Anyone else coming to McGill in the fall? I will be doing the non-thesis LL.M. through the Institute of Comparative Law. Oh, and I'll be coming from the United States (currently living/working in New York City, did my JD at the University of Illinois).

Hey Charles! I too have accepted the offer for the non thesis based LLM program from the Insititute of Comparative Law. As per your posts earlier, the fee structure is not very clear and has not been updated from last year (2009-2010). Probably, because they are not allowed to increase the fees per Quebec rules. I have not received any information about scholarships either. However, I am happy with my admission and hope it promises to be a good one year spent on campus. I am from India with a bachelors in law from India, two post graduate degrees and have been called to the Bar to practice law in India. I have 5 years of post qualification work experience, both as a litigator in the Supreme court of India and as an Inhouse counsel for many large MNCs. I am presently working as an Associate Project Manager with a DC based legal staffing firm having an LPO in Bangalore, India, handling client contracts, litigation support and discovery. Look forward to meeting you this fall.

Charles, I had a few questions to ask u since u are also not a resident of Canada. Have you decided on whether you will be staying on campus or outside? I've heard its a lot cheaper to stay outside.. I'd be much obliged if you could share some info on that regard. Also, I see that one of the reuqirements to take the bar in Quebec, is French education, which I don't possess at the moment. But do you think I'd be eligible for the Toronto Bar?

Hi you two,

I am going to McGill as well this fall: non-thesis program at the Faculty of Law. I got an invitation to join the HR and legal pluralism center as well as the Quebec Research Centre of Private and Comparative law... No idea on what to chose.

I'm a graduate from French Law School (5 years of legal education) and currently finishing my Master's thesis here, having also spent one semester at a German Law School. I'm sure McGill will be fun! I haven't had any news on funding neither, did you get anything yet? And did you already get the "information package" they want to send in summer in order to tell us how to register?

Have a great time before coming to Montréal, I'm moving already on July 8th!

Cheers, Alexandra

Hey Alexandra!
Nice to hear from you! And glad to know ur joining McGill. Although I haven't heard anything about funding yet, I did get the information package along with a USB card with all the information. You should get it soon. I am in the process of gettin my study permit and should hopefully get it by the end of this month. I plan to be in Montreal by early August. Have u decided on your housing? Good that you're going early, so you can find a place suitable to your needs. Good luck n hope to see you in August.

Cheers,
Mithun

Hi Mithun,

Thanks for your reply!
Yeah, I also received the letter with the USB Stick, but in it was a note stating that "during the summer you will receive a package with detailed information for registering", or something like that.
Concerning housing I will rent an apartment somewhere downtown, Ghetto McGill would be cool :-)

Good luck for your study permit, I'm sure you'll be fine.

See you! Cheers, Alexandra

Hey, you're right.. the letter did say they would send a package with information regarding registration. I have not received it yet. And yes, I've heard that the ghetto is a fun place to stay.. Can't wait to get my study permit and get there asap :-)

Hi everyone.

I'm heading to McGill this year, doing the Air Space Law LLM, non-thesis. I'm originally from Perth, Western Australia, and did my Bachelor of Laws at the University of Western Australia. It will be a big move!

I'm still a little concerned about housing, I was offered grad housing but remain unsure whether to accept. It's looks a little more expensive than the 'live-out' option and, as I know from Australia, on-campus living is generally more expensive. I could use the extra money to enjoy Montreal and for food. Any thoughts about accommodation for the rest of you?

I look forward to meeting you all! It is an exciting time.

All the best.

Hi Jonathan,

Nice to know you're coming to McGill this year! I have enrolled with the Institute of Comparative Law (ICL) and intend to do my Masters in International business/commercial laws. As for housing, I too am of the opinion that grad housing is more expensive. Therefore I plan to get to Montreal by the 2nd week of August and look for a nice and affordable place close to my institute. Luckily my sister lives in Ottawa and has said that she will look around for places to stay whenever she gets the time. So, hopefully I should be able to find a place soon. Good luck to you as well!

Charles, I had a few questions to ask u since u are also not a resident of Canada. Have you decided on whether you will be staying on campus or outside? I've heard its a lot cheaper to stay outside.. I'd be much obliged if you could share some info on that regard. Also, I see that one of the reuqirements to take the bar in Quebec, is French education, which I don't possess at the moment. But do you think I'd be eligible for the Toronto Bar?

Got my CAQ in the mail today! Now I get to go over to the consulate and get my student visa.

Anyone up in Montréal yet? I'll probably head up in a few weeks to look for an apartment, but won't be able to move up until pretty much the last minute.

Was the CAQ slow? I got both my CAQ/Consulate letter really fast! Nothing like the slow old United Kingdom.

I've taken graduate housing to avoid the stress, although I note they only sign you up for 8 months. Perhaps I can look into something else at that point.

Are you anticipating a long house-hunt, Charles? I really don't know the market at all. Should be plenty about, however, I'm told. Are you thinking the ghetto or further afield?

Kind Regards
Auguste

The CAQ came very quickly - I sent in the paperwork at the beginning of June, so it was less than three weeks all together, including the time in the post. My application had a few oddities, so it took a little while to get everything together and I applied by post so I could include some explanatory notes.

Not sure yet where we're going to live - the ghetto is probably most likely, but may end up on the other side of the university or perhaps a bit further out (though probably still close to the subway), depending on what I find when I head up to look for a place. My main concern is that I hear most apartments are July 1 - June 30 and I'll be looking for something starting in August, so there might not be as many units on the market. But it should work out... And no matter what I find, it will be cheaper than New York.

Hey guys! Im done with all my documentation work. Got my visa last week and have booked my ticket for the 11th of August. You guys would probably be getting there earlier than me. Keep me posted on any updates. Look forward to meeting all of you!

Oh, I'm probably going to get to Montreal at the last possible second due to some complicated family stuff. And I might have to come back down to New York like the second I get to Montreal... But it should all be okay in the end.

Have you found an apartment yet? I started looking in earnest online a couple of days ago and will maybe be heading up in a couple of weeks to check places out in person.

On the immigration front, I have my CAQ, but still need to get my student visa, though as an American I can actually do that at the border. I'll probably go over to the consulate anyway, so that I can handle my wife's at the same time and we can ask a series of complicated questions that are certainly irrelevant to everyone else...

Looks like it's all shaping up then. But for, Charles, that I seem to need a visa to travel through your country! Anyway, should be no problem and I plan on arriving around 15 August, with a couple of days spare to settle in. My grad housing looks a little spartan, but no house hunt I guess ;) Mikey, are you flying to Canada direct or routing through the US too?

Kind Regards

Wow, you need a transit visa to travel through the US from Australia? That's pretty crazy. Or am I misremembering where you are from? Regardless, I totally recognize that US border restrictions have gotten ridiculous. It's even affecting Americans, as we're now requiring US citizens to have passports to visit Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean (which previously required only some other proof of citizenship like a birth certificate). Which would be perfectly fine, except my wife and I are expecting a baby in August... So, we're going to have to pay to get an expedited passport and such for an infant who just a few years ago could have travelled with only her birth certificate. Ah, the joys of bureaucracy...

Hey guys,

Jonathan, I'm flying Lufthansa from Bangalore.. So its a stop over at Frankfurt and then a 5 hour wait before I get into Air Canada. I don't need a transit visa since I have my study permit. Its good that you have confirmed grad housing before hand. Do you mind if I ask how much it's gonna cost you? I'm on a tight budget and just need a to have a benchmark figure so I know I don't overshoot.

Charles, I haven't even started lookin for an apartment yet.. My sister and brother-in -law have been livin in Ottawa for a while now and they seem to be quite confident that I'll get a reasonable 'n good place to stay. I'm operating on limited finances and so will be lookin for a very simple place or even share with someone. I reach Ottawa on the 11th Aug, Wednesday, and will spend a couple of days in my sister's place and look up places and make a few calls. She's gonna drive me to Montreal over the weekend and I hope to finalize a place then. Nice to know that you'll be arriving with your wife and baby! My best wishes to your family!

So looks like I'm gonna get there before you guys. Send me your personal e-mail IDs and I'll keep you posted on anything I find out while I'm there. Mine is mithun.pemmaiah@gmail.com.

Cheers!

By the way, I had another question. Are you guys making any fee payments before you arrive in Montreal? I read in the college website that we have time till the 30th of September to make the first fee payment. A few friends of mine who are going to colleges in the US said that they had to make the first payment in advance before they reached there. I am going to write to the college accounts dept. and find out how it works. Let me know what you are planning on doing.

Gentlemen, I am a Nigerian and I have also been accepted to the comparative law programme of Mcgill university. Unfortunately I wont be in Mcgill until the end of August due to delay in getting study permit, so I have to make so many plans from here. So gentlemen I will really be grateful for any information housing, modes of payment of fee and the fee payable and any other relevant information. Thank you so much.