Université de Montréal (reviews)

I’ve had the chance to study on the new campus of Laval for the first semester. It was interesting. I’ve met nice people and the teachers were knowledgeable about their speciality. There were not too many people per classroom so the teachers were really able to focus on every single student. A lot of catch-up sessions were organized.

Case Western Reserve University is a highly-regarded private institution in the United States. With world-class education programs and a wide array of subjects, this university attracts top students from around the world. If you go here, you have one thing assured: your future is set. Graduate programs and employers know that Case academics are demanding and ask a lot of effort from students. All in all, this school seems like a really great opportunity. However, there are some catches to consider.
1. Social life. If you are the kind of person who likes to party every weekend and do nothing but hang out with friends, this school is NOT for you. People here are extremely focused on their academics, and sometimes sparking up a conversation can be intimidating and awkward. You can find a cool group of people if you look hard, but this is not a social school.
2. Flexibility. Even though Case claims to be “open door” with regards to its programs, it is really hard to switch from a B.A to a B.S, or switch from a major subject to another, even if you do it early on during freshman year. There are many barriers to overcome, and eventually most students who go through with the switch end up repeating versions of their already-taken classes so that they can get the credit from them. Personally, I couldn’t change my program to an engineering-oriented program simply because I didn’t take a math class that was required, even though it was a version of another one I did take. Please note, this was during the fall semester of freshman year, and it was very frustrating. I ended up not going through with the change.
3. Cleveland. Even though it is a nice city to look at, there is really no life in here. Downtown seems ghostly no matter when or where, and you end up doing the same things around campus. It isn’t a safe city either, which makes it another downside.
All in all, Case is a great school for high-achieving students who want to advance their academic careers significantly. However, it is not the school for everyone and many things have to be taken into consideration.

The Asian Studies Bachelor’s program at UDEM is fulfilling and more than I could have hoped for. The teachers and different events are all guiding you toward an international career and offering you opportunities to immerse yourself in your studies. A variety of teachers from different backgrounds and countries. Allowing you to learn about Asia from abroad and expert-driven perspective. Not only, but the opportunity to participate in an exchange was also well structured and the best way possible to understand and experience Asia.
Keep in mind though, that to give yourself the best chances possible for a career, you got to give it your all in language learning, as it opens a lot more doors if you come out of the program fluent in either Mandarin, Japanese or Korean. 100% recommend

One of the best francophone faculties in the world and the best in Canada. The teachers are known to be the leaders in their specialization across Quebec and Canada, they are all well known in their fields. There are more than 30 committees in the faculty which gives a lot of chances to be implied in the student life. The program is not easy, it requires a lot of studying and sacrifices but graduating from this school will perfectly prepare you for the bar exam and later will get you easily in the field. The best law firms in Canada have the biggest percentage of graduated students from the faculty of Law of the University of Montreal.

A Ph.D journey is a hard choice to make, especially considering its long duration (3-4 years, or let’s be honest it could also take 5 1/2 years), and low income salary (although some prestigious scholarships like Vanier could grant you 50 k per year the average salary in francophone universities in Montreal is 22 k annually). That’s why I spent several hours deciding if doing a PhD after completion of my Master in Chemistry was the right choice for me. Finally, it was, and after 3 years I’m not regretting it even for a second.
Currently, I’m doing my PhD in Materials Engineering at Polytechnique Montréal/ Université de Montréal which has allowed me to expand my research expertise and acquire new skills that I can use to find a job in an increasingly competitive job market. However, there have been several hurdles in my path such as the linguistic barrier. Let me explain my situation, I’m a bilingual student (Spanish/English) studying/ living in a francophone university/city, and even though courses are offered in both (English and French) sometimes it has been challenging to communicate with some members of the staff. Hence, I’m currently learning French cause I strongly believe that hurdles must be transformed into learning opportunities.

The University of Montreal is welcoming. The campus is located near subway stations; it is therefore easily accessible. Many buildings have been renovated to provide better classrooms.

The education I received was of high quality. In literature, students have access to very interesting resources. The CRILCQ and the Figura antenna of UofM, among others, organize many events.

I enjoyed my experience at the University of Montreal. That’s why, after obtaining my Baccalaureate, I chose to continue my studies at the graduate level at the same university.

I liked the fact that they do anything to support their students and they have very good professors in political science. The school is also quite modern and they organize a lot of student events and parties.

For me, the Université de Montréal was a crucial step in my university career. After 2 and a half years as an international student in Bachelor of Communication Sciences, I am now in exchange in Spain, and I can now compare and give my opinion. UdeM is very large, very large and valued for its programs in Sciences in majority. For my part, I found my courses too theoretical, I see a lack of “practical” courses, a lack of simulation, a lack of field experience to put into practice our theoretical knowledge and a lack of interaction between teachers and students. On the other hand, in my case, the teaching was very appreciated, although I noticed that the younger teachers are the most dynamic and the most interesting. As an international student, I did not find the integration program very “integrator” unfortunately … On the other hand, the university environment is alive (bars, restaurants) as well as very nice activities are organized by the university (spring break, concerts), not to mention the city itself that makes all the beauty of the experience.