Re: Halifax
 

I have a feelin g that we'd like it at either of the two places. There are as you say a number of things to consider and weigh up which is the most important to us - i guess thats what the next few months hold for us

Re: Halifax
 

(1) It says post-secondary, not post-graduate. NSPaul, youand dbd33 have been debating a point which isn't even claimed i.e. high levels of post-graduates.

(2) 5 of the top 11 universities in Canada? Poppycock. Apart from Dalhousie, I can't think of any others in Nova Scotia. Can you name the other 4 please?

Re: Halifax
 

I wasn't aware you could do that? I'll check it out. It's the air fair that's the stinker though, still searching for cheaper flights.

Re: Halifax
 

It always is. Internal flights in Canada are a killer. You can drive there in two days, that's what we mainly did when child was in school. That or flew Buffalo-somewhere-Halifax.

Re: Halifax
 

My wife suggested the driving thing, it wouldn't have been a problem if we were over there for longer but we need to spend the majority of the time in Ottawa, loads of practical stuff to get sorted out. Spending a long weekend in Halifax seeing the ships and the other stuff that goes with it would be nice though, might just say f*** the money, pay by credit card and sort it out later...

Re: Halifax
 

not sure what you mean about point 1) - we were talking about undergratuate, soon to graduate, recently graduated, post-secondary or whatever you want to call it.

The other Universities that appear in the Macleans league table are (an in fact Dalhousie is not one of them even though it does have an excelent reputation:

St Francis Xavier - ranked #1
Acadia - ranked #3
St Mary's - ranked #9
Mount St Vincent - ranked #11
Cape Breton - ranked #13

Mount Alison (actually in NB but very near the NS border ranks #2). Most of the others in the top 10 are also from other Atlantic provinces (NB, PEI and NF)

There are 11 universities in total in NS so I don't know why it is that you have only heard of Dalhousie. Almost certainly you wont believe me so have a look at http://www.macleans.ca/education/uni..._undergrad.pdf

This is exactly the kind of thing I am talking about - people with all sorts of preconceptions about Nova Scotia who actually know nothing about the place!

Re: Halifax
 

I think it depends on what age they are. If they are 1 or 2 years away from starting work then its something to factor in but as others have said the chances are you wont be able to persuade them any way - they will go where they want. If you lived in Vancouver they might move to Halifax and vice versa. A lot can change over time - if your children are young then chances are that with the speed it is growing Halifax may offer as much choice in many years time. And then there is housing cost to consider - if they don't already live in Vancouver (i.e. have a load of equity in a house) then will they struggle to get on the housing ladder even with good jobs?

I think dbd33 is right - you should choose for yourselves. Trying to predict what your kids will want is really a tall order.

Re: Halifax
 

That's a bit of a funny chart, innit? There are other schools in Canada with stellar reputations depending on the field; McGill, Guelph, McMaster, UBC, UofT, UWO even that York place. Something wrong with this picture.

Re: Halifax
 

So are you saying this is yet another piece of research that has been subversively devised by Atlantic conspirators? Along with that other study that ranked Halifax 2nd best place to live in Canada (http://www.canadianbusiness.com/rank...olive/list.jsp) - I seem to recall that you didn't believ that one either

Re: Halifax
 

Nspaul, the reason why Dalhousie isn't in that list, is because it is a list of "Primarily Undergraduate Universities". These are not top tier institutions. They are more along the lines of degree granting colleges. Real Universities (like Dalhousie, but to my knowledge, no others in Nova Scotia), have graduate programmes, award PhD's and do top class research. Because of this they attract competent faculty.

This is exactly the kind of thing I am talking about - people with all sorts of preconceptions about education who actually know nothing about the subject!

Re: Halifax
 

iirc correctly my quibble with the early survey was unrelated to Halifax. I thought it incredible because it ranked Gander as a viable place to live and I've been to Gander.

Re: Halifax
 

To be fair Dalhousie U Alberta, U Calgary, Laval and maybe one or two others should come before that last one you mention.

Re: Halifax
 

Mc Leans survey is a joke, some Universities don't even respond, to place any Maritime University in top tier makes no sense.

Ontario kids who can't make it into an Ontario University head down East.

Halifax is still a delightful city, too bad it doesn't have Vancouver's backdrop.

Re: Halifax
 

Except Dalhousie.

Re: Halifax
 

So are you saying that "primarily undergraduate" universities don't count? Even though the vast majority of people who plan to attend a university will be doing an undegraduate (or first) degree? Of course some will go on to do Masters and PhD but the numbers will be relatively small in comparrison. But according to you the several hundred thousand undergraduates who enroll in good universities each year are unwittingly just choosing a "degree granting college" because the institution doesn't have the best PhD program (even though they only want to do a BA or BSc)?

Re: Halifax
 

That is *so* not always the case.

Re: Halifax
 

I'm told people at King's look down on Dal as being the place of hoi polloi.

Re: Halifax
 

Agreed. I just noticed Howard1944 "slagging off" Manitoba in another thread. Apparently anywhere that doesn't include the word "Ontario" in the name of the province is no good to him. Just goes to show that being born in 1944 (ah, see we cracked your clever little code Howard) doesn't necessarily give you any wisdom.

Re: Halifax
 

Choice of university for undergrad is a complex business, the list you used is flawed because no one would consider only schools without post-grad programs. The standard required for admission varies with the course as well as with the school and the cost of the course is a big factor in choosing a university; out of province schools are more expensive. Thus, it's daft to say that "Ontario kids who can't make it into an Ontario University head down East." That's probably not true of students choosing Dal. over Lakehead or Trent but none of this simple.

Re: Halifax
 

Not exactly, I'm simply saying that they don't count towards the "top 11 universities in Canada".

I'm not sure why you're being so aggressive here. I've said nothing negative about Halifax, I've just pointed out some flaws in your post praising the place.

Re: Halifax
 

Porter Airlines has good prices to Halifax from Ottawa - for 2 adults (sorry, can't remember if you have kids...) leaving Fri 13, coming back Sun 15, they quoted $782.

Re: Halifax
 

I have a BSC (Hons) degree 1st class, but this is not sufficient to secure decent employment, I have to work nights in a local hotel, for little more than minimum wage, most of the other staff I work with also have university degrees.

20 years prior experience also cannot be taken into consideration, as it is not Nova Scotian experience.

Here, unless you have a unique skill, loyalty and long service are the only ways to get a "real" job.

Re: Halifax
 

Charlie1 - it doesn't sound like you have been given a fair hearing. What is your prior experience in? And what reasons did employers give you for not taking it into account? How long hasve you been in NS?

The situation you describe hasn't been my experience at all and I suspect that some industries/employers are probably more progressive to reckognising overseas experience than others. If I can help put you in touch with someone I'd be happy to

Re: Halifax
 

Really didn't think I was being "aggressive" - just didn't agree with your argument in this instance.

Re: Halifax
 

Your list was a bit misleading though (I think everything in Macleans is). What's the point of publishing a ranking of universities that only offer undergraduate courses? Someone considering a first degree wouldn't be interested in looking only at those.

Re: Halifax
 

Rankings of this kind (whether for Universities, secondary schools, private schools etc) are always highly contentious in my experience and Macleans' rankings are respected by some and dismissed by others - which is to be expected. Thats not really the point though. The purpose behind posting the study in the first place was not to categorically prove that whichever university ranked #3 for example REALLY was the third best - but rather to try and dispell the view help by some that Halifax wasn't really on the map as far as world class education goes. Comments like..."I told my then lawyer that I had a daughter at school there. "The poor girl" he said "in that hole, had she no grades?"." could have caused some people to think that it wasn't one of the top places to study which would have been misleading in my view.

Re: Halifax
 

My whole career has been spent in the Hotel & catering industry, 16 years management, 9 years spent working up to management. I have spoken with every hotel in town, with the same repsonse from every one, that I need Nova Scotian experience, and will have to start from the bottom and work my way up.

My resume was prepared by nova scotia job search, as well as my cover letter. While speaking with all employers they are very impressed with my credentials but, always come back to my being from overseas, 2 even called me arragant for thinking that as an "outsider" i would be accepted. Most disconcerting was that 3 GM's, that I spoke to were British, they told me they had to start at the bottom so I should too.

The job shop even told me that was the way it is here and to just accept it.


We have been here a year now, & each day I think harder and harder about heading west. Any help you can offer would be appreciated, PM me.

Re: Halifax
 

At the risk of flogging a dead horse, that ranking makes Halifax look to be a worse place to study than it is; it ranks schools in NS highly by eliminating good schools in other provinces (and one in NS). The most casual observer is likely to think "Oi, where's all the schools I've heard of?".

Really Macleans is only useful if you want to read dreamy articles about Conrad Black's conquests in the board room or limo. He is to Peter Newman as Diana was to Andrew Morton.

Re: Halifax
 

Precisely. The point is that you mislead your readers by stating that "5 of the top 11 Canadian universities are in Halifax".

If you had bothered to actually consult your source (Maclean's, warts and all) you would find that they choose to divide Canadian Universities into three categories, firstly those with Medical Schools, secondly those with no Medical Schools but otherwise offering a full range of programmes including PhD programmes and which are research active, and thirdly "Primarily Undergraduate Universities" to which group all those in Nova Scotia (except Dalhousie), belong.

If you had stated that Halifax boasts 5 of the top 11 in the third category, I would not have taken issue with you, because (at least by Maclean's methods) you would be right.

However, given your misleading approach on this topic, I reserve the right to take all your other points in praise of Halifax with a large pinch of salt.

Re: Halifax
 

Actually I think I said in Nova Scotia. You are correct of course that the list I used was one of three different categories used in the rankings - there is no "overall" ranking so you would have to choose one of these 3 lists to refer to. I don't see that as material though. I certainly wouldn't agree that primarily undergraduate universities are not "real" universities (referring to your original post on the subject)! I would love to hear what response you would get were you to make that comment to, for example, the President of St Francis Xavier University!!! In case this thread has not entertained readers enough that would surely make for interesting reading.

As for my points of praise of Halifax - don't take my word for it anyone who is reading this - do your own research, visit the place and decide for yourself. I love it but thats just my opinion (to be taken with a pinch of salt until validated by your own research).

Re: Halifax
 

Dr. Sean Riley, President of SFX would certainly agree that his institution is not one of the "top eleven universities in Canada", except in the narrow sense of the categories employed by Macleans. (By the way, I don't like those categories any more than you seem to).

Re: Halifax
 

All league tables are really a load of crap - but its hard to form an argument about the region having great universities just based on a "my mate went there and he said it was really great" kind of approach. You need to get hold of something statistical in nature to support an argument like that. If you know of a better study we should post that instead.

Would love to hear what other people think of Halifax who have visited or lived here though.....?

Re: Halifax
 

But I contend that that is exactly what you are doing. I, on the other hand, have repeatedly pointed out that Dalhousie, in Halifax, is truly one of Canada's premier universities.

To claim that StFX is the number one university in Canada without suitable qualification of the context, is akin to claiming that Scunthorpe are the best football team in England, just because they won League One last season.

Re: Halifax
 

Universities aside. I will vouch that Halifax (and indeed Nova Scotia) is a great place. Clean, beautiful and friendly with the advantage of a great climate (matter of preference I know). Really diverse scenery and wherever you are you are never far fron the sea. Can't wait to be there again!

Re: Halifax
 

Yes, but otherwise what would we have to argue about all day? Life would be boring. Anyway I see your last para as a challenge - I intend to find some statistical evidence somewhere to show that Scunthorpe is the best Football team in Engalnd (at least in the Primarily Somethingorother Category) - after all you can find anything on the web!

Re: Halifax
 

Good luck to you and congratulations on choosing such a great place to move to (even if it does have its fair share of argumentative forum-using expats)

Re: Halifax
 

NSpaul - I loved hearing your positivity regarding Halifax and NS and all nitpicking aside, I get what your point is regarding higher education within NS.

We are moving to NS within the next few months and we have never been for a reccie trip, but we cant wait! We have lived for the last 4 years in New Zealand and we are ready for another adventure. Luckily for us, my husband has been offered a job in Halifax and we are trying to get there as soon as possible!

Cant hear enough about how great the place is!!!! :thumbsup:

Re: Halifax
 

Hi "Poppy"
Any luck with selling the house yet?

Re: Halifax
 

Every day feels like a year - you know the deal!! But hope springs eternal and a great sounding viewing on Monday, so fingers crossed please!!! :thumbsup:

Re: Halifax
 

I will have my fingers and toes crossed for you!!!! Is it listed on anything like MLS so everyone can have alook at it....it sounds like such a nice house!