what hurt you. when i started at mcgill the exchange was like $1USD : $1.20, then plummeted to like $0.89 a bit before i left, though i think its closer to normal now. for tuition i actually had my e-bill account on minerva associated with my parents bank at home, so i would just look over the bill and e-sign it to pay it, the conversion was done automatically so it just depended on the closing exchange rates for the day.</p>
<p>i kept my own account in canada for things like rent, books, food, and other stuff i needed, i just filled it up a few times a year that way i didnt have to worry about the exchange too often. you can write an american check and put CD on it i believe, it just makes it more work to balance the account later. each bank has different rules about american checks, especially if you don’t have an account there, but because i didnt want to have to wait possibly two weeks to turn in rent checks and get needed funds from home, i decided to open an account.</p>
<p>I hope I am not the only one to struggle to choose his courses !
How complicated it seems !</p>
<p>And I don’t get the diff between Honours, Joint Honours and so on … Are they really hard to cope with ?</p>
<p>Oh yeah, just a question, a really stupid one: is the high-tec items expensive in Montr</p>
<p>I would call the computer store within the bookstore to see what kind of rates they give students for computers, printers, and software… they should be good deals. But in terms of buying off-campus, you are far better off buying stuff at home. Montreal is fairly expensive for consumer goods, especially because of the nearly 15% sales tax.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Honours are programs intended for those who want to pursue their studies beyond the bachelor level. They usually have more required courses than majors and in some department (most?) have their own courses at the 300-400 level (third and fourth year), sometimes at the 200 level as well (e.g. math starting with analysis II and algebra II). In other cases, a class will be shared for majors and honours but honours students will have extra work to do (and have a separate course number for registration purposes). You need to maintain at leat a B average to stay in an honours program (in particular, you need at least B in all required courses).</p>
<p>Joint honours are honours programs that are joint between two (rarely 3) departments (e.g. joint honours math-physics). Those are really demanding because you need to be excellent and very interested in both fields, plus there’s very little room for electives so you don’t have choice in courses, and it is often very hard to schedule and complete in 4 years.</p>
<p>So, yes, honours are not easy to cope with (depends on the department and your own ability) but the classes tend to be smaller thus you have more access to the profs, and they’re useful if you want to go to grad school. However, they are not required by most universities for grad school, and if you want to have more choices in the courses you take, your standard major is more flexible/accomodating (you can still take honours level courses in a majors program provided you have the grades and prereqs).</p>
<p>Hi, I applied and was accepted for ‘arts - undeclared’ but rejected for my first choice, physics. Could someone tell me how hard it would be to switch major to science later? Can I go there and take science classes and switch eventually?</p>
<p>Thank you.</p>
<p>As I said in the other thread, go for math (which is in both arts and science). The math courses you take will count as arts and still be useful (and required in many cases) for an eventual physics major. You are allowed to register to a limited number of courses in science, choose wisely. And talk to an advisor about exactly what can be done (though once there you might just end up happy with a major in math).</p>
<p>I have a few questions, for anybody that might have an answer.
I’ve been accepted to McGill but am still curious about a few things before i make my final decision.</p>
<ol>
<li>What do you know about the Faculty of Education, specifically the Undergraduate Minor in Educational Psychology, and what you’ve heard about this and exactly how the minor works within the Faculty of Education. </li>
<li>What are the study abroad options like, because study abroad has always been something i’ve wanted to do. Is it accessible? Are there many options of places to go?</li>
<li>This question goes to any American who has gone to McGill…i know Canadians attend university for 3 years (or so i’ve been told), so how does that work as an American? I’m guessing you attend for four years? How does that all work exactly?</li>
</ol>
<p>I think that’s about it.
I really appreciate answers from anyone who may have experience/knowledge about these things!</p>
<p>Thanks so much.</p>
<p>Also, one other thing for anyone who may have been in the same boat as me.
I’m worried that McGill is all about math and science…and i want to study psychology/sociology/education. How is it as a student studying psychology/sociology/education at McGill? Can anyone speak from experience?</p>