This is a repost from another McGill thread... Some new info I have found out since then: McGill has copied Harvard's curriculum, perhaps to live up to their reputation as the "Harvard of Canada". The only difference is that McGill students hit the hospitals earlier, in January of year 2. Don't hesitate to email me if you need more info about McGill. I will probably miss you guys in Montreal since I am applying as a Quebec resident and our interviews are not until March. I hope you all have a great time in Montreal! Good luck on your interviews!
Originally Posted on 12/15/04
My sister is a Med 2 at McGill and I visited the campus last summer. If you are American, you wil not be impressed especially if you have interviewed/visited an American school. I just came back from Vanderbilt and it's like day and night. Facilities are old, but they are building a new clinical skills lab. I went to a histology class and 10 students were crammed around one computer. Also, keep in mind that about 80 students come from the Med-P program. These kids get into medical school 2 years after high school (after CEGEP) so the maturity level is somewhat lower.
However, there are some upsides to McGill. First, you are awarded the MD, CM degree (doctor of medicine, master of surgery) which is only awarded by a handful of universities in the world. Second, every single patient is a teaching case because of the social medicine program. Montreal is a great city, very cosmopolitan with a European flair. It is quite cold though. You can't beat the price for the reputation. I know it's 23K for foreign students, but that's less than 20K U.S. when you convert. 87% of their graduates match their top residency choice (many in the U.S.) I can't think of anything else right now, but feel free to email me with any questions.
The reason why McGill has more spots for American students than out-of-province students is become McGill receives money from the AAMC (that's what I was told). If you are an out-of-province applicant and willing to practice in an underserved region of Quebec, you should let the admissions office know because that will greatly enhance your chances of getting in (it's a binding agreement though so you can't change your mind).
They say that minimum MCAT is 30, but they did accept less than a 30 last year. Also, the Quebec government told McGill they could add more spots to last year's class so they are now up to close to 200 spots. They even extended admissions to people that had originally been rejected when they found out they were allowed more spots. They are supposed to get more spots this year again.
I hope this helps you guys with the McGill admissions process. I've read that the interview day can be disappointing, but they are working on that. If you are granted an interview at McGill, let me know and I'll try to get my sister or one of her classmates to show you a good time in Montreal.
http://mdapplicants.com/viewprofile.php?id=2665
I live farther from Montreal than it looks like you do, so I won't give up hope for a little while longer.
