McGill University, Montreal

McGill University, situated in Montreal, is a renowned public research institution. It was established in 1821 through a royal charter granted by King George IV. The university bears the name of James McGill, a Scottish merchant whose generous bequest in 1813 laid the foundation for the precursor of the university known as McGill College. In 1885, the institution officially became McGill University.

McGill University stands as one of two non-American universities affiliated with the Association of American Universities, with the University of Toronto being the other. Additionally, it holds the distinction of being the sole Canadian member of the Global University Leaders Forum (GULF) within the World Economic Forum.

McGill University offers a wide range of degrees in over 300 fields of study. The majority of students are enrolled in the university's five largest faculties: Arts, Science, Medicine, Engineering, and Management. It has high admission requirements and is known for its diverse international student population. McGill consistently ranks among the top universities globally and in Canada, holding the top spot in the Maclean's Canadian University Rankings for medical-doctoral universities for 15 years.

McGill University's alumni community is impressive, including 12 Nobel laureates, 145 Rhodes Scholars (the most among Canadian universities), 10 billionaires, current and former Canadian prime ministers, the current Governor General of Canada, eight foreign leaders, 28 foreign ambassadors, and over 100 national legislators. Its graduates also consist of nine Academy Award winners, 11 Grammy Award winners, 16 Emmy Award winners, four Pulitzer Prize winners, and 121 Olympians with over 35 Olympic medals. Additionally, McGill is proud to have alumni who invented basketball, modern ice hockey, and gridiron football, as well as the founders of major universities and colleges.

McGill has a strong research history, with notable contributions like Ernest Rutherford's atomic nucleus discovery and Nobel Prize-winning work on radioactivity. The university is also associated with important inventions such as the first artificial cell and web search engine. With a large endowment per student, McGill has substantial financial resources, including a record-breaking $200 million donation in 2019 to establish the McCall MacBain Scholarships program.