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Rank: Student Council
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/7/2008
Posts: 330
Location: Toronto
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Wow. I just read over my last post. I am the least coherent person ever, if I don't proof-read.
Well, study abroad is basically what it sounds. McGill has partnerships with universities all over the world (I think 21 in total), and you basically go for a semester or two to which ever university you want. EXCEPT - for some (I think mostly in Germany, France and some Asian countries), these partnered universities offer courses only in the official language of that country, which makes a couple universities unavailable for those of us who don't speak 5+ languages (yet...) Of course another problem is that these study abroad opportunities are mostly available to Arts (and sometimes Management) students since I guess these subject translate better university to university, than sciences. I really want to go the Amsterdam exchange because the university offers a lot of courses in English, and it's right there in Europe.
About the field studies - yeah, I looked into that as well. But I see they're mostly focusing on the environment or agriculture. And while I would object to taking a course on the subject, I wouldn't want to spend a whole semester devoted to it. (Unless these field studies also focus on culture/history/media/politics of the region?)
At this very point, my plans are to Major in History (maybe do Honours, I'm not sure yet) with a minor in IDS. I thought about a Joint Honours, but some of the requirements for IDS are fairly specific and you have to take a certain number of 300-level and up courses. And I don't know if I'd be able to fit that in if I plan to do a term or two abroad. Plus I can't say I'm crazy about taking a number of courses about the world's religions.
Plus, I want to study abroad (obviously), possibly do a field study (again, this really depends if I find something interesting), and do an internship. I also thought about doing one of those summer in Italy programs, which you go to some crazy "life" university and take classes like "Wine and Cheese Tasting."
McGill Arts '12
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Rank: Student Council
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/7/2008
Posts: 330
Location: Toronto
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About teaching - I guess it really depends on which subject you teach. I know my former music teacher (who is around 52) earns about 80 thousand. And her job is relatively easy. I mean, I can't speak of the stress she feels around concert time when the band isn't ready because no one really cares about music, and only takes the course to get an easy 90, but she assigns no work so there's nothing for her to grade. The only time we used to take notes in class was the last 2 weeks of school, when she would some joke of a theory lesson to use because it was required. The class was mostly sitting around playing and messing around. She was really easy going and students had less of a formal relationship with her than as a teacher.
So that's a good, relatively stressless teaching job. But that's just one subject in one school, and it's different all over. I know in grade 10, we had this new teacher who everyone hated and made fun of. So it's kind of the luck of the draw.
McGill Arts '12
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Rank: Valedictorian
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/4/2008
Posts: 607
Location: Mississauga, ON
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hahahaha "life university" ? Crazy.  McGill has a gazillion of partnered schools.. (http://www.mcgill.ca/studyabroad/bilateral-partners/) were you talking about universitas 21 maybe? I'm interested in the field study in Kenya. It's apparently hard to get, but it seems to have a bit of focus in the social sciences as well and there's a program specifically for IDS -and I'm up for taking all the courses lol. I'd hate to stay for a 5th year though to finish my undergrad, so if that is the case ... travelling on my own time. (This is of course, assuming I make it past first year) and yeah, there are teachers you gotta love/gotta hate. I'd probably be the slackest teacher if I went down that path. Meh.
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Rank: Student Council
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/7/2008
Posts: 330
Location: Toronto
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OK, so there are more than 21 universities/Countries. I just saw "21", and ran with it.
I don't remember the name of it, but I definitely heard of some university in Italy or thereabouts where they focus onculture/lifestyle courses relating to art, and food and all that.
I want to go to the Universiteit van Amsterdam. It'd be so cool to learn about European history/culture and then actually experience. But then Duke and Dartmouth in the States are also really good schools, but it's the US, not exactly that much different than Canada.
I am going to be so in debt by the time I'm finished McGill, but I guess I'd rather have a couple thousand more to pay off and get to do more stuff than just stay in Montreal for 4 years and not do anythingn remarkable. But yeah, this choosing courses business is insanely hard. I kind have a very basic understanding of what I want to take, but I really have to get a move on making actual lists so that when the registration time rolls around, I can get into whatever I want, instead of thinking about it and missing the spaces.
McGill Arts '12
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Rank: Valedictorian
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/4/2008
Posts: 607
Location: Mississauga, ON
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Haha smart move. I am still pretty lost/being lazy with course selection. This is being like major major work...it's basically sketching out all your 4 years of classes and matching up the prereqs... Advising is apparently useless but I better see them lmao. At this rate I will probably take 20 years to finish school. You have to know which profs are good too and stuff right? Does it tell you right now who's teaching each class? Imma have lotsa debt too. <3 Studying abroad would be amazing but staying in Montreal wouldn't be bad either. I want to do so many things in the years coming, but then again I don't want to cram it all in to my 4 years of undergrad like that's all I've got to live, lol. Hopefully I will make good use of my summers as well 
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Rank: Student Council
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/7/2008
Posts: 330
Location: Toronto
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Oh for sure Montreal is going to be AWESOME!! I still can't believe it. We get to go to an awesome school in a beautiful city with amazing nightlife and culture. I'm really going to try to break out of the McGill bubble, though. I don't want to live there for 4 years, and only experience things within a 10-block radius of McGill or something. Plus I really want to go skiing and snowboarding (although i will probably one of those people who breaks an arm on their first try). My grandma always talks about how she was on the skiing team at her university (University of Moscow) and how fun it was. So I really want to do that especially since it's not that far from the actual university.
It does tell you who teaches the class for most of them, but I don't really know how to tell if they're a good teacher. I guess if you do a Google, you can see what they've published, but other than that, it's all up in the air at this point. But my main concern is having an interesting teacher - I guess that's what I associate most with "good" teacher. With history, and Arts subjects it's more about understanding it than memorizing or whatever.
I can't wait for Frosh, though. I hope people are inclusive. I basically don't know anyone who'd going to McGill at this point.
McGill Arts '12
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Rank: Student Council
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/7/2008
Posts: 330
Location: Toronto
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WOW! Thank you for that. I do not understand how I did not think of that. That makes things easier than just going on the rumor of "this is an easy course."
McGill Arts '12
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Rank: Valedictorian
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/4/2008
Posts: 607
Location: Mississauga, ON
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 And yeah, I hear mcgill frosh is legendary. Haha, basically a gigantic kegger on campus? Good times ahead. I'm so joining the ski/board club! Mt. Tremblant <3
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Rank: Valedictorian
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/4/2008
Posts: 607
Location: Mississauga, ON
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Wow, Charles Roth, mcgillguy's math prof has amazing rating for Math 133. I'm so easily persuaded. Now I will probably take that course.
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Rank: Student Council
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/7/2008
Posts: 330
Location: Toronto
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Yeah, the 2 history profs (although they're not tenured?) I checked out with the highest ratings aren't teaching anything this upcoming fall, unless they're the "TBA". The US since 1965 prof apparently is very entertaining. God, I am a nerd, but this is really exciting. I mean, ACTUAL teachers? Not just med school rejects? And so many class choices. Seriously. Coupled with many of McGill's other attributes. I ccanot wait.
McGill Arts '12
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Rank: Valedictorian
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/4/2008
Posts: 607
Location: Mississauga, ON
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 Hahahah med school rejects is so true. I can't wait either. I wish school would just end, prom would come + graduation and it was summer already and then McGill!! (providing they do not retract their offer) PS. I have the 2007-2008 monster of a course calendar in book version... and I hate the online version. Bah.
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Rank: Student Council
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/7/2008
Posts: 330
Location: Toronto
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Me too! The only thing I hate about is when it says something like "HIS 374 BLAHBLAHBLAH Prerequisite: HIS 264" So you look up HIS 264 to see what it is, and it's not in the book.  I cannot believe tehre are only 4 weeks of actual school left. I get my exam schedule on monday, so hopefully I have my two exams in the first week to get it over with. My two hardest exams... 
McGill Arts '12
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Rank: Valedictorian
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/4/2008
Posts: 607
Location: Mississauga, ON
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really? More like 6 for me 
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Rank: Student Council
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/7/2008
Posts: 330
Location: Toronto
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Well, it's four in total. But I'll be done 2 of them before the exam weeks. OK, yeah, this RateMyProf website is addictive. I will basically go through all of my courses i kind of maybe will be considering and look through all the comments about the profs. When I have a mountain of work to do for next week. But this is waaay more important.
McGill Arts '12
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Rank: Valedictorian
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/4/2008
Posts: 607
Location: Mississauga, ON
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Hahha I have two huge ISUs due soon that I've not yet started. Screwwwwed. By 6 i meant 6 weeks. I got my calc exam at the end of this month (night school) And my regular exams are june 17-19. Gonna be a breeeeze. This forum is also kind of addictive
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Rank: Student Council
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/7/2008
Posts: 330
Location: Toronto
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I know. I refresh it constantly.
Oooh, that sucks. Do you go to school in Sauga? My friend also has school until mmidway of the first week of exams for me, or something.
I hate how there are some conflicting comments on the website. Plus, when people say the prof is boring, you can't really know if they're bringing up a valid point, or if it's just that they have the attention span of a cueball.
McGill Arts '12
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Rank: Valedictorian
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/4/2008
Posts: 607
Location: Mississauga, ON
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Yep. sauga. Go with the general consensus. But if there's conflicting comments then you know that it's pretty much one of those subjective teachers that half the people hate/love.
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Rank: Student Council
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/7/2008
Posts: 330
Location: Toronto
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Yeah, but it's pretty hard to know where I'd fit in with the subjective teachers. I know that on the rate my high school teachers or whatever website, there were teachers who were hated, but who I either felt indifference towards or didn't mind them. There are basically no teachers where I was like "wow, that there's someone who knows how to relay information" at my school.
plus one of the teachers has participation as 15% of the mark in a 300+ class. crazzy.
McGill Arts '12
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Rank: Frosh
Groups: Member
Joined: 5/11/2008
Posts: 26
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Hello,
I am a grade 12 student with acceptance into McGill and U of T. I find that while McGill was the university I had been aspiring to attend, University of Toronto seems most logical due to close location, family surroundings, and no need to take on as much responsibility. I would like to hear your opinions on University of Toronto vs. McGill University. Both are internationally-renowned, yet I feel I should base my decision on much more than just reputation.
I have been considering McGill residences heavily. In fact, I have read articles which highlighted less glorious parts of McGill Residence. For example, Solin Hall, New Residence, and either M.O.R.E or Molson have a couple of rooms which are infested with bedbugs. Search it on google, "Solin Hall Bedbugs", and you'll get the full details. I loved Solin until I heard this news. Furthemore, I liked Greenbriar, but in a footage which I had seen on YouTube, there were a lot of cracks in the floor tiles. I would prefer solitude over a party life, so that is also a concern for me. New Residence seems very nice, but once again, I do not know whether this is exaggeration, but if there will be parties at least once every week, then for me it would be intolerable.
What do you think of parties at McGill and the condition of Residences? Also, of the two, McGill vs. U of T, help me out here, because I have stressed myself out so much concerning this matter. My mother wants me to stay, but my father encourages me to go to McGill. Is there a difference in academic difficulty?
Thanks.
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Rank: Valedictorian
Groups: Member
Joined: 3/4/2008
Posts: 607
Location: Mississauga, ON
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Hey Roojin, I know this won't help much, but: it's really dependent on what YOU want. Would you rather have the comforts of home and family or would you rather gain some independence and experience things you never would have if you were to stay home? There isn't much of a difference between the two aside from their locations and the social scenes. Both are in the middle of downtown, full of culture and events. Both are academically rigorous (from what I hear anyway. Mere high schooler here). U of T might actually be stronger in academics and a bit harder/more competitive; but McGill is excellent as well. Would you stay at U of T's residene or commute from home? McGill's rez is definitely not the best out there, with the exception of New Rez, maybe.. (I wasn't aware the bed bugs were there as well though, wow.) but I'm up for living in the crampy rez rooms just to experience it. Yes it will be nothing like the comforts of home, but when else am I going to have an opportunity to live with 200 other crazy students my age in one buildling? I'm not sure if that is appealing to you but I'm totally in. About Solin, I had a friend who stayed there last year and he enjoyed it despite the commute and bedbug scare. Since the bed bug problem was such a big deal in the media and had so much public attention, I'm sure they will take care of the problem and it won't be a problem for you. You might want to consider off-campus housing as well if you are not so keen on the residences though: http://www.mcgill.ca/offcampus/ I checked it out as well as some Montreal real estate and Montreal is so much more affordable than TO. (log in with your McGill id + pin) Most McGill students don't stay in rez after first year anyway. What program would you be going into? They are both really competitive schools. If you are not up for the constant partying (yes there will be frequent parties), by no means are you required to attend them - and if noise is a concern, you could probably request a quiet floor or something. I personally did not apply to U of T - not because it's a bad school; but I knew I wouldn't attend provided I got in elsewhere. The main things were their size (too big), location (too close), and the impression I got of the students' balance between social life and academic rigour. U of T seemed more like a place where students went for pure academics. Many commute and their sole reason for coming is to learn and study. There wasn't much offered for student life - everyone did their own thing; and I wanted at least a bit of sense of community. From what you've written, honestly, U of T seems to be the better fit for you - you will be academically challenged like nowhere else, and there isn't as much hardcore partying as McGill. But by no means does that mean you won't find what you're looking for at McGill. People there will always be keen on doing well and opt for hard core studying instead of binge drinking. Likewise there will be U of T students who will be partying it up 24/7 too. Take all this with a grain of salt. I've not experienced all this directly either. But you really can't go wrong with either schools. It's just a matter of whether or not you are willing to live far from home. But if McGill has been your dream school, you should go. They are both on par with eachother and it's now completely up to you. Logically it makes more sense for me to go to Queen's University too; not McGill. But I'm taking a chance and going to McGill. Sort of just because I've always wanted to. And even though I don't know whether or not I will be happy with my choice.. I will always have an option to transfer to another school if things don't work out (though I'm sure it will) It's not like what you choose now will be engraved in stone for life. In the meantime, G'luck on your decision.
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