Looking to Transfer: McGill, Queens, U of T

I would suggest you phone each university you're wanting to transfer to. It's amazing what sorts of questions can be answered when you actually contact someone who knows what they're talking about, rather than ask randoms on the internet.

Do not ever transfer to McGill! I transferred from UofT to McGill because I thought it would be cheaper to live, but they screwed me over big time!

They have no idea how to deal with transfer students. As a transfer, I should be in 2nd year linguistics, but I could not apply for my courses until about 3 months after all the other upper students applied for courses. I was allowed to apply 1 day before first year students, but that made no difference because by that time all the courses I should be taking were filled by other people. Then I tried to put myself on the waitlist (the courses allowed it), but it wouldn't let me, even after I had declared my major and minor (at McGill, they make you take a minor as well, even if you're doing honours).

So then I try to find out why, but no one knows. I spent the entire month of August coming up to Montreal and being kicked around from registrar's office (Service Point, who have no authority or brains), to Faculty of Arts, to individual departments to first-years office. I did this about 4 times, and no one could answer my questions. They just sent me elsewhere. My credit amounts we accepted, but not the McGill equivalents. In order to get the equivalents, you have to go to fill out a form and then go to every department to have it approved. I don't know how long that takes because it's been about a month and I'm still waiting. But after they approve it, you have to go to the registrar's office to have them actually do it.

McGill has an extra fee. They charge you the regular tuition fee and ancillary fees, but it will cost you $7,000 to $7,500 because they charge an out-of-province fee. If you don't have Quebec citizenship, you pay $1,500 more then normal.

Also, look into the program requirements because they will probably be different. I am taking first-year classes-only because McGill expects me to take courses different from the ones I needed at UofT. In fact, none of my courses have anything to do with my linguistics major because I have to take logic and a minor, and I can't get into any of my linguistics courses. No one has helped me yet, even though I've visited the department and sent e-mails. My logic course is more mathematical and boring; it uses a textbook that talks more about the computer software than the material, and the software is outdated and inefficient. I have an assignment due tomorrow, and I can't do it because the program isn't working well for me.

So to be honest, if you have to switch, do not EVER choose McGill because you will get screwed over, majorly. On top of that, it might be better for you to suck it up and stay put because transferring will probably screw you over anyway. You have to do 3 more years and you're done. You can do a Master's degree at any university after that.

I can tell you, I hate it at McGill and I hate transferring. I may just transfer to uOttawa or Carleton because it's cheaper for me (I'm from Ottawa and had a job that paid twice minimum wage).

But also, to transfer to McGill (and maybe even UofT) you need a GPA of 90% or higher. It's a miracle, they say, for anyone to get accepted as a transfer student to McGill. I believe them because they had no idea how to deal with me... I should have stayed at UofT.

^ Sounds like a typical transfer process. It's not an easy, smooth process. And universities are notoriously bureaucratic.

To complain about McGill's out-of-province tuition is just stupid. If you had half a brain you would have known that before you transferred