INTERVIEW | Olivia - McGill: Bachelor of Arts, major in political science and minor in Anthropology

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Hi, my name is Olivia and I am 20 years old. I am a British/Italian/American who grew up in Paris France. I went to the bilingual school Ecole Jeannine Manuel in Paris. I followed the IB (international baccalaureate) program, with French, English and History at higher level and Economics, Math and Biology at standard level. Overall, I was quite a good student in high school, interested in what was taught and excited to go to university. I would describe myself as smiley, organized and balanced.

Initially, I thought that I wanted to study law in the United Kingdom. My dream was to follow the double law program Kings/Assas, two years in London, two years in Paris. As I got my rejection letter, I was devastated. I had never truly thought of studying outside of the UK but had nevertheless applied to McGill University in Montreal as a backup choice. Eventually, I started questioning my university choices and the career path I wanted to follow. I strongly hesitated between UCL’s Arts and Science program and McGill University, thoroughly weighing the pros and cons of a campus in a student city (McGill) vs. a cosmopolitan capital (UCL), being far (Montreal) vs. being close (London) to home, catering my diploma to my wide interests (McGill’s US-style Bachelor of Arts) vs. following a more rigid and supervised structure (UCL’s organized program). I eventually followed my gut feeling that McGill was the best option for me academically and socially. And I was right.

Life at McGill

1/ Academics

Today, I am entering my third and last year of my Bachelor of Arts, with a major (honors) in political science and a minor in anthropology. Academically, I would say that the thing that I like the most is how creative you can be in choosing your classes. I can choose between a wide spectrum of classes in my major, ranging from comparative politics such as the Arab/Israeli conflict or Politics of Latin America, to international relations such as US foreign policy or Diplomacy in practice, to political theory or Canadian Politics. The academic level is great: I have had great professors and stimulating material that taught me more than I could have expected. There is no grading curve in my faculty which allows for individual competition, ambition, and inter-student support. Each class per semester counts exactly the same amount towards the final GPA (grade out of 4.0, based on a percentage and letter system), leading to a regular and balanced workload. Taking 5 classes per semester, I work around 2 hours per class per week on normal weeks, and a bit more when I have big assignments due or midterms. There are plenty of working facilities around campus, including several libraries that vary in size, architecture and silent/social policies. During finals season, students support each other and work together to the best of their abilities. My favorite place to study on campus is either McLennan library, where I know I can take study breaks with my friends and study all night (open 24/7), or the Islamic Studies Library, small, silent, and calm, with a beautiful architecture that allows for deeper and more concentrated work. Outside of campus, you can sit down at any coffee shop, have a hot beverage, pull your computer out and study with nice background music and free Wi-Fi. Some people choose to work in a café or a restaurant part time, which is also very manageable considering the lectures and conferences take up 15h per week. Personally, I tutored high school and middle school children to earn some money and sustain my social life and travels.

2/ Location: campus, city

Geographically the beautiful campus (10/10) it is perfectly located in the center of the lively student city, filled with restaurants, bars, clubs and street art for every individual taste. The Mont Royal, at the center of the city, is a beautiful parc for walks on warm days or sledding and skating in the winter. The old town is beautiful to visit and walk around in. The plateau is filled with restaurants, street art and concept stores. In the fall, the weather is beautiful and sunny, and Montrealers know how to make the most of the warm weather. In the winter, the temperatures drop to negative and the snow covers the city. But don’t be scared, your resistant winter coats and snowshoes keep you warm, and the cold weather doesn’t stop us from going out. With a strong French and English community, I feel at home despite the distance. There is a strong international community: lots of French, Americans, Chinese and of course Canadians but also Lebanese, British, Greeks and Koreans. Everyone has an interesting background creating a diverse and interesting community of students. I go back home to see my parents every three months but am always excited to go back to Canada. From Montreal, you can visit beautiful natural parcs and mountains in Quebec while being a one-hour flight away from Toronto, New York, Boston or Washington.

3/ Social

Socially, I have found my happy place in Montreal, surrounded by a variety of interesting, kind and intelligent people I met in my first two years. Montreal and McGill fuels personal growth, creativity and hard work through a positive can-do attitude and diverse community. It was very easy to meet new people, especially living in a student residence. I was at New Residence, a reconverted hotel with big equipped rooms, common rooms at each floor, a study room open all night and a food court. I was glad to have a student tell me the pros and cons of all the residences and was more than satisfied with my choice. I met most of my best friends there in the first couple of weeks and am now sharing an apartment with 4 people 20 mins walking distance from campus. Before starting class, the university organizes an amazing integration week (frosh) filled with concerts, beach days, boat days, pub crawls and campus tours. Since the drinking age in Canada is 18 years old, the night scene is spectacular and diverse (1000/10). While sororities and fraternities exist, you are not reliant on them to go out or socialize and its therefore your personal choice to join. Whether you enjoy 80s music, techno clubs, board-game bars or underground raves, Montreal has it all. I go out 3 to 4 times a week with all my friends but manage to work hard and plan ahead academically.

4/ Clubs

Apart from the nightlife, it is also very easy to meet people with whom you share interests in student clubs. I spent the first year making friends and discovering Montreal before getting into clubs the second year. You can join a club about basically anything, including your nationality, the sport you like, the political party you subscribe to or your special interest (movie, music, dancing, chess, sci-fi…). I am now a member of Junior Peacemakers, an organization that promotes child activism through teaching peace to elementary students and the Flux Journal of International Relations. Sports clubs are very popular as well (10/10). There are varsity teams for every discipline as well as internal competitions and clubs, and McGill is particularly famous for ice hockey, ski, basketball, rugby and American football.

Advice

Honestly, I would advise anyone reading this to apply. I didn’t have many expectations coming to McGill but was only pleasantly surprised. The academics are great, the campus is beautiful, Montreal is lively, and the people are amazing. Three adjectives to describe the school would be caring (people and staff), interesting (courses and backgrounds), and ambition (people and opportunities). I can’t even say that the cold and the distance are down sides to the two spectacular years I have spent at McGill. I haven’t met one person that regrets their choice of coming to McGill, as there is a bit of something for everyone.