<p>Aside from cost (clearly an important factor) what are the relative advantages and disadvantages of these schools? Feedback based on direct personal experience from current students would be greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>Seconded. (10 characters)</p>
<p>Hey, I am completing my 1st year at McGill right now and hoping and praying that I will get into Cornell as a transfer. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to PM me.</p>
<p>Obvious things first, McGill is located in Montreal, Canada which is a much larger city than the town of Ithaca. Montreal is brimming with a nightclubs and boasts an extremely vibrant nightlife. The legal drinking age in Montreal is…get this…18!</p>
<p>McGill is a much larger school, in terms of population, than Cornell. It is also, overall, Canada’s top school. The guys are better looking in McGill.</p>
<p>Admission into McGill, like any Canadian universities, is a joke. Therefore, the people you find at McGill, on average, will not be as interesting as you would find in a top-tier US private university. Classes at McGill are huge. </p>
<p>McGill is cheaper and more affordable, although the cost for internationals may be more.
Dorms are varied; some are good, some are bad. </p>
<p>Cornell has a better reputation and is more internationally-acclaimed.</p>
<p>Although they are both big schools, Cornell seems to make much more of and effort to make it feel like a community. There are programs to unite and guide freshman. And there are many more campus-run activities, clubs etc. </p>
<p>its true that guys are generally better looking at McGill. McGill has less advising and less handholding. It forces you to be very independent (most people, even many freshman live off campus or even a subway ride away). McGill has more of an international feel and you will really meet people from all over the world. </p>
<p>Both are great schools! one of the main differences is that McGill is mostly based in the city, while Cornell is somewhat of a city itself.</p>
<p>I am an extremely attractive male McGill student in my last semester.</p>
<p>You’ll get a better education at Cornell, no question. There are brilliant kids at McGill who go to Princeton, MIT, etc. for grad school, but there are also a lot of morons. This is true for any of the big Canadian schools-there’s a huge disparity in the quality of undergrad students. </p>
<p>Cornell is full of ugly try-hard dorks (I’m generalizing on purpose). A lot of them are bright but mostly they just work really hard. However, I wish I was graduating from Cornell instead of McGill; it’s a lot easier to get a job as an Ivy grad.</p>
<p>Back off McGill fans. Although, it may be true that McGill has a vibrant city life mainly because it is in the heart of Monteral, Cornell does not lack the party vibe. The more so since we are isolated in the country side. There are several of greek and house parties and apparently the girls at Cornell are the most study and party hard species. </p>
<p>And i dont think all Cornell guys are your average Star-Trek prodigies, did you ever check the hotelliers? Hotelliers are often also picked on their presentation skills(physical and oral) during their hotel interview, so dont get too stuck up.</p>
<p>Does Mcgill really carry as much prestige as the Ivy league Cornell?</p>
<p>if you’re considering prestige… cornell is more recognized internationally. and i agree with the above posts…cornell is highly selective, especially compared to mcgill. The chances are that, you’ll find that the quality of cornell undergrads is superior to those at mcgill. Although mcgill is recognized as one of the best institutions in Canada, i’d chose cornell over mcgill.</p>
<p>I appreciate the input. Still trying to decide.</p>
<p>paige (i think) on degrassi said that mcgill was like the harvard of canada…</p>
<p>but it might be interesesting to study internationally…for example it might be interesting to study International Relations from a canadian perspective…</p>
<p>Bump…10 char</p>
<p>With McGill, there’s always the chance of delusional Habs fans…</p>
<p>I know. They’ll be lucky to get by Boston in the playoffs. Another depressing Habs season.</p>
<p>I had to make the same decision in the last two weeks. McGill has been my dream school for several years, since I was a freshmen. Was dying to go there, and got accepted with a 6k/yr entrance bursary. Not too bad. Woulda been like 25k/yr for school after all the tuition increases in the next couple years. Applied to Cornell not really expecting to get in.
Well I did. Got the financial aid package, and it was cheaper than McGill… no joke. Cheaper.</p>
<p>I chose Cornell instantly, but had already decided in my mind how I would do it. If the cost was less, or not much more than McGill, I was going to Cornell. Otherwise it was McGill. It was hard to choose, but at the end of the day, it came down to the fact that Cornell is more well respected, ESPECIALLY in the US where not many people have heard of McGill. Those who have know it’s a great school, but most haven’t heard of it. Not to mention the fact that Cornell is a more traditional college experience, has a much more tight knit student body, and the icing on the cake was that it’s an Ivy League school. I’ll admit it, yes I’m a prestige whore (somewhat) but I don’t really think that’s a terrible thing. People admire those who go to amazing schools- saying you went to Cornell is simply more impressive than saying I went to McGill, and them asking “Ummm… where is that?”</p>
<p>In the end, as much as I hated to give up the amazing city that is Montreal, the 18 drinking age, and everything else I loved about the school, I chose Cornell for it’s quality of education, affordability (I know, that may not be the case for most), things for students to get involved in, and the campus.</p>
<p>Check them both out, as they are pretty much polar opposites in many ways (yet very alike in others) and decide which setting and style of life (biggest differences) are right for you.</p>
<p>Congrats Zfanatic. You’re lucky to receive that much FA from Cornell. I’m sure that made the decision a lot easier. You can always come up to Montreal to party when you need a break from Ithaca. It’s not that far.</p>