McMaster University: Why Should You Go There?

McMaster University is a university located in Hamilton, Ontario. It is known for its Science, Business, Health, Nursing, and Engineering programs (McMaster). Although McMaster is a top-tier and prestigious school, you may be wondering about its campus and a bit about the student life for those who attend it. If so, keep reading and hopefully you can find your answer!

With more than 70 research centres and institutes, McMaster University is comprised of the Arts & Science Program and six faculties: The DeGroote School of Business, and the Faculties of Engineering, Health Sciences, Humanities, Science, and Social Sciences (McMaster, Discover). McMaster’s main campus, located in the Westdale neighbourhood of Hamilton, Ontario, is comprised of 300 acres of property.

McMaster University has four regional campuses; downtown Hamilton, Burlington, Kitchener-Waterloo, and Niagara. In the Westdale Campus, highlights include libraries, the McMaster Museum of Art, many athletic facilities, student housing, restaurants and food, cafes, conference services, and the McMaster Nuclear Reactor. The Westdale campus isn’t particularly appealing from the outside, but inside, it is a different story, with state-of-the-art research facilities and everything else you’d expect of a top-tier school. Additionally, McMaster has a hospital, medical centre, and greenhouse, as well as an accelerator, hotcell, neutron diffraction, positron beam, and cyclotron facility.

Students may visit these facilities or take classes in them, depending on their field of study. McMaster is home to the Marauders varsity sports teams as well. Athletic clubs include basketball, wrestling, track, baseball, football, soccer, and much more. Due to McMaster’s sports clubs, there are many on-campus (and off-campus) sports facilities, including indoor and outdoor tracks, basketball/volleyball gyms, weight rooms, and fields that can be used by the students depending on availability.

For its size, McMaster has a large number of clubs, with more than 300 in total. Most of them focus on social issues, however the most known and active ones are cultural; catering to the huge number of different ethnicities represented in the student body. Some of the on-campus support systems include COPE (a student health initiative), and Youth Wellness Centres. Social settings are also encouraged through intramural sports leagues that anyone can join. Of course, it isn’t too hard to go to a nearby cafe and socialize with your peers in a more casual environment!

Although not flashy like some of the other universities’ locations, living in Hamilton, Ontario has its own positives. Hamilton is the ninth largest city in Canada and the fourth largest city in Ontario. It is a much more quiet and laid-back city; the environment is more naturalistic than urbanized. If you don’t prefer the urban, rapid-moving city-lifestyle, then going to McMaster may be a good option for you!

The surrounding area of the main McMaster Campus, the Westdale area of Hamilton, has many nearby attractions. A popular nearby attraction is Cootes Paradise; the Royal Botanical Garden’s largest diverse nature sanctuary with over 600 hectares of land and featuring 18 kilometres of trails from Hamilton and Burlington. Nearby shopping attractions include the Limeridge Mall and Jackson Square in Hamilton, as well as the Mapleview Mall in Burlington. The downtown region of Hamilton is in close proximity to the campus, with many of its own restaurants, greenery, beaches/lakeshore areas, music venues, and shopping as well.

Hopefully you were able to learn more about the McMaster campus, its nearby attractions, and a bit about the student life. We wish you luck in finding your post-secondary option of choice!

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Works Cited

“Activities.” McMaster Athletics & Recreation, McMaster University, 25 Sept. 2018, rec.mcmaster.ca/activities.

“Buildings.” Facility Services, McMaster University, 11 Dec. 2020, facilities.mcmaster.ca/buildings/.

“Cootes Paradise Trails.” Royal Botanical Gardens, Royal Botanical Gardens, www.rbg.ca/gardens-trails/by-attraction/trails/trail-maps/cootes-paradise-trails/.

“Discover McMaster.” McMaster University, 2021, www.mcmaster.ca/opr/html/opr/our_campus/main/our_campus.html.

“Facilities.” McMaster Athletics & Recreation, McMaster University, 2020, rec.mcmaster.ca/facilities.

“Facility List.” Nuclear Operations & Facilities, McMaster University, 2021, nuclear.mcmaster.ca/facilities-equipment/facility-list/.

“Life In Hamilton.” Discover McMaster, McMaster University, 2020, discover.mcmaster.ca/life-in-hamilton/.

McMaster University, McMaster University, 2021, www.mcmaster.ca/.

“McMaster University.” Real Campus, Real Campus, 20 Oct. 2020, realcampus.ca/mcmaster/.

Redmond, Julia. “McMaster: What Campus Life Is Really like in the Hammer.” Maclean's, 2016, www.macleans.ca/schools/mcmaster-what-campus-life-is-really-like-in-the-hammer/.

“Restaurants & Cafes.” Discover McMaster, McMaster University, 19 June 2020, discover.mcmaster.ca/hospitality/.

Student Life, Future Further, 7 Dec. 2020, www.futurefurther.ca/university/mcmaster-university/student-life/.

“Student Support Services.” Student Wellness Centre, McMaster University, 19 Aug. 2020, wellness.mcmaster.ca/resources/student-support-services/.