US colleges near exciting Canadian cities

<p>SUNY Plattsburg - 1 hour 10 minutes from French-speaking Montreal
U of Vermont - 1 hour 45 minutes from French-speaking Montreal
Saint Lawrence University - 1 hour 20 minutes from Ottawa
SUNY Potsdam - 1 hour 30 minutes from Ottawa
U of Maine Fort Kent - 3 hours 30 minutes from Quebec City (yes, a long drive but great French-speaking city)
Niagara University - 1 hour 30 minutes from Toronto
SUNY Buffalo - 1 hour 45 minutes from Toronto</p>

<p>pretty easy road trips
You think of Fort Kent, Plattsburg, Potsdam, and Saint Lawrence as being in the middle of nowhere but access to exciting Canadian cities mitigates the isolation. You just don't think of the fact that there are these great cities and culture just north of these "border towns".</p>

<p>Something to consider....</p>

<p>Wayne State University in Detroit is three miles from Windsor, Ontario Canada. It would be an exciting walk for sure.</p>

<p>U Dub is about 2 hours from Vancouver and a ferry ride from Victoria.</p>

<p>Western Washington is only about an hour from Vancouver.</p>

<p>Why not go to universities in these Canadians cities instead of having to drive to them from mostly podunk American towns?</p>

<p>Ottawa is “exciting”? LOL! It is a very pretty city, but I would not call it “exciting”. Montreal, Quebec City and Toronto are indeed exciting though. UDub is not too far (2 hours or so by car) from Vancouver, another fun Canadian city.</p>

<p>The University of North Dakota is 2 hr 30 min from Winnipeg.</p>

<p>Sorry, why am I not impressed?</p>

<p>It’s Winnipeg :D</p>

<p>But yeah just go to school in Canada. Way easier. I mean, Rochester is only ‘a few hours’ from Toronto…</p>

<p>Alexandre, you said it before I could.</p>

<p>I lived in Ottawa for several years. It’s a lovely, livable city. A great place to raise a family. But exciting? No.</p>

<p>D’accord, ecouter (post #8^^).</p>

<p>I don’t recall the exact figure, but something like 90% of Canada’s population lives within 100 miles of the U.S. border. Most of Canada’s biggest population centers, including most of its most interesting and dynamic cities, are close to the border. Most of the U.S. population is not close to the border, and most of its most interesting and dynamic cities are not near the border. So there’s just a basic mismatch there. Yes, there are lots of small, podunk U.S. towns close to the border with Canada, and some of them are in relatively close proximity to interesting Canadian cities. Some of those podunk U.S. towns have colleges or universities, of varying degrees of quality. And some students at those podunk-town colleges take advantage of their proximity to exciting Canadian cities by making occasional short road trips, maybe once or twice a year. </p>

<p>But proximity to Toronto is not a good reason to go to school in Buffalo, because probably 98% or more of your time during the academic year is going to be spent in Buffalo, not in Toronto. If you find Toronto that attractive, go to the University of Toronto, or to another Toronto school.</p>

<p>What, no love for Ottawa??!!
Read the Wikipedia article:
[Ottawa</a> - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottawa]Ottawa”>Ottawa - Wikipedia)</p>

<p>There is lots to see and do. Depends on what you call “exciting”. If tulips make you swoon, you will love Ottawa. I happen to like museums and good food. Not into clubs.</p>

<p>collegehelp, I am not a “clubbing” type myself. Hate dancing and don’t drink. But I am a huge foodie…like, BIG TIME!. Ottawa is not on the map. Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver and even Calgary have more to offer for foodies.</p>

<p>Is there a reason you can’t/don’t want to just go to a college in a big Canadian city (ie. McGill, UofT, UBC)?</p>

<p>Also why the specific interest in Canadian cities? Don’t get me wrong cities like Toronto and Vancouver are great, but they aren’t exactly exotic for an American, although I will admit the Montreal feels very different than any other North American city.</p>

<p>There was a high speed ferry from Toronto to Rochester a few years ago. Didn’t work out. The Toronto people didn’t won’t to go to the ROC.</p>

<p>For New York residents, the publics are relatively inexpensive so Buffalo, Plattsburg, and Potsdam might be more appealing than a Canadian college.</p>

<p>There was a restaurant in Ottawa … I think the “Belknap” or something like that…which I thought was very good. Also one called Black Cat. There were others.</p>

<p>Here’s a link:
[Ottawa’s</a> Top 10 Restaurants | Ottawa Magazine](<a href=“http://www.ottawamagazine.com/restaurants/2012/01/13/top-ten-restaurants-2011/]Ottawa’s”>Ottawa's Top 10 Restaurants 2011)</p>

<p>@namelesstatistic: Several Canadians have posted on CC wondering why McGill is such a popular destination for American students compared to University of Toronto which is “obviously” a better school, in their opinion. Montr</p>

<p>@tomofboston
Ya McGill and U of Toronto have for much of the past century or so been the two most famous Canadian schools (at least among Canadians) and hence there is a fair amount of debate between fans of either school about the “Best in Canada”. Either McGill and Toronto tend to end up as the top Cnadian University in the world rankings (I think for 20102 UofT was the top Canadian school in TIMES and ARWU and McGill led the country in the QS rankings). Ironically the two universities don’t have much of an actual rivalry, with McGill’s historical rival being Queens University in Kingston, and the only major McGill vs. Toronto event I know of is he Old Four tournament, but that also involves Queens and the University of Western Ontario. McGill is pretty popular with American students whereas the international student population of Toronto seems to be primarily composed of east asian students.
I think American students tend to be drawn to the exotic feel of Montreal (and hence the city’s best University) and maybe feel that they can get a truly foreign/european feeling experience experience for a comparatively low cost. Toronto is a great city but is certainly doesn’t feel exotic, for me feeling like New York but smaller, cleaner and with people who hold doors open for strangers.</p>

<p>As an alumnus of UofT and a current McGill student I can say they are both really good schools, that offer high quality education and to pick the better of the two comes down to personal preference.</p>

<p>“To me, Toronto is Chicago with a low crime rate.”</p>

<p>“Toronto is a great city but is certainly doesn’t feel exotic, for me feeling like New York but smaller, cleaner and with people who hold doors open for strangers.”</p>

<p>So true to both comments. Being from the Detroit area, I have been to Toronto many, many times. Toronto might not feel “exotic” but it could very well be the most multi-cultural city on the planet. For an all around experience, on a manageable scale for a visitor/student, it is IMO the best city on the continent. </p>

<p>[What</a> is the most multicultural city in the world](<a href=“Answers - The Most Trusted Place for Answering Life's Questions”>What is the most multicultural city in the world? - Answers)</p>

<p>I love Montreal as well, but Quebec City feels more European in comparison.</p>