I’m a Canadian Citizen who goes to an international school elsewhere (not in the US or Canada). I got accepted into all 3 schools and I’m currently debating on where to go. I’ve been thinking about where to go as early as I received all 3 offers in February and I still couldn’t make a decision.
I’m an IB diploma student with 43 predicted grade and I’m Asian. For UBC, I got accepted into the Faculty of Science (no major yet but possible biology based). Same faculty for Toronto (major: human biology). Same faculty for McGill (major: Anatomy and Cell Biology) As I’m planning on pursuing in medicine in the future (probably plastic surgery or dermatology), my majors are biology based. I’m thinking about going to the US for med school but I might also stay in Canada. Which of these schools could better prepare me for getting into med school either in the US or Canada?
For all 3 schools, I will be living on Campus. Tbh I made a wrong choice for dorms at Toronto because of the college I chose (Victoria College), which is super far from the Bio/ Science classrooms. (probably a 10-minute walk) For UBC, I could hopefully get a connected single room. (two single rooms connected by a shared bathroom) I’m still deciding for McGill though. (probably those kinds of modern hotel styles that are about 5-10 minutes walking distance away from campus but I’m keeping my options open)
I visited all 3 campuses last year during the summer. I think UBC has the biggest campus and I really liked the environment there. I don’t mean that I dislike the other two. I like all of them tbh. U of T and McGill seems more convenient coz they are really close to downtown.
I heard that in U of T, lots of students have lots of stress and most people sleep at around 2 am in the morning studying. I don’t really like to stay up late. My friend who is currently studying biology there said that their average grade is around C and if you got anything that is above a B-, you should celebrate. So I’m not sure if I’m competent enough to do well in academics at U of T…
The best thing about going to McGill is that I can go directly into my major (which means graduating university in 3 years) because of the IB diploma and I get $5000 scholarships per year. I also get my first choice for dorms and early choice for courses.The scholarships and early graduation sound tempting, but I speak no French and I don’t think anyone from my school is going to McGill. A lot of Canadians from my graduating class are going to Toronto. I know some friends who are planning to go to UBC or other schools in Vancouver. Also, McGill has SUPER cold winters, which will be another problem.
The benefits of being in either Toronto of UBC is that I knew some current students there who could possibly help me transition. I have some family friends in Vancouver who could help me too. Vancouver also has the best weather imo. However, if I go to Montreal, I don’t know many people there. (But this will probably just make me more independent? Who knows?)
I’m interested in the internship programs each school can offer: I really hope I could do internships at labs in uni. How are the students at each school? Are they welcoming/ friendly/ nice to incoming freshmen? Opportunity wise, at which school do I have a better chance of participating in special programs? (Internships, study abroad, volunteering, research, etc.)
All responses will be appreciated. Thank you very much for all your help! 