Business undrgraduate in canada(Ivey vs. Queen's commerce vs. mcgill desautels) - Currently a grade 11 student

Hi I am currently a grade 11 student at an Ontario High school. I want to know if my current mark and extra curriculars are good enough for any of the big three business programs in canada. I have a 93% average and have a 88 in english and a 98 in advanced functions and 97 in calculus. My extra curriculars are:
School Athletics:
- baskteball team member 4 years
- outdoor soccer member 2 years
- indoor soccer member 2 years
- Rep basketball 1 year
Clubs:
-Athletic council -2 years
-Tutering 2 years
Work:
-Deleo Fine Foods 4 years
-Telemarketing 1 year
volunteer:
-Joe Volpe election campagne
-reffere for elementary basketball

Are these extracurriculars enough for these schools and in addition which of the three top business programs do you feel are the best if one wants to work in the States (preferably new york)
Comment on anything else about this topic and discuss and rank these 3 programs.

 
chaunceybillups:
I have a 93% average and have a 88 in english

curriculars are: - baskteball team member 4 years -Tutering 2 years -Joe Volpe election campagne -reffere for elementary basketball extracurriculars

Your school suffers from grade inflation.

Ivey is a good school, but London really sucks. Queens is a good school, but Kingston really really sucks. McGill is a good school and Montreal is worth living in. You won't need to worry about your English either. :)

Ivey is the probably the best choice for recruitment.

McGill is the best choice for quality of life and William Shatner has a Commerce degree from McGill. Has anybody from Queens or Ivey ever been as cool as Captain Kirk?

You have a tough decision to make and I don't envy the sleepless nights ahead of you.

 

Quality of life should be a huge, huge, HUGE factor in your undergrad decision-making. They're all good schools, and as long as you do well you will have an equal chance at placement across the board.

College is the last four years of free life. Go, work hard, have some fun, make some friends... That's what it's about. Do a little more of 3 and 4 than 2 - no one will fault you for that. I think you'll find that going to school in a place like Montreal will benefit you more in interviews and connecting/networking with people. I know if I came across a kid from McGill and a kid from Ivey, I'd be far more interested in chatting with the McGill kid about college life in Montreal. And that makes it easier for the interviewee.

Seriously though, go to the place you like the most. You said yourself that McGill has a superior quality of life - there's your answer. And to answer your other question - "but is it worth risking the strength of the ivey deegree just to have more fun in university??" Absolutely. We're not talking the difference between Harvard and Community College of Tel Aviv; it's Ivey to McGill.

 

You're also retarded to assume that city life = higher quality of life. Ivey/Queen's are much smaller/closer programs which a large sense of community.. the size if McGill will take away from that.

I can assure you that the "quality of life" at U of Toronto isn't higher than Queen's/Ivey regardless of the fact that Toronto >>>> London/Kingston.

 
Goon:
You're also retarded to assume that city life = higher quality of life. Ivey/Queen's are much smaller/closer programs which a large sense of community.. the size if McGill will take away from that.

I can assure you that the "quality of life" at U of Toronto isn't higher than Queen's/Ivey regardless of the fact that Toronto >>>> London/Kingston.

...Thanks. The OP said that, in his opinion, McGill has a higher quality of life - that is why I put in that assumption. If you were the OP and said you hated city life, then maybe my response would have been different. But it seems that OP would clearly prefer McGill's quality of life over the others because HE SAID IT.

As for xqtrack, I can't tell you how many of my interviews with analysts/associates were dominated by stupid little things on my resume that the interviewer found more interesting to talk about than my "biggest failure and how I handled it." I'm talking things like ECs, sports, location(s) of previous experiences, etc. It's not like I was saying it should play a decision in where he goes to school (it shouldn't), but it is a plus. I honestly had interviews where my interviewer would ask me to walk him through my resume, then he would point something interesting out and ask me a stupid question about it and it would turn into a 20 minute talk. It may not work at the level above senior associate (they're more focused), but it's a way to make sure the younger guys get a good impression.

 

Choosing Queen's, Ivey, or McGill really comes down to what you want your university experience to be. At the end of the day however, the schools are all top notch, and the recruiting is "relatively" similar.

Here's why you would choose each school.

Queen's - you know you want to do business right out of high school. This program is definitely the best for allowing you to get the broadest and deepest exposure to business. You'll have time to really explore the areas you want, will get involved with a great community, have lots of opportunities to participate in ECs, go on exchange etc.

You'll also have all the top firms (consulting, marketing, banking) knocking on your door). Kingston is also a great university town since everyone lives in a very concentrated area.

Ivey - you think you like business, but want the chance to explore other subjects first. If you want to do a combined degree, or do some science / arts / engineering beforehand, than this is the place. It will give you the opportunity to experience multiple subjects and get a good feel for business quickly through the case method.

Has some more boutique banking opportunities than Queen's. Girls are really easy.

McGill - you like McGill, but love Montreal. At the end of the day, McGill is not really known for business - Queen's and Ivey are definitely better programs; most people in industry recruiting will agree. McGill is definitely kick ass in arts / science / engineering. Anyway, if you really want the Montreal experience, then it's an obvious choice. If you want the best business school experience (in terms of learning / post-grad opportunities), than it's Queen's or Ivey.

Anyway, it really comes down to what you want. Whether you land a job at a top bank / consulting firm / CPG company really comes down to you, and what you can offer. The top students from any of these schools will have their pick of great post-grad opportunities.

 

I definitely don't buy it. All the top banking firms recruit at Ivey / Queen's / McGill.... this includes the opportunities to work in New York.

I agree that McGill probably has the best international reputation of the schools, and maybe historically (if we go back 10, 20 years) McGill placed beter, but the opportunities present themselves fairly equally across the schools.

I'd be interested to hear (mostly because it seems that people here are interested in banking) how people in IB feel that the schools actually place and how the students from each school are perceived. I know in consulting that Ivey / Queen's take the majority of spots, and McGill varies significantly by year (sometimes you find gems, other years, no one).

 

and that is McGill alumni overall, not necessarily commerce alumni.

i'm sure Ivey and Queen's have large alumni pools in New York as well.

what matters is who comes to campus, and who is getting hired. all the big banks go to these schools (and they probably check out schulich and maybe UoT). at the end of the day, Queen's commerce and Ivey grads are definitely placing more students (today) than McGill is. this is also true for consulting (MBB etc).

really though, you'll have the exposure to these firms at either school and it will be you who determines whether you make it.

 

Few people will really care, as long as you can do the job. There will be some Ivy kids who think you have no business being there because you don't have an Ivy League background, but most people will not care where you come from as long as you work hard and get along with the group.

Honestly, of the three, it does not matter. If you are on the fringe, you may have a better opportunity at Ivey or Queen's, but if you do well in school, you will have the opportunity at any of the three schools. If you put up good grades and are well-rounded, it will not be an issue. Go to the place that you perceive to be the "best fit" for YOU. The difference in "perception" on the Street is minimal at most, and going to a place that you will enjoy is far more important.

FWIW, I bet most people you would interview with would know very little about the differences between the three.

 

Don't give me this bullshit about "fit." Everyone cries about how fit is so important, bla bla bla. My first qualification for picking a school is how much I would learn there and what kind of opportunities I would have once I got out. Granted, I understand that at my current school I'm not fucking some clueless blonde every other night, but I'm having fun. If I wanted a really great "fit" and college experience I would've gone with some party school. I've met kids at work this summer from non-targets that got into banking and absolutely LOVED their lives at school, so since I'm sooo smart and capable, why didn't I just take that route? Why? Because it's fucking stupid. If you're socially adept and can make friends, you can make any school fun.

Now, I've been to Montreal. It's an incredible city. However, I wouldn't pick the #3 B-school in Canada over #1, especially when your only reason is this imaginary "fit." Kid, you're 18. You have no idea what the fuck "fit" is. You've met a few students and now think you know everything about these schools. News flash: you don't. You're not picking between Harvard and Wharton, it's Harvard and Northwestern/Cornell. Granted, they're strong schools to the average person, but get on Wall St. and you'll see them strongly outnumbered by the "top Ivy" grads. Moreover, in this recruiting environment, you want every advantage at your side. Kids with previous experience, strong ECs and excellent academics are getting declined and they're coming from GOOD SCHOOLS. You need to be from the best.

Finally, you're in a city and you're an 18-year old BOY. Sorry to break it to you, but your female peers will much prefer the plethora of older men available to them. You're not going to be getting into the best clubs, you're not going to be fucking the hottest girls and you're not going to be having "the time of your life." Being in a city gets boring like everything else. If you want an actual COLLEGE experience, go to a school with a real campus. I know too many kids from Stern that absolutely hated their lives.

 

Listen up, I got to McGill and I can guarentee you that from a recruiting standpoint Ivey is raping us. There is a disproportionate about of ivey grads holding the top jobs on bay street. Yet it remains on bay street and remains piny compared to the main financial centers

I sold some shares, but on a net basis, significantly increased my ownership. Jeffrey Skilling
 
Best Response

Seriously this question gets asked once a week but I hate the "do a search" pricks so I'll answer. Ivey has far and away the best recruiting to the States (Evercore, Qatalyst, Greenhill, NY BB)... but it's second entry so you better keep your 80% if you got AEO, Queens places excellently in Canada (and to the US to some degree), great school and it starts right away. McGill is the best school (outside of the business program) so it has a great academic atmosphere and Montreal's alot of fun; that said the recruiting doesn't really compete with the other two.

It really depends how you want to learn. Ivey is case-based, small and structured and it doesn't start right away so you have to spend 2 years taking the gayest BMOS courses. Queens is great and you won't have to spend 50K your last two years.

Cheers,

‎"Until and unless you discover that money is the root of all good, you ask for your own destruction. When money ceases to become the means by which men deal with one another, then men become the tools of other men. Blood, whips and guns or dollars."
 

Lol. I didn't realize that. Coming down off an addy binge and I felt like throwing a high-schooler a bone.

‎"Until and unless you discover that money is the root of all good, you ask for your own destruction. When money ceases to become the means by which men deal with one another, then men become the tools of other men. Blood, whips and guns or dollars."
 

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