<p>Dude, i don't understand why mcgill is so popular with students. It is downright overrated, definitely. I know i will be getting death threats for saying this and i'm not even qualified to say this, but there are alot of universities IN CANADA that are better than mcgill. </p>
<p>mcgill admissions have this 'wow we are popular so we can raise our standards' attitude. Don't feed that attitude pls.</p>
<p>Dude, i don't understand why you're posting such a pointless thread.
So you get to announce to the world what you think and we can't "argue" with you? ok. :D</p>
<p>I'm with syzonin: McGill is popular with prospective students for its own reasons and you have no right in pointlessly saying that all these students are misguided. Also, the Mcgill admission officers can raise their admission standards, if they think they can. They would not do so if they couldnt recruit enough students of the caliber they deem fit.</p>
<p>BUT, although I completely disagree with the way you said it and how you presented yourself, I must say that McGill, as an academic institution, is overrated. One must only look at the Harvard of Canada or the Harvard: Americas McGill titles/comparisons that McGill tries to propagate. Its a false rivalry and only one side (McGill) thinks that they can be compared to the other. The comparison between the two is wrong on all levels. To those who argue that the comparison exists merely because McGill is the best in Canada and Harvard is the best in the US: While Harvards claim as best in the world can be disputed, McGill thinking that they are definitely ahead of U of Toronto, U of British Columbia, Waterloo, and Queens is just delusional. To those who hold that McGill is actually quite similar to Harvard, hence the comparison: Harvard and McGill are completely different on so many levels, academically, socially, monetarily, and every other kind ly there is. </p>
<p>Look, I love McGill and its differences are what I find appealing, but it is simply not comparable to elite schools like Harvard. It should celebrate that they have down-to-earth kids, instead of the many pretentious students at Harvard.</p>
<p>hmm i think it is overrated too, but I dont have anything against this university. I found people debating Mcgill vs. Stanford in other univ forum, and a lot people were saying Mcgill is like a lot better(and also better than some other ivy leagues) because it's apparently the 12th univ in the world.</p>
<p>mcgill is probably not the 12th best univ in the world (likely overrating), but it is an internationally reputed school with a world-class education. let's just leave it at that. we're not gonna get anywhere by debating whether its administration is snobbish or which school it's better or worse than.</p>
<p>Who here actually goes to McGill?</p>
<p>As someone who does, I can definitely say that no one at McGill, seriously, calls it "the harvard of canada", or calls harvard "america's mcgill". McGill doesn't even make those t-shirts, third party vendors do, hoping to make a quick buck off of first year students and tourists. </p>
<p>Maybe american kids, before they come here, think this is the back door entry around ivy league admission, but once they're here they realize that simply isn't true. McGill's more like an american state-school than anything else (a state-school that has an average entering GPA of ~ 3.7/4.0). </p>
<p>As for McGill reputation to Canadians: most Canadians will upfront admit that McGill isn't the best in canada. For certain disciplines McGill is awesome, but for others you could goto UBC, U of T, Queen's, King's, etc. McGill is famous for its sciences, within and outside of Canada. U of T is also a very good school, but its reputation is more seated inside of academia, rather than in the outside world. </p>
<p>I don't really appreciate the phrase "mcgill is over-rated" because it all really depends on where you are, doesn't it. Very few people outside of academia know what McGill even is in the midwest. I think that lack of brand-name recognition kind of takes it off the radar for "universal over-rating", simply by definition. McGill might be overrated in the Northeast, but I don't personally know what the reputation there is...</p>
<p>What ever, I will continue this later.</p>
<p>It appears you have an axe to grind and skewed judgment. Perhaps you didn't get in or are flunking out if you did. Perhaps, you were jilted by a McGill coed for not being in her league, or you met a McGill student or alumnus who was atypically arrogant. The best description I've heard of McGill is that it is like a top tier state school on steroids. Most McGill students are comfortable in their own shoes and don't go out of their way to push McGill on anyone. It appears to be not for you.</p>
<p>I'd ask you to provide some of your background, but there is no way to check your credibility. Instead of shouting your negative rap from the mountain top here on this forum, give a call to the admissions committees in all the best science programs in the US and elsewhere and ask them why they routinely add .5 to the GPAs of applicants from McGill, which is universally recognized as a rigorous international and world class educational institution.</p>
<p>Btw, people who feel the need to shout that something or someone is overrated too often are coming from a sense of insecurity and inferiority. Try counseling.</p>
<p>ill try to understand your argument, but frankly, i think it's pointless</p>
<p>in relation to the whole "harvard of canada" thing, that's just a little ridiculous. i really doubt there are many people that take that too seriously, or reference it frequently whatsoever (although i must say i did make use of it/the recent "12th in the world" ranking once to a friend who was getting a bit elitist towards me after her middlebury/wellesly acceptances...it was getting annoying, so hopefully you can see why that was necessary). but i digress. </p>
<p>clearly, mcgill is an excellent school aside from these generalizations, whether they are true or not. aside from the harvard thing i mentioned before, i really think its one of the schools that is beginning to gain in popularity yet still is relatively grounded. you dont have the overwhelmingly competitive admissions/academics nature that is characteristic of many top-tier american schools (yet, at least) that still lack the necessities of an excellent education, yet a diverse and interesting student body and city are present, and the price is just icing on the cake. you can look at the admissions percentage and say all of it is ********, but so few americans think to look towards canada when applying and canadians have a whole different attitude regarding college admissions, i think its only plausible until this publicity really starts to take hold.</p>
<p>as an american, i know little to nothing about canadian schools, so maybe your thinking that mcgill is overrated in relation to waterloo, queens, toronto...i have no idea. however, as an american i do know that there are countless schools here that do not deserve their reputations, and the fact that admissions is so cutthroat with kids applying to ten other schools only feeds that mania. </p>
<p>take my view any way you want...im not a mcgill student yet, so i dont have a large scale of knowledge about the school. but to be honest, i think mcgill is one of the schools where it is pointless to make an argument such as this, especially in relation to american schools. and seriously, with any school, not just mcgill, in these forums everyone has a lot of pride in where theyve been accepted/will attend, so with all of those factors i just want to understand--whats the point?</p>
<p>McGill is most often compared to UCLA and UMich, no one actually compares it to Harvard. Obviously the Ivies are superior, by far, but in all reality, these schools aren't exactly bad - you're probably not going to find a vast difference between a student at UCLA and a student at McGill (science I'm talking about). </p>
<p>Most people who choose McGill do so for money reasons, but you have to realize that the social aspect is also an appeal. I know more than a few kids who got into multiple Ivies but choose McGill... Sometimes it helps to be in the top of the pack academically so you can actually have a life.</p>
<p>McGill is a good school, but NEVER ever hope to get any financial aid.I'm a canadian citizen/US permanent resident, and I got 0.00 even though my EFC was really low(think 4 digits). On the other hand, I just got into UChicago, and I 'm probably gonna go there bc. it's not only a significantly better school, but it's actually CHEAPER for me.</p>
<p>Congratulations, and good luck on your next four years. You will not only be on a painful quest for a degree, you'll be on the excruciating quest for fun (you might not find it...).</p>
<p>All kidding aside, had U of C had an engineering program, I would've totally considered them; it's a fantastic school, in a fantastic city (even though it's in a crappy part of town).</p>
<p>You know... in a sense McGill is the "Harvard of CANADA." Maybe in saying this, they are not comparing McGill with Harvard, but rather McGill in relation to CANADA's other universities...and if that's the case, McGill is indeed the the Harvard of Canada (I emphasize "OF CANADA"). Maybe to Americans, McGill may be seen as overrated, but to Canadian standards, McGill is the best university they've got. I can assure you that Canadian high schools are not as nearly as "hard" or "competitive" as American schools... (that's the primary reason that I moved to the States - to challenge myself). This is not to say that there are no good schools in Canada; there are many mini-schools and IB programs in Canada too that are very challenging, but there aren't as many, and the normal high school does not offer that many AP courses...</p>
<p>"hmm i think it is overrated too, but I dont have anything against this university. I found people debating Mcgill vs. Stanford in other univ forum, and a lot people were saying Mcgill is like a lot better(and also better than some other ivy leagues) because it's apparently the 12th univ in the world."</p>
<p>I love how many people are stupid these days and think just because some brand new University Ranking system created by a british publication is saying McGill is number 12 in the world. The rankings is not even 2 years old yet, and it has no credibility really. I mean Berkeley, definitely better than McGill, went from 8 to 22 in a year. I would argue till my death that Berkeley would deserve a top 10 space. It's undergrad isnt amazing cause of size, but its grad programs are all among the top in the world, similarly like Harvard, Standford, Columbia, Oxbridge, U Chicago, and a couple other schools.</p>
<p>Anyway, what is so funny about the "12th in the world" ranking is that it appears to be the only one people look at. Newsweek said it was 42 in 2006, and this one other major ranking ranked it 62. Ide go as far as saying that McGill could overally be considered one of the top 45 schools in the world, but 12? Yeah right. Oh funny rankings.</p>
<p>To the OP. I'm sure some other canadian schools have many departments that beat McGill's. However, generally when it comes to Grad school placement, programs, and prestigious awards, McGill is the victor.</p>
<p>Sadly for many canadian Unis besides McGill, their quality is overlooked by the world. Ide argue that overall McGill is the best in Canada, but the others all fall very close, and certain specific programs are much better than some of McGill's better programs.</p>
<p>^I'm not saying these rankings are great or anything, but they changed the way they rated the universities this year which is why the change is so HUGE. Like they made it more favorable for schools that had strengths in humanities... McGill isn't particularly known for humanities so I don't know how to explain that one. But for science, a ranking in top 25 is believable; 12 is a stretch, and it shouldn't be above Berkeley for grad.</p>
<p>And as far as that chinese ranking goes, it's not really too great either - it places a lot of schools like UIUC above Brown (if I'm remembering correctly) which is crap.</p>
<p>^^ Which is crap? Why, because Brown has their own airport, and UIUC doesn't? UIUC engineering is LIGHTYEARS beyond Brown engineering (hell it's better than all of the Ivy's engineering programs, save for maybe Cornell). </p>
<p>It's time for you kids to face the facts about the Ivies: for humanities/the arts, they're alright. For sciences/engineering sciences, there are way better schools (some of them even state schools). Talk to anyone in an engineering field, they'll say U Mich, UIUC, UCB, Georgia Tech, these are all PHENOMENAL engineering schools. The only ivy name you might catch in this hypothetical conversation is brown, and even then, you heard the guy wrong. He was describing the color of kitchen's hardwood floors.</p>
<p>dr mambo</p>
<p>You're right about engineering and science. My son was admitted to UIUC, Michigan, Texas, and McGill. All I can say is that the difficulty level of the engineering program at McGill and the opportunities presented by the social life in Montreal haven't disappointed him, though, of course, they can work against each other. He has learned to consolidate his fun into one weekend night a week.</p>
<p>i agree
<a href="http://www.geocities.jp/worldtheride/WorldRankings2007.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://www.geocities.jp/worldtheride/WorldRankings2007.pdf</a>
every program at McGill is very good</p>
<p>You haven't seen education then...</p>
<p>Hahahaha...the good ole overrated McGill thread.</p>
<p>I attend McGill and am going to graduate this spring. McGill's overall package is head and shoulder's above those of other Canadian schools'.Great international reputation (UBC, Queens, UofT: only Canadian care about),an extremely smart and diverse student body, great city, relatively strong programs across the board, great bang for your buck.</p>
<p>McGill can never be as selective as its american counterparts. It's a public university and the amount of funding it gets from the govt is tied to its enrollment. The university is bursting at its seams with students without a comparable investment in infrastructure which isn't a pretty sight. That's what happens when you are located smack dab in the middle of downtown of a major North American metropolis.In this regard it's pretty similar to Columbia. </p>
<p>WRT to it's intl reputation, North Americans have no idea how well it's regarded around the world. Say Dartmouth, Brown, Duke and you are more likely to be met with blank stares. Don't even try mentioning Queen's or use acronyms like UBC or UofT. McGill has a powerful brand name. Brand names can only get you so far but still.... I can attest to this fact cuz I am an intl student.</p>
<p>The diversity of the student body is unparalleled in Canada. Some of the smartest intl kids come here. I can count sons of ambassadors, diplomats,and university leaders as my friends. Being around such a diverse, well grounded, well travelled bunch of ppl definitely enriches your experience.</p>
<p>The other thing is the university is very strong in all the major fields that propel brand recognition- medicine, law, science. McGill music program is stellar too.Some of the other programs are a joke.Business comes to mind. I also have no idea what we are doing with social work,education, religious studies etc. In trying to being as comprehensive as it can be , the university is stretching out its already limited resources a bit much. Honestly, if McGill had half as much money as say even Brown it'd be in the ivies+ 2 list.</p>
<p>At the end of the day it's a public university. You'll have to compete for resources, compete for advisors, be independent, and no one is going to volunteer to hold your hand.It's also quite bureaucratic. It doesn't have many of the perks of the ivies like free laundry, eating clubs, or free ipods, but the rigors of academia, the opportunities to do research in stellar labs, the opportunities to hear fantastic speakers and make connections are on par with those afforded by the most selective american universities. The only difference is that you'll have to ferret these out yourself.</p>
<p>McGill's a school that's easy to get bitter at. It's meant for a very specific kind of student: the over achieving, independent kind. It's a very easy hit or miss.Kind of like NYC.</p>
<p>^^^FYI, columbia is in harlem, which is not a particularly nice area. In fact, it is very ghetto.</p>
<p>NYU is in a really nice area like McGill tho.</p>