Thoughts on Canadian Colleges

[Anonymous]

Hi All - My husband is a Canadian citizen and so my daughter can therefore attend colleges in Canada at an "in-state" rate. Does anybody have experience with their kids heading to Canada for college, i.e., U of Toronto, McGill University, etc.? Any thoughts? Thanks.

[Anonymous]

If your daughter is a citizen but has never been resident in Canada, then her tuition rate at McGill would end up being the in-province one, which is about $2,500 (Canadian!). That is tough to argue with (cheaper than most other Canadian citizens pay).

The top Canadian Universities have historically been the University of Toronto and McGill. In the last 20 or 30 years, the University of British Columbia has also been on the rise, and the University of Waterloo is now very well respected, especially in computer science (it rose with RIM/Blackberry, and large tech firms now recruit heavily at Waterloo). There are a lot of other good universities that are less well known outside of Canada (Queens, Dalhousie, Simon Fraser, etc., etc.).

To a decent approximation, it's best to think of the better Canadian Universities like top US state flagships. They are world class institutions, but they are big (U of T is particularly massive) public systems and there is not a lot of hand-holding. Students are expected to be functioning adults and advocate for themselves. Legal drinking ages are low by US standards. Sports is nowhere near as big of a thing.

The admission process is very straightforward. Standardized test scores and academic transcript are it (not sure what allowances they are making for SAT/ACT and covid issues). No sports admits, no letters of recommendation, no essays, no hooks, no legacy, no "holistic admission process". As a result, the admission rates are a little misleading from a US perspective. McGill, for example, has a relatively high admission rate, but that's because almost nobody applies unless they have really stellar grades.

[Anonymous]

My DS applied and was accepted to both McGill and Toronto. He seriously considered McGill and has a few friends attending both schools, but ended up choosing a school in the US. All his friends who are attending both schools are quite happy, but as the PP indicated you need to be mature and able to handle your own affairs. There won't be any hand-holding. Also, the coursework is quite challenging. I heard someone say about McGill -" it can be easy to get into, but hard to stay"

As the PP indicated, the application process is very straightforward and uncomplicated. It truly does come down to scores. The application will take about 1 hour (tops) to complete - all online. Your DD will be applying into a particular program and will need to have pre-requisites in order to apply to certain ones. If you haven't taken the courses required then you cannot apply to those programs (may be specific to STEM programs, but I could be wrong). If your DD is in early high school then you should consider what program she might be interested in and make sure she satisfies all the requirements for that program.

Given your daughter's Canadian citizenship and the ability to pay so little I think you should seriously consider Canadian schools. They are a great value and great education.

[Anonymous]

My DC attends McGill and absolutely loves it. Montreal is a fantastic city for a college kid - it reminds me of a mix of Brooklyn and Paris. It is livable, fun, and low-cost city. Full of parks, great small restaurants and cafes, and quirky neighborhoods to explore. A great experience for a college kid.

[Anonymous]

Op here, thanks. We're in VA, so lots of good in-state options, but only recently did we start to think about Canada. I believe we have some paperwork to complete for DD in terms of certifying her Canadian citizenship but it seems pretty straightforward. DD is a Junior with 4.0 unweighted GPA, good APs and extracurriculars, and 33 ACT. Looking at McGill, that may not cut it, but as PPs stated, there are other options across Canada, and the low costs (even factoring in airfare) for a quality education are enticing. DD is very mature and self-motivated, but isn't so keen on a large university, so U of Toronto may be out. She may not even be interested in leaving the US, but I'd like to keep her options open. Anyway, thanks to those who posted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DS applied and was accepted to both McGill and Toronto. He seriously considered McGill and has a few friends attending both schools, but ended up choosing a school in the US. All his friends who are attending both schools are quite happy, but as the PP indicated you need to be mature and able to handle your own affairs. There won't be any hand-holding. Also, the coursework is quite challenging. I heard someone say about McGill -" it can be easy to get into, but hard to stay"

As the PP indicated, the application process is very straightforward and uncomplicated. It truly does come down to scores. The application will take about 1 hour (tops) to complete - all online. Your DD will be applying into a particular program and will need to have pre-requisites in order to apply to certain ones. If you haven't taken the courses required then you cannot apply to those programs (may be specific to STEM programs, but I could be wrong). If your DD is in early high school then you should consider what program she might be interested in and make sure she satisfies all the requirements for that program.

Given your daughter's Canadian citizenship and the ability to pay so little I think you should seriously consider Canadian schools. They are a great value and great education.

So refreshing! Same in the EU and the UK.

[Anonymous]

We are in the same situation - and when the time comes, we will simply head to Canada. Unless the kids can get into a school like MIT or Harvard, which is very unlikely for a family without a hook, why not head to Canada and avoid the costs and application hell? The only risk (from a parent's perspective), is if they meet someone and decide to stay in Canada...

[Anonymous]

My dual-citizen US-based DD is applying to McGill this year.

FYI the one thing that is so different about McGill (and maybe other Canadian Universities, but I haven't researched) is that you apply for a BA, or a BS (or a joint BA&BS) and those programs are very separate. Once admitted, there is a whole process to deal with if you want to switch from a BA to a BS.

And the requirements are different for the BA and BS. My DD qualifies in the BA department, but didn't make a cut in one of the BS requirements. She wants to keep her options open for medical school--which, in the US could mean either a BA or BS, as long as you take the requisite science courses. I called McGill and they said if she was in the BA program, she likely would not be able to get those science classes.

Therefore, I don't think McGill is the right school for her. (However she applied to the BS program anyway just in case they admit her.)

The other thing is they look at GPA and don't take into account if your kid went to the super-hard college prep school, or an easier school. So that can be frustrating, at least it has been for us; if my kid went to our local public, I'm pretty sure she would have made the grade cut for the BS program.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are in the same situation - and when the time comes, we will simply head to Canada. Unless the kids can get into a school like MIT or Harvard, which is very unlikely for a family without a hook, why not head to Canada and avoid the costs and application hell? The only risk (from a parent's perspective), is if they meet someone and decide to stay in Canada...

Same here. I’m wondering whether this will be one a bigger trend. Just so done with ridiculous tuition levels and application drama. I think the US schools below the very top strata are not worth it. Will target those, and then apply selectively in Canada, UK, and EU and see how it shakes out. My kid cannot get excited about UMD or UVA when there are more interesting options at reasonable costs out there.

[Anonymous]

part of a bigger trend

[Anonymous]

My kid is enjoying U of T. In non-covid times, the college system reduces the size - she made more friends there than in all of high school.

[Anonymous]

When my kid applied, Queens was getting more like American applications and introducing essays etc. Waterloo CS requires more than just grades and wants you to sit their Euclid math competition. Some Canadian schools are on the common app now as well as on OUAC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are in the same situation - and when the time comes, we will simply head to Canada. Unless the kids can get into a school like MIT or Harvard, which is very unlikely for a family without a hook, why not head to Canada and avoid the costs and application hell? The only risk (from a parent's perspective), is if they meet someone and decide to stay in Canada...

Yep, my daughter met a Canadian in the first few months and is in wuv.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here, thanks. We're in VA, so lots of good in-state options, but only recently did we start to think about Canada. I believe we have some paperwork to complete for DD in terms of certifying her Canadian citizenship but it seems pretty straightforward. DD is a Junior with 4.0 unweighted GPA, good APs and extracurriculars, and 33 ACT. Looking at McGill, that may not cut it, but as PPs stated, there are other options across Canada, and the low costs (even factoring in airfare) for a quality education are enticing. DD is very mature and self-motivated, but isn't so keen on a large university, so U of Toronto may be out. She may not even be interested in leaving the US, but I'd like to keep her options open. Anyway, thanks to those who posted.

With that strong of a GPA and a quality ACT score (a 33 is the median score at most ivies) I think she definitely should give McGill a shot if she’s interested.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When my kid applied, Queens was getting more like American applications and introducing essays etc. Waterloo CS requires more than just grades and wants you to sit their Euclid math competition. Some Canadian schools are on the common app now as well as on OUAC.

Waterloo is top notch in certain STEM fields, actually.