I’m choosing between these three schools and am considering to apply for transfer to Columbia. I’m not sure if going abroad will affect my chances to transfer back, but I feel like UofT and McGill are better undergrad choices than NYU. But NYU is also internationally acclaimed, which means that I can’t just dismiss it…
NYU has a reputation for being super expensive. Have you run the numbers to compare the costs of each school?
@NamelesStatistic Yeah, I should probably check on that too. I didn’t apply for financial aid, so I should look into that more. I know that McGill and Toronto are pretty affordable (and are good schools on top of that), but I don’t know if I’m willing to pay a ton to go to NYU
@sunjong
If you are not a Canadian citizen, you really should not expect much in terms of financial aid. International students are accepted in large part to collect the high international tuition fees. Unless you are truly a notable applicant (something to differentiate you beyond just having a lot of As in high school, don’t expect much financial aid from the university). Now there are lot of private organizations in Canada that give out scholarships to applicants based on their background. You should maybe take a look at the private scholarships up for grabs for the next school years and see which ones you qualify for, but the honest truth is that going to university overseas is almost always a lot more expensive then going to university at home, and Canada isn’t an exception to that.
@NamelesStatistic Yeah, I understand that. I applied as an international applicant because I didn’t have enough time to renew my Canadian citizenship card, but I’ll have to look into doing it if I do plan on going there. There are pros and cons to every school, which makes it hard to choose. Toronto is actually pretty far up in the rankings and is much cheaper than NYU is, but NYU has a very strong math program (which I’m majoring in) and I’d rather stay in the US.
Ok, then that is very good news for you. If you are a Canadian citizen, then you will be processed as an international student but if you get accepted you will pay Canadian fees, not international fees. At UofT this will be about be $7500- $8000 per year (2 semesters) after tuition, health insurance (which you can opt out of if you are on a family members insurance plan) student society fees, athletic fees, ect. McGill fees for Out of Province Canadians vary based on program and can be found here: http://www.mcgill.ca/student-accounts/tuition-charges/fallwinter-term-tuition-and-fees/undergraduate-fees
Generally McGill looks to be roughly $9000 per year for most majors for non-Quebec Canadians. However, if you never actually lived in Canada before but have Canadian citizenship you might actually be able to claim Quebec residency because you would have the residency of the first province you have a permanent residence in (I know a former student from the US who inherited Canadian citizenship from a parent but grew up in the US do this when he went to McGill). In this case the fees are much lower: $4000-$4500.
This is undoubtedly way lower than the tuition fees you would face at NYU, especially as as a non-American applicant.
@NamelesStatistic Wow, that makes it so clear. I know that tuition-wise, I can get a good four-year education in Canada at around the same price as completing one year in NYU, which is a big part of why I’m considering it so much. I have to really weigh the pros and cons to make a final decision, though,
@sungjong were you an international applicant when applying to NYU? If so, did you apply for financial aid?
@notarobot124 No, I’m currently studying and residing in the US. I also didn’t apply for aid because my parents said that we wouldn’t get any aid anyways
@sungjong if you didn’t apply for aid, some colleges won’t consider you for any aid, though idk if this is true for NYU
Personally, my instinct would be to go for the University that offers the best financial package, especially considering all of these schools are roughly on the same lane when it comes to prestige (you aren’t choosing between Harvard and Backwater State here) and especially since you are only doing an undergraduate degree. Remeber if you plan to do professional school (medical school, law school ect.) or graduate school (excluding some STEM degrees that offer substantial stipends) you are going to have to spend more money on education, which means you want to finish your bachelors with as little debt as possible.
Both UofT and McGill are part of the Association of American Universities group (along with Columbia and NYU and pretty much all the major US research universities) so both these Canadian Universities have some profile in academic circles in the US.
I have to admit, living for 4 years in downtown New York would be pretty cool though.
Anyway, your best bet right now is to just wait and see who accepts you and then compare financial packages offered by each one. Right now it seems like this choice is still just a hypothetical.
Also, just to note those tuition fees I listed for McGill and Toronto were in Canadian dollars. Since the Canadian dollar is so weak right now (1 $C=80cents US) those tuition fees will be even lower when adjusted to US dollars.