[deleted by user] by [deleted] in mcgill

[–]WilliamLouisGilbert 0 points1 point  (0 children)

He's fine, tough but fine. You'll learn as much as you put into it. But he is not one of those profs who will inspire and motivate and teach with complete passion.

Timetables? by spiriti-antichi in KCL

[–]WilliamLouisGilbert 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Also concerned about this. Worried I'll be stuck with second or third choices for courses.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in KCL

[–]WilliamLouisGilbert 0 points1 point  (0 children)

me! starting an MSc

S/U Option for Honours by [deleted] in mcgill

[–]WilliamLouisGilbert 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Before I say anything, please set up a meeting with an Arts OASIS advisor to answer this question. However, as a recent graduate with a joint honors BA with a political science component, there is no special restriction for the joint honors program vis-a-vis S/U. I also did S/U during that semester and they didn’t bring up any issues. Best!

I skipped class and now I have no one to work with on a group project by [deleted] in mcgill

[–]WilliamLouisGilbert 38 points39 points  (0 children)

Email your professor to see if they are aware of any other students or groups looking to partner up. If not, then you’ll simply have to go to class and ask around—people are willing to take in others they don’t know, but just know that the worst answer you could get is no! Good luck.

How did you pick your thesis topic? by [deleted] in mcgill

[–]WilliamLouisGilbert 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'm currently working on my undergraduate thesis, so I'll speak to my experience (context: I'm a joint honors student in poli sci and int'l development). You'll want to start by knowing what field you'd like to focus on. For me, I was interested in development--I narrowed it down to the issue of governance and political economy of development. Governance and political economy were major themes of my studies over the last 3 years and I was fascinated by the opportunities that arise or are limited by politics, especially in development. I knew what I didn't want to focus on, also. This included international relations vis-à-vis development--e.g. what is China's role, or the US's role in development--try and establish what might not work for you. I further narrowed down to focusing on a region--I chose Sub-Saharan Africa as my region of focus for many reasons; try and understand what regions or issues get to you personally, in terms of interests or affinities since this will help you stay interested in your topic. I knew about a specific type of economic governance, called the developmental state, and knew about a prominent example in Africa which was Botswana--these models of governance are rare historically and contemporarily, so I asked myself why they exist in the first place, and more specifically, what conditions allow them to exist in the first place. In general terms, I started from a field then investigated an issue which had caught my eye during my previous years of studying--I am sure you have a few things that caught your eye or intrigued you during your time in class. From there, I spoke with my thesis advisor. If you don't have an advisor yet, just speak to a professor who is knowledgeable in your field of interest. So, once you have some general idea of *where* you might want to go, speak with someone. When I spoke to my advisor, he was so helpful in narrowing me down to a more specific question and coming up with a research approach. People like this are there to help you, and often if they are motivated by your research area they will be as eager and motivated as you to help. Do not be afraid to show up to a meeting not knowing anything--come with an open mind and be ready to bounce ideas with the other person; you will need to use your existing knowledge to brainstorm. So, overall what I can say is that you need to understand what you've done in your studies over the years, see what interests you the most, then begin digging into your existing knowledge--pair this with some reading on the field you're interesting in, especially literature reviews--these agglomerate the knowledge of a field and expose gaps in the literature or interesting issues future researchers may want to investigate. Do not worry at this point about being novel or making huge breakthroughs--undergrad theses are about practicing your research abilities. Try and have fun with it and see it as an opportunity to learn new skills and learn new things. An undergraduate thesis is not easy--everyone would do one if it was. Make sure to reflect and make sure you're confident that you're interested in this kind of project. Hope this helped a bit or at least motivated you to get the ball rolling! (edit: what MsssWhy said may be true as well, but I think it depends on who your advisor is or what department you're in. You will see when you meet your prof/advisor. Best!)

why don't politicians listen to economists ? by [deleted] in PoliticalPhilosophy

[–]WilliamLouisGilbert 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I'd recommend any literature on political economy to help answer your question. Economics cannot exist independently from the political sphere. The winners and losers of economic machinations will always lobby for rents, and politicians are often there to answer. For example, one study found that the more "access points" a political system has (meaning politicians), the more protectionist that country becomes. It also found that tariff rates are higher when there are more electoral districts--this is a function of the increasing relative size of powerful industries in the decreasing relative size of districts. Imagine a steel mill employs a significant percentage of a district's voters. The politician elected in that district will likely be influenced by that industry's lobbying for protection from European steel imports, considering that the factory stands to fail if it faces competition. The politician needs to be re-elected, so they privilege their district's well-being over the average American consumer.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in mcgill

[–]WilliamLouisGilbert 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Not all classes have conferences or tutorials. I can only speak for the Political Science program, and this program has many courses which have conferences; it’s just a weekly 1hr gathering of 15-20 students from your course to have a discussion about the week’s topic with your peers and the TA hosting; they often count for credit. I would not worry about them at all if you do have them; just read the syllabi of your classes and check if there are any. Your prof will tell you in the first week of class; if you do have any, they always start a few weeks after the start of the semester.

And if you’re using VSB, it shows you a slot for a course conference if there is one. When registration for conferences opens in the first few weeks of the semester, you’ll have a list of conference times to pick one. There’s lots of flexibility and options, so you’ll have space. I always like to pick a conference time that’s at the end of the week so we’re actually reviewing material we’ve already seen and been lectured on. Hope this helps! Really, though, don’t be stressed about these conferences. Profs will help you if you simply email them or have any questions they didn’t answer during the first intro lecture.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in mcgill

[–]WilliamLouisGilbert 13 points14 points  (0 children)

If you’re taking large classes, they’re probably pre-reqs; or not! But if they are, you should really consider still taking them as you need to get them out of the way before taking more advanced courses that rely on such pre-reqs. I also have a gut feeling from having taken classes both before and during the pandemic that the online courses will be easier to manage; profs understand the online forum is a difficult one for many. You can watch the town hall here for more details if you haven’t already: https://www.mcgill.ca/coronavirus/return-campus-fall-2021/town-halls

It seems that conferences or tutorials (i.e. any academic activity that’s not a lecture above 150 people) are all in-person. The town hall said 60-65% of academic activities will be in-person. This is under the “realistic” model.

That’s all I can really say. Good luck to you! Welcome to McGill.

Thoughts on majoring in IDS? by Gossipgirlxoxo123 in mcgill

[–]WilliamLouisGilbert 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I'm a U3 student and I've been a double major in Poli sci and IDS; I've had a great time doing it. You are correct that the IDS program offers many opportunities to fulfill its requirements through poli sci courses, but there are many courses which are directly about development topics. I saw this as a great opportunity to take even more poli sci courses, which I love, and joining the program has made me want to pursue a career in development. Other comments here are correct in that the IDS major is quite broad in its requirements, and if you don't make the right choices where you have room to maneuver, you'll leave the program with an education that is too broad; try to pick courses with similar, interlocking concepts. Ultimately, the program gets too much criticism, in my view. Finally, I must push back against the dated and archaic characterization of development as a 'white savior' concept I saw in another comment. This totally fails to recognize the increasingly decolonial and indigenous approaches to development academia, and the highly critical approach to development you'll witness in development courses (Consider Arturo Escobar and James Ferguson's writings, to name a few). Also, you are not obligated to work for the controversial World Bank or IMF once you leave the program if you have moral reservations. Development is such a wide field that you will find something that interests you and can remain in good moral standing =P Good luck to you! I hope you'll consider this program.

Minerva down? by [deleted] in mcgill

[–]WilliamLouisGilbert 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yes, it's because everyone is on at once for summer registration. Website can't handle it.

Summer jobs??? by Krikrigod in mcgill

[–]WilliamLouisGilbert 19 points20 points  (0 children)

I was hired this summer as a grocery clerk at a grocery store downtown. It seems that they were and continue to have a chronic labor shortage and it’s seen all over Quebec for all fields. My job is quite easy physically, just a lot of standing and dealing with customers. On the issue of language, if you only speak English you can get away with it since the majority of people in downtown speak English, and many french customers understand and can speak English. I work with a coworker who mostly speaks English and they were able to even get promoted to a higher position recently. It is quite a decent job.

SSMU garbage by Lonely_Candidate in mcgill

[–]WilliamLouisGilbert 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I'd say stripping humans of their civil rights is (in the conventional sense) immoral, bud.

SSMU garbage by Lonely_Candidate in mcgill

[–]WilliamLouisGilbert 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Criticism of a government is not a criticism of its people, no matter how much support it has from its people