Sited on a green 80-acre campus in Montreal, the largest city of the Francophone province of Quebec, McGill is consistently ranked among the world’s Top 50 universities by THE and QS, writes Reshma Ravishanker

Founded in 1821, McGill University is one of Canada’s — and the world’s — most reputed institutions of higher learning. This 202-year-old publicly-funded university is consistently ranked among the world’s Top 50 higher education institutions. In the latest QS World University Rankings 2023, McGill is ranked #31 worldwide and in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2023, #46.

Sited on a green 80-acre campus in Montreal (pop.1.7 million), the largest city of the Francophone province of Quebec, McGill offers a rich menu of academic programmes. The university’s 25 faculties and professional schools offer undergraduate and postgrad degrees in over 300 academic disciplines to 39,513 students mentored by 1,778 faculty. The extensive range of academic subjects offered includes computer science, agricultural economics, management, environment, chemistry, finance, music and psychology.

McGill has an interesting history. In 1813, James McGill, a Scottish immigrant who prospered in Montreal, bequeathed £10,000 and a 46-acre estate to found the Royal Institution for the Advancement of Learning — later named after him — to provide quality education for Quebec’s minority English-descent population. Chartered in 1821, McGill began instruction in 1829 with the establishment of its faculty of medicine. The faculty of arts followed in 1843 succeeded by modern languages, commercial studies and science. Indian origin scientist Prof. H. Deep Saini is the incumbent 18th Vice Chancellor of the varsity.

The university is also a pioneer of sports education. The world’s first modern football game was played in 1874 between teams of McGill and Harvard universities. Moreover, it was a McGill graduate, James Naismith, who invented the game of basketball. The university website also claims that “McGill is arguably the birthplace of hockey”.

Montreal. Canada’s second largest urban area, Montreal’s thriving commercial centre is within a few blocks from McGill’s main campus. A student-friendly multilingual city — English and French are the most spoken languages — it ranks #1 in Canada and #6 worldwide in the QS Best Student Cities Index 2019. Housing rents are low, as is the crime rate. Commuting is also convenient with provision of excellent public transport services.

The old parts of Montreal near the harbour have been carefully restored to their 18th century splendour although new contemporary office towers built over the past two decades dominate areas near the university. The city also hosts modern shopping complexes and an eclectic mix of restaurants serving cuisines from around the world.

Montreal has cold, snowy winters while summers are warm. Temperatures range between 50C to -100C in winter and 180C-210C in summer.

Campus facilities. McGill is spread across three campuses: Downtown (80 acres), MacDonald (1,600 acres) and Gault Nature Reserve (2,470 acres).

McGill’s historic tree-lined main Downtown Montreal campus is an oasis of green at the foot of Mount Royal Park, whose summit hosts the largest and finest urban park in Canada. This campus, which was James McGill’s original gift to the university, has expanded over the years following numerous bequests from generous philanthropists. It comprises over 70 buildings, both heritage and modern, housing state-of-the-art academic facilities, labs, auditoriums, cafes, restaurants and museums.

The 1,600-acre waterfront MacDonald campus at Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, 32 km west of McGill’s downtown campus, houses the faculties of agricultural and environment sciences, and includes an arboretum, greenhouses, and a sustainable agriculture farm.

Although the Gault Nature Reserve is not an academic campus, it’s an important part of McGill’s real estate portfolio. This private reserve, sited in Mont-Saint-Hillaire, protects 1,000 hectares of natural land and supports important teaching and research activities.

Academic support at the university is provided by 12 well-equipped libraries which provide access to 7 million books and journals, over 4.5 million e-books, e-theses and e-journals, and hundreds of thousands of sound and video recordings, musical scores, microforms, and maps. Sports facilities include dedicated playing fields for football, ice hockey, athletics stadia, basketball and tennis courts, swimming pools and gymnasium. Social activities at the university are coordinated by various student organisations, clubs and societies.

Admission. McGill’s admission process is competitive and selective. Admission decisions usually take into consideration factors such as previous academic record, references, English language proficiency and participation in co-curricular and sports activities.

The minimum qualification for admission into undergraduate programmes is successful completion of Plus Two with an average of 75-85 percent and proof of English language proficiency (IELTS or TOEFL test scores). For admission into postgrad programmes, applicants must have a four-year bachelor’s degree or a three-year bachelor’s degree from institutions with a NAAC rating of A and proof of English language proficiency (TOEFL/ IELTS).

The admission deadline is March 1 for the term beginning September. For further information, email: [email protected]

Accommodation. A limited number of on-campus student housing options are available on the Downtown and MacDonald campuses. Students can choose between furnished single, shared, and studio apartments with kitchen and bathrooms, and dormitories with community kitchens and bathrooms. Moreover, McGill has partnered with Places4Students, an apartment listing service, to help students find off-campus housing.

Degree programmes. McGill offers an exceptionally wide range of undergraduate and postgrad programmes (see box).

SCHOLASTIC OPTIONS AT McGill

McGill University hosts 25 faculties and professional schools offering a wide range of undergraduate, postgrad and doctoral programmes. They include:
Faculties. Agricultural and environmental sciences; arts; dental medicine & oral health sciences; education; engineering; law; Desautels Faculty of Management; medicine & health sciences, School of Continuing Studies; Schulich School of Music; science
Schools. Bensadoun School of Retail Management; Ingram School of Nursing; Max Bell School of Public Policy; Bieler School of Environment; architecture; communication sciences & disorders; computer science; human nutrition; information studies; religious studies; physical & occupational therapy; social work; urban planning
Tuition fees (per year): CAD 30,000-85,000
Living expenses (incl. housing): CAD 22,000
NB: CAD 1 = Rs.62