Hi. I was just accepted to McGill and I’m still deciding whether I should go or not. How is the student life at McGill? Will I be studying most of the time? Are there a lot of social events? Is it a safe environment? I am an engineering major
Thanks!
Montreal is a very safe city, even by Canadian standards. As an engineering student you will likely be spending a lot of time studying. I recommend you live in residence first year. It really helped my son develop a circle of friends.
At the start of the year there is a week long Frosh event to get you started.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_Fad89duL0&t=28s
In Quebec the drinking age is 18. There will be no need to get a fake ID or sneak a six pack past the RA’s. Greek life is a minor part of campus life. Social life will be partly in the city, partly on campus. With 20,000 undergrads most students find their niche.
I would recommend visiting Montreal if you have not already.
Father of a current U0 here. You will definitely work hard at McGill…the rumors of its workload and rigor are true…but you will also have as active of a social life as you choose. My son (and many other students) definitely take advantage of being in a city with an 18 drinking age (Cafe Campus and Tokyo seem to be big U0 hangouts)…though drinking does not need to be part of the social life (lots to do for non-drinkers). He recently attended Igloofest…billed as the world’s coldest music festival. Lots of on campus clubs and activities. Festivals, museums, going out to dinner…lots to do. Montreal is an awesome city and very, very student friendly. That said, if he needs to stay in on a weekend night to study there are always other people doing that. And frankly, I think that is one of the things he likes the best about it.
In terms of Frosh videos, I’m still partial to the Arts Frosh video of a couple of years ago. (My son described Frosh as the most fun he has ever had in his life.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cj1uJKgTIoU
Apparently, based on the youtube video, photographs are an important part of the McGill application process.
OMG, I am not sure how I feel after watching that video! My son is admitted, and very very likely going- and we are going up the week of April 9th to check things out.
@NWNative There are alternative froshes. They are not all the same.
@NWNative As @ShrimpBurrito stated there are many different Froshes. Here is an article from the student newspaper describing some of the faculty and alternative Froshes:
http://www.mcgilltribune.com/opinion/campus-conversation-how-effective-is-frosh-as-an-introduction-to-life-at-mcgill-438749/
Are you American? The drinking age in Quebec is 18. Drinking is legal and students can visit clubs and bars. It is quite different from the “fake ID/frat party/sneaking a bottle past the RA” culture that exists at American universities.
Here is an article from the McGill Reporter. It is from 2005. American journalist Barrette Seaman described the difference in the drinking culture at McGill versus American campuses in his book “Binge”.
https://www.mcgill.ca/reporter/38/01/drinking/
Here’s another description of the various froshes:
https://www.simplifymcgill.com/frosh-and-orientation
I have found that Simplify McGill website to be very helpful overall.
@NWNative Do not fret about what you see in the video. There are lots of different Froshes, some of which are dry for sure. And to be sure they highlight the fun because do you really want to see video of kids sitting in a circle bonding and team building?! (And they did a lot of team building!) What I can tell you about Arts Frosh (in the video) is this: my son said it was the most fun he ever had (“the concert was lit”) and he also met a ton of kids, many of whom now form his core friend group. In this group are kids from four continents, multiple countries, multiple faiths…a perfect example of the diversity that makes McGill so great.
Again, I would emphasize that McGill’s reputation for being a rigorous education is well deserved. My son is working hard to be sure. More importantly, his critical thinking skills have advanced so much in just this year. The way he looks at situations and analyzes them is just something I had not seen before from him. Have I seen a picture on Instagram of him having a beer with his buddies. Absolutely. Have I texted with him on a Friday night as he and friends are studying because they had too much work to do to go out? Yes.
McGill is a wonderful and very unique university. My son recently said to me “I can’t imagine being at any other college.” As a parent, I could not be more pleased with my son’s decision.
Good luck on your visit!
I’m not uptight or worried, just overwhelmed maybe? It looks fantastic though!
I’ve been reading lately about incidents of sexual harassment at McGill. I saw students initiated a petition for the admin to investigate professors who are known to be offenders. I know this can happen at any university - I’m actually happy to see students and professors calling on the admin to proactively handle this, but am hoping current students or parents can reassure me this isn’t an epidemic.
There is an interesting conversation going on right now on the McGill International Parents page so I asked my son. He said that he feels like it’s not pervasive but clearly there is something that needs to be addressed…meaning their complaints are real and valid and need to be heard and addressed. Fortunately, it is a school of kids with great intellect and strong voices. So he thinks that it is being heard and that change is coming. Just my opinion: I think this is a problem for a LOT of universities. Lots of institutions need to make some changes. Hope that helps.
@Happy4u There have been much publicized cases of sexual harassment by faculty members this past year at Dartmouth, Boston University and the University of Rochester, among others I’m sure. These cases usually involve graduate students, who have a closer relationship with faculty. It will be interesting to see how McGill deals with this.
https://www.chronicle.com/article/Rochester-Faculty-Senate/242650
@SwimmingDad @TomSrOfBoston Thanks - that’s good insight. Let’s hope McGill rises to this challenge! With so many international students living thousands of miles from their families and support systems, it’s incumbent upon the school to be a safe haven. I love that students and faculty have stepped forward to acknowledge the issues.