One of the standout aspects of McGill is its focus on experiential learning. The university’s strong links to industries and organizations have provided me with valuable internships, co-op placements, and research opportunities that bridge the gap between theory and practice. These experiences have not only enhanced my resume, but also deepened my understanding of my field of interest.

In terms of the Sociology program, I think that the variety in concepts and classes, the work-load, and the professors have exceeded my expectations. It asks me to work hard, without putting extreme amounts of pressure and I find my classes to be engaging and clear. The one issue I would state that McGill has in their Sociology department, is in teaching students what their future career paths or opportunities could be. Even before the future, how students can find work experience and understand where Sociology as a program could take them. I think that a lot of students, like me, find Sociology incredibly interesting but find it difficult to find employability related to the specific program.

McGill University is an excellent institution that has many resources to offer if one is a driven and inquisitive student. However, their new program “Education in Global Contexts” is arguably quite underdeveloped and is the only reason I have found myself dissatisfied at McGill university. The first-year requirements isolate one from the greater student body, do not require students to cultivate critical thinking skills, and are arguably not well related to future careers this degree could provide. Overall, McGill is a strong academic institution, but their integrated education and arts program should be avoided if one is seeking a challenge and does not have an interest in teaching.

Overall, my experience of McGill University was positive.

In terms of teaching, there were many approachable and inspiring lecturers who came from a range of studies and therefore I was introduced to challenging and out-of-the-box thinking. I would have liked there to have been more support at the beginning in terms of how to approach university work as opposed to school work, but I quickly got the hang of it thanks to the helpful and timely feedback from lecturers. My programme (Honours Art History) was as challenging as I expected it to be, but I received help from lecturers who guided me on how to tackle longer research essays and were consistently offering feedback. I really liked how the programme was extremely flexible and you could decide on changing your major basically whenever you wanted in the first two years.

It being such a big university, and being an international student, I was afraid of how I might find friends and societies, but the student life support for freshman was amazing. There are so many welcome activities, like Frosh, and I made friends very quickly from all over the world. The dorm-style, catered accommodation in upper Rez also helped on that front.

Montreal as a city is so vibrant and international. I loved how the campus is embedded in the city, right in the middle of downtown, but also in walking distance to all the cute neighbourhoods, bars and restaurants of the more ‘hippie’ Plateau area. It was as easy to find things to do off-campus as it was on. My favourite thing to do on the weekends was rent a car and drive to the nearest ski hill where I skied with my friends all day and was back in the city in the evening.

I would 100% recommend McGill to anyone looking to make friends from around the world and develop an international perspective, and to receive a broad education with lots of flexibility.