Welcome to McGill’s Macdonald Campus The essential guide for new students 2018-19 This booklet offers general information and pointers for getting started as a new student. Please note that the information in this booklet, including dates and deadlines, may be subject to change. McGill’s website for new students offers much more detailed and up-to-date information. Please check it out at: www.mcgill.ca/accepted Table of contents Campus Connect invitation 5 What to do first 6 Submit your required documents 7 McGill 101: online orientation 7 Freshman students 8 Advising, registration and ID cards 9 IT Services 10 Tuition and billing 11 Housing, oneCard 12 Scholarships, request a Buddy 13 Library and bookstore 14 Arrival, Frosh and Orientation 15 Francophone and Indigenous students 16 Health and Dental Care 17 Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD) 17 Macdonald Campus services 18 Life outside your classes 19 Inter-campus shuttle bus 19 International students 20 Resources and contacts 22 What to do and when 24 Macdonald Campus driving directions 26 How to use this guide Throughout this booklet, you will be referred to websites for more comprehensive information. The Resources and Contacts section on pages 22-23 of this booklet lists all of the addresses, telephone numbers and websites you will need to plan your arrival and get settled in at McGill. Every department, office or service mentioned in this booklet is listed there. International students should refer to pages 20-21 for important information on coming to Canada to study. More information can be found on the website at: www.mcgill.ca/internationalstudents 3 Welcome to the McGill community Congratulations on being admitted to McGill University. Starting a new chapter in your life is exciting. Of course, this step also involves logistical challenges that we are happy to assist you with. This essential guide provides you with information you will need about registering, settling into campus life, and getting to know the Macdonald Campus community. Studying at McGill’s Macdonald Campus is much more than spending time in lecture halls and classrooms—your courses will likely include laboratories, trips to fields and forests, and exposure to active learning classrooms. Because we offer Anja Geitmann, PhD an intimate educational setting, you will get to know your Dean, Faculty of Agricultural and classmates well, and you will discover that your professors Environmental Sciences and the Macdonald staff are accessible, friendly and eager to help. We really want you to feel at home quickly, so don’t be afraid to ask for help or advice! The Student Affairs Office in Laird Hall will help you navigate your academic program. The Student Services Office assists you with information about career options, financial aid and also provides mental and physical health services. Get involved with the Students’ Society, one of the Student Clubs, or check out the Athletics facilities and the Arboretum. Be sure to explore the local community of Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, and take advantage of all that Montreal has to offer. It is important to dedicate time and energy to your classwork, but you should also seize the moment to enjoy your new life, pursue your hobbies, explore your surroundings and build a network of peers and friends. The friends you make at university will be the social network surrounding you for many years to come. The first step towards building your own community is simple – just introduce yourself to that other new student sitting next to you in class. That person is likely as new to Macdonald Campus as you are and will appreciate you reaching out. I wish you every success as you embark on your academic program and this new chapter in your life. Sincerely, Anja Geitmann, PhD Dean, Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences 4 For students starting in September... Activity Schedule 09h00 Registration begins, foyer of Centennial Centre 09h30 Information Session 10h30 Meet with Academic Advisors 11h00 Campus and Residence Tours Let us know you’re coming . Please RSVP by April 11. To RSVP: • go to McGill in Mind at: mcgillinmind.mcgill.ca • enter your McGill ID and Minerva PIN in the Admitted Students log-in box MACDONALD CAMPUS CONNECT • click on New Student Events • select the event of your ADMITTED STUDENT VISIT DAY choice and click Register Me Choosing a university that is right for you is an important decision that is fast approaching. If you can’t make it to campus, there are other ways to To help you decide if McGill’s Macdonald Campus is connect: where you want to be, we have organized an information day for newly admitted students to help RENDEZVOUS - meet us in a you get to know the Campus and all we have to offer. city near you: www.mcgill.ca/ accepted/events/rendezvous You and your parents are invited to join WEBINARS - join us online: current students, academic and support staff www.mcgill.ca/accepted/ events/webinars Friday, April 13 facebook.com/ groups/ • tour our beautiful campus mcgill1819 • attend an information session • visit our residences • speak with Academic Advisors The McGill Alumni Association hosts Send-Off from your prospective programs events during the summer. For more information and to Please come join us! find an event in your area, We are looking forward to meeting you! visit: www.alumni.mcgill.ca/ community/students 5 Apply for Accept your Deferring your offer financial aid offer of admission It is possible to request a The University offers a need- Coming to McGill? Start deferral of your offer of based Entrance Bursary by accepting your offer on admission for one year. Program for first-time Minerva. Log in at www.mcgill. See: www.mcgill.ca/accepted/ undergraduate students from ca/minerva-students, select firststeps/deferordecline low to modest income families Applicant Menu > Applicant who demonstrate financial Status, select the application Accept your need. and click Accept this offer. residence offer You will need a credit card to The application deadline is 30 pay the $400 non-refundable To guarantee a room in days from your formal date of deposit. the Macdonald Campus acceptance to the university Residences, confirm your room or June 30, whichever comes If you run into problems, just reservation through Minerva first. Students may apply via contact Service Point for and pay the residence deposit the Financial Aid Menu on assistance. See: www.mcgill.ca/ by 11:59 P.M. EST, June 4, Minerva. Further information accepted/contactus 2018. Make sure you read and detailed instructions can the online information and be found at: www.mcgill.ca/ If you are decided on McGill, Residences Handbook carefully studentaid/scholarships-aid/ you can accept your first offer before accepting your offer. future-undergrads/need now. You will still receive decisions on any other choices; Forgotten to request residence To calculate the cost of your your confirmation can be or missed the deadline? Please first year at McGill, visit: changed to another program contact the Residence Office as www.mcgill.ca/accepted/ by filling in a Service Point soon as possible at: residences. nextsteps/finances webform at: www.mcgill.ca/ [email protected] students/servicepoint/modify 6 Send us your final Submit your legal McGill 101: online marks documents orientation To complete your admission we You are required to send us a Say goodbye to pre-university need your final official transcript number of legal documents, confusion and frustration - including confirmation of which vary according McGill 101 has arrived! McGill graduation. If you are coming to whether you are an 101 is an online info hub for from CEGEP or are an international student, Canadian all new McGill undergraduate Ontario high school student citizen or Quebec resident. students with videos, quizzes, (or graduate) with an OUAC and much more. With number, we will receive this Submitting electronic copies of information on everything information electronically. your documents is preferred. from registration to courses to All other new students see: Please email them to: getting involved, McGill 101 is www.mcgill.ca/accepted/ [email protected] an invaluable resource to kick- nextsteps/finalmarks For criteria and instructions: start your McGill career. mcgill.ca/legaldocuments/how Mailing and courier address All new undergraduate students for official transcripts and Send in all your documents are automatically enrolled in documents that cannot be after you have accepted your McGill 101 in the spring and uploaded: offer and before you arrive on you will be notified of your Enrolment Services campus. This will ensure that enrolment by email. Although Management of Academic your student record and tuition you will be accessing it from Records Unit fees are up-to-date. your myCourses, it is not a McGill University course, more like an online 3415 McTavish Street Further information: www. orientation. See: www.mcgill. Room MS-13 mcgill.ca/accepted/nextsteps/ ca/firstyear/undergraduate/ Montreal, Quebec H3A 0C8 documents pre-arrival/programs/ Canada mcgill-101 7 Freshman Students You are considered a freshman student if you have been admitted from high school, or have completed a French Baccalaureate or International Baccalaureate with partial advanced standing in math and science. Freshman students admitted to the Faculty of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences have been admitted to one of the five programs listed on this page. Refer to your letter of acceptance or to your Minerva student record to verify the program to which you have been admitted. The Freshman Academic Advisor will be holding mandatory advising Dr. Alice Cherestes, Freshman sessions during Orientation Week. The Orientation schedule will be posted Program Director & Advisor and after July 23 at: www.mcgill.ca/macdonald/studentinfo/orientation Dr. David Titley-Peloquin, Advisor There is an option to take admission science placement exams.