Canadian Universities?

[GibsonGirl]

Since this is my last year of high school, I have to do some serious thinking with regards to post-secondary education. I have no desire to head south of the border (mainly because I couldn't be arsed to write the SATs) so I'll be staying here in Canada.

So, to those Canadians who are/have been in universities around the country, which would you recommend the most?

Right now, I'm thinking of going to Acadia to get my undergrad degree in chemistry, then heading to MUN or Dalhousie to get a degree in medicine.

 

[cujo]

If you are set on a graduate degree, it really doesn't matter too much where you study your undergrad. Medical schools often have set parameters on the pool of candidates they accept, based on career intentions and the part of the country you're from (usually institutions have a standard for the amount of local, domestic, and international students). Interviews are probably the most important aspect of the application process, because they provide distinction to prospective students in a sea of identical marks.

Reputable medical schools? First of all, circulate your applications to every place you can... it's more important to have the security of acceptance in one institution, than relying on a small set of ideal places. My recommendations would be UBC and Queens, based both on academic merit and community. Although there may be slightly higher ranking schools, you can't underestimate the value of atmosphere and environment in your decision... seeing as you're committing a great deal of your life, time, and money to this venture.

Good luck.

 

[anitram]

It really depends on what you are looking for. Are you looking for a huge campus in a large city, or something smaller in a more rural town/setting?

As for medical schools, I very much believe UofT is by far superior in terms of the actual education, but having attended the institution, I am not overly (or at all) impressed with any sense of community there.

Queens is severely overrated, and I believe they synthetically push up their rankings yearly, but as time goes on, you will see them fall. They used to rank much higher in terms of their law school, and are currently #9 in the country when it comes to it. It's one of the signs of a crack.

Top "academic" schools, based solely on academia, facilities and faculty? UofT, UBC, McGill. In that order, IMO.

 

[cujo]

Queens is severely overrated, and I believe they synthetically push up their rankings yearly, but as time goes on, you will see them fall.

All I hear is the reverberation of a rejection letter.



I jest. Your estimation of Queens and UofT is quite well founded.

 

[u2popmofo]

Wait, they have schools in Canada?!





Wait, that was supposed to be funny?!

 

[DaveC]

Dal Dal Dal Dal Dal!!!

I go to Dal. I would LOVE to have another Interlander nearby!!

 

[Michael Griffiths]

U-Vic is regarded as the most fun place to go to university in Canada. That's where I suggest you get your undergrad from. As for medicine, UBC is supposed to be one of the best in the country, and.....

has a spectacular natural setting to boot.

(thought you'd lke that one, Cuj )

 

[Malibu Whortense]

(nevermind--stupid alters...)

 

[melon]

I like University of Toronto's campus.

Melon

 

[GibsonGirl]

It really depends on what you are looking for. Are you looking for a huge campus in a large city, or something smaller in a more rural town/setting?

The latter. I'm not much of a city person... Never have been, never will be. That's why I think Acadia will be a good choice. Wolfville has a population of 3,000!

It's just the medical school that I'm really stumped on...

 

[anitram]

Then UofT is definitely out. I actually love the campus itself, because it's integrated into the city. You can go up to Yorkville to the really great places to eat, you can go to Chinatown, you can go to Yonge, etc, it's all a 10 minute walk, the world at your fingertips. But it is vast.

As for med school, if you want my advice (as somebody who went through the whole science thing), go do your undergrad and open your eyes and don't just go in there thinking "I'm going to med school and that is it." There are so many things you could learn and love and at 17 or 18 years old, you are a completely different person than you will be at 22 or 25. Give yourself a chance to try a bit of this and a bit of that, and if medicine is what you really want, you'll end up there anyway.

I would personally not go to McMaster med school. I don't like their system at all (it's actually similar to Johns Hopkins). UofT would be my first choice - believe me, UofT is a bit like a prison, not very pleasant, and ultra competitive. However, the hospitals affiliated with it are the very best in the country, and you will simply not find anything on par anywhere else in Canada, both in terms of faculty and facilities. I work in a hospital affiliated with UofT, and it's a top notch place.

 

[LoveTown]

I'm not Canadian but a friend of mine went to Acadia and he is VERY smart. He said he really enjoyed his time at Acadia and didn't have any problems getting a job after graduating from there. I won't reveal what he makes per year but lets just say he earns MUCH more than most people around his age, myself included heh.

 

[dandy]

As for med school, if you want my advice (as somebody who went through the whole science thing), go do your undergrad and open your eyes and don't just go in there thinking "I'm going to med school and that is it." There are so many things you could learn and love and at 17 or 18 years old, you are a completely different person than you will be at 22 or 25. Give yourself a chance to try a bit of this and a bit of that, and if medicine is what you really want, you'll end up there anyway.

that's some pretty good advice.

as a fellow atlantic canadian, i just want to point out that you're in relatively close proximity to two good universities with med programs--MUN and Dal. the good news is that you've got a few years before you have to seriously worry about which med school is right for you.

as for undergrad, acadia is a great little school, in one of the most picturesque towns in nova scotia. mount allison in sackville (new brunswick) is another great school in a small, quaint town, and it has a great science/pre-med program.

good luck!

 

[bayernfc]

As for UofT... as everyone said, the campus is great, but if I had to do it all over again... I'd avoid UofT for undergrad. As anitram said already, definitely keep your options open.

 

[DaveC]

Please come to Dal...

 

[bonnevoix02]

If you're not much of a city person, I'd suggest St. Francis Xavier University (StFX) a bit further north in Antigonish, NS. I took non-science courses there, but I do know their science programs are rigorous and demanding, which is important for med school.

If you're also really into student life and that, you really can't go wrong with X. The university is the town, basically.

And if don't take my word for it...Rick Mercer did a hilarious piece for Monday Report on X, which should still be on the CBC website.

 

[GibsonGirl]

Please come to Dal...

If I go to Acadia (which I most probably will...I even filled out an application tonight) I probably will end up going to Dal.

And thanks for all of the other suggestions, everyone! UBC sounds quite good... I visted their website the other day, and it definitely looks like it would be a good choice. The only drawback is that it's on the other side of Canada.

Originally posted by anitram
As for med school, if you want my advice (as somebody who went through the whole science thing), go do your undergrad and open your eyes and don't just go in there thinking "I'm going to med school and that is it." There are so many things you could learn and love and at 17 or 18 years old, you are a completely different person than you will be at 22 or 25. Give yourself a chance to try a bit of this and a bit of that, and if medicine is what you really want, you'll end up there anyway.

That is very good advice. Science has always been the subject I've been most interested in throughout my school years, but there are so many more possibilities offered at all of these universities. The nice thing about going to medical school is that I can get in with an undergrad degree in anything. A Dal representative who came to my school not too long ago knew a guy who had got in with a degree in music history. So I can pretty much try whatever I want and see what grabs my fancy...

Thanks again, everyone!

 

[GibsonGirl]

Edit Grr, damn edit button being too close to the quote button...

 

[dandy]

the thing with the undergrad degree, gibson girl, isn't what you study, but how well you do. my undergrad is in history, which is somewhat useless by itself, but it got me into law school. study what you enjoy and you'll do well, and you'll have a great building block for higher education.

good luck with the applications!

*edited to add: macleans just came out with its university rankings issue, you might want to check that out for a nice overview of what's out there.

 

[SkeeK]

I'm going to mcmaster right now. I got into queens and western and all them fancy places, but mcmaster gave me more scholarship and wasn't where i lived. the programs i'm in aren't spectacular, but it's pretty good nonetheless.. I think wherever you go will end up being great. there's lots of cool people everywhere. then again i'm an arts major so what do i know?