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Articles / Applying to College / CEGEP for US Applicant to McGill?

CEGEP for US Applicant to McGill?

Sally Rubenstone
Written by Sally Rubenstone | July 18, 2012

Question: I'm very interested in going to McGill University in Canada. I was born in Quebec but I actually live in the States... My question is do I need to do CEGEP to get into McGill after graduating from high school if I wanna go to McGill? And what are the requirements to get in?? Thank you for your help and time...


Are you an American citizen or do you have Canadian citizenship?

In either case, since you attend a US high school, you can follow the instructions on the McGill Web site for "international applicants" from the US. You will see that the CEGEP is NOT required. However, you WILL need scores from the ACT or from the SAT I + 2 Subject Tests. See http://www.mcgill.ca/applying/admissionsguide/usa/ for more information.

Coincidentally, I was just at McGill on Monday. It is a great university in a wonderful city (especially in July, when no scarves and face masks are required ;) ), but it's not for the faint of heart. Canadian universities don't "spoon feed" their students the way that many U.S. colleges do. So McGill is well suited to hearty souls who consider themselves independent and who are comfortable advocating for themselves as needed.

Hope that helps ... and bonne chance! (And, yes, even though McGill is an English-speaking university, a working knowledge of French is a big plus as you navigate Montreal).

(posted 7/18/2012)

Written by

Sally Rubenstone

Sally Rubenstone

Sally Rubenstone knows the competitive and often convoluted college admission process inside out: From the first time the topic of college comes up at the dinner table until the last duffel bag is unloaded on a dorm room floor. She is the co-author of Panicked Parents' Guide to College Admissions; The Transfer Student's Guide to Changing Colleges and The International Student's Guide to Going to College in America. Sally has appeared on NBC's Today program and has been quoted in countless publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Weekend, USA Today, U.S. News & World Report, Newsweek, People and Seventeen. Sally has viewed the admissions world from many angles: As a Smith College admission counselor for 15 years, an independent college counselor serving students from a wide range of backgrounds and the author of College Confidential's "Ask the Dean" column. She also taught language arts, social studies, study skills and test preparation in 10 schools, including American international schools in London, Paris, Geneva, Athens and Tel Aviv. As senior advisor to College Confidential since 2002, Sally has helped hundreds of students and parents navigate the college admissions maze. In 2008, she co-founded College Karma, a private college consulting firm, with her College Confidential colleague Dave Berry, and she continues to serve as a College Confidential advisor. Sally and her husband, Chris Petrides, became first-time parents in 1997 at the ripe-old age of 45. So Sally was nearly an official senior citizen when her son Jack began the college selection process, and when she was finally able to practice what she had preached for more than three decades.

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