McGill vs NYU for the best living abroad experience

McGill will give you the stronger true living-abroad experience. As a U.S. student, you would be living in Montreal full-time, dealing with a different national system, a bilingual French-English environment, and everyday life that feels clearly distinct from most U.S. campuses. NYU can be very international, but if you attend in New York, you are still living in the U.S.

One major difference is the city itself. Montreal feels meaningfully foreign in daily life, even for Americans: French signage is everywhere, Quebec has its own cultural identity, and the rhythms of the city, food, holidays, and public life are noticeably different. You are not just taking classes with international students; you are navigating another country’s institutions, housing culture, healthcare setup, and social norms.

Another difference is how immersion happens. At McGill, the abroad element is built into the entire college experience from day one because the university is embedded in Canada and specifically in Quebec, which has a distinct linguistic and cultural atmosphere. At NYU, the global feel often comes from the student body and study-away options, which is valuable, but that is not the same as spending all four years adapting to life outside the U.S.

New York is one of the most exciting cities in the world, but for a U.S. student seeking an actual abroad lifestyle rather than an international vibe, Montreal is much closer to what you are describing.