McGill vs. Georgetown vs. Northwestern?

57special
Thu, 12 Apr 2018 03:31:13 +0000

First off, I have no clue how linguistics ranks at any of those schools. I would imagine that all three are relatively strong, but you’ve got to do your homework there. NWU is an excellent school, as I’m sure you know…I know less about Georgetown, though it’s obviously very good. I can assure you that McGill is known for it’s rigor. The truism for most Canadian schools such as McGill, UBC, U of T, is that it’s easier to get in, but also easier to flunk out of. S1 is going to McGill this fall and I have been subtly and not so subtly warning him to have fun(French Girls!!, food, clubbing), but not TOO much fun, cause it’ll catch up to you. I wouldn’t worry about a lack of intellectualism or rigor. There are some very bright students going there from all over the world. It is also well regarded among academics, should that matter to you.

I grew up in Montreal, and know quite a few people who have gone there, including my wife. McGill was hard for her, but she was in a notoriously brutal program. It doesn’t have to be that tough.

I don’t think there is a large difference in quality or reputation between these schools. US rankings will often rank US schools higher, but rankings done by non US entities will often rank a school like McGill higher. For S1, it was about fit…he wanted something different than our midwest setting for a change…if he had a choice between NWU and McGill he would’ve been pretty conflicted, and could well have chosen NWU, but there are other factors in play at McGill for him.

I would pour over the Bios of the Linguistics profs at all of the schools, maybe try to contact a couple, and get advice from anyone you know who knows about the programs. Forget the rankings...they are good for broad strokes, and that's about it.