Marianopolis College

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Marianopolis College, April 2004

Marianopolis College is a private subsidized college nestled against the side of Mount Royal in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is one of the few private English language college in the province of Quebec, and is also one of the smallest anglophone colleges, with a student body of less than 2,000. While the college primarily offers two-year pre-university programs leading to a Diploma of Collegial Studies (DEC), a few three-year double-DEC programs are also available. These programs allow students to combine music with science, Social Science or arts.

The college's current site is at 3880 Côte-des-Neiges. In August 2007, it will be moving to 4873 Westmount Ave.

The programs are academically rigorous at Marianopolis, and admission is very competitive compared to most of Quebec's other colleges.

1 History
2 Vision Statement
3 Campus life and environment
4 Academic life and success
5 Academic programs
6 See also
7 External links

[edit] History

The school was founded in 1908 by the Congrégation de Notre Dame (Congregation of Holy Cross) as the bilingual Notre Dame Ladies College, the first institution of higher learning for English-speaking Catholic women in Quebec. Initially, it offered degrees through Université Laval, the first being offered three years after the college's founding. The degree-granting agreement was later transferred to Université de Montréal. In 1926, the school was renamed Marguerite Bourgeoys College.

During the World War II era, the English sector of the college was reorganized to be in line with anglophone universities, including programs in general science and honours chemistry. It changed its name to Marianopolis College.

Changes to the education system in Quebec caused Marianopolis to adopt a CEGEP-equivalent program in 1969. The college also began accepting male students during this time. The degree-granting program was eventually phased out in 1972.

[edit] Vision Statement

The Vision statement of the college reads:

Marianopolis College, drawing on its rich educational heritage, strives to be a leader in building a dynamic and supportive environment where students can grow both personally and intellectually. Marianopolis students will be prepared to pursue academic excellence in their studies, become self-directed life-long learners, and make positive contributions as citizens of a complex and changing world.

[edit] Campus life and environment

The building is located right next to the Mount Royal Park, with an obstructed view of the western part of downtown Montreal. The campus is small, but still features a sports complex, tennis courts and a soccer field.

Marianapolis has a small student population and small campus, with most classes held within the same building. In addition to providing a strong academic background, the school places a special emphasis on non-academic and extracurricular activities. Over 70 official student clubs are currently active at Marianopolis. The larger of these include Silver Key; the Papercut, the student newspaper; the Marianopolis Robotics Team; Model United Nations; and the Chinese club. There are dozens of ethnic, cultural and religious clubs. Two universal breaks per week ensure that clubs can hold meetings at times during the school day when no students will have class, thereby allowing the entire student body to participate in extracurriculars.

[edit] Academic life and success

Marianopolis features its own "Plan for Success", and indeed, over 90% of students are admitted to their first choice programs when applying to university. The typical course load is between 6 and 8 courses per semester. Each program has its required courses, but students are given some flexibility in choosing option courses, comprising technical electives and complementary courses outside their program. The workload is considered to be rigorous, but Marianopolis students will usually find themselves well-prepared for university.

[edit] Academic programs

Side view of Marianopolis College at its Côte-des-Neiges location.

Each Marianopolis student is required to complete a set of general courses in addition to those required by the program into which they have been admitted.

[edit] General education component

4 English (introduction/literary genres/literary themes/course adapted to program)
2 French
3 humanities
3 physical education
2 complementary

[edit] Academic programs

Sciences
Social Science & Commerce
Creative Arts, Literature and Languages
Liberal Arts
Music & Music Double-DECs
- Music/Science
- Music/Social Science
- Music/Arts & Letters

[edit] Academic certificates

Additionally, there are various certificate programs, which interested students need to apply for once admitted to Marianopolis. These are considered honours programs and require additional co-curricular work such as a thesis or research project, and/or that certain classes be taken. The current certificate programs include: