After two turbulent years, McGill University eyes a rebrand

Montreal Gazette

7 hours ago

McGill wants a fresh start.
The Montreal university is preparing to overhaul its public image after two turbulent years, seeking outside help for a brand repositioning, The Gazette has learned.
Despite its standing as one of the world's top universities, McGill has lately been rocked by a series of conflicts and challenges.
Clashes with the Quebec government. Hesitation and confusion among out-of-province and international students. Criticism from both pro-Palestinian and Jewish students. Tensions with Indigenous groups. And growing financial strain.
In a recent call for tender seeking a branding agency, McGill says it wants to 'reposition how McGill is perceived by key audiences (students, government, donors, public) over a multi-year period.'
The new 'positioning/messaging must be as effective in French as it is in English' and should 'illustrate how we are a true bridge between generations, between research and community, between Quebec and the world.'
The estimated cost of the contract spans a wide range, from $707,000 to $6.7 million. McGill expects to select an agency in September and launch a multi-year branding campaign one year later.
In a statement to The Gazette on Thursday, McGill said it carries out marketing each year to support student recruitment and share knowledge. The public tender, it said, is part of a periodic review to ensure its marketing is as effective as possible.
Harold Simpkins, an emeritus marketing professor at Concordia University, said McGill has frequently been in damage-control mode over the past two years.
'Instead of consistently promoting their strengths — the success of their graduates or the breakthroughs of their faculty — they've been on the defensive,' he said.
McGill has to refocus attention on its position as 'a leading university — leading in terms of thought, in terms of the quality of the professionals who graduate.'
Simpkins said many of the crises McGill has faced were beyond its control, including 'attacks by the Quebec government.'
Premier François Legault has singled out McGill and Concordia, another English university. His government aims to reduce their enrolment, arguing that non-French-speaking students from outside Quebec and abroad pose a threat to the province's French-speaking majority.
The universities went so far as to sue the province over a series of measures that targeted them.
'It's definitely not a good look to be at war with your province,' said Ken Steele, an Ontario-based consultant who advises universities on branding and strategy.
He said McGill president Deep Saini 'may have the toughest job in Canadian post-secondary education, mostly due to the CAQ government,' which 'seems hell-bent on undermining' and 'starving' English universities, particularly McGill.
Among other things, the Coalition Avenir Québec government dramatically increased tuition fees for out-of-province students at McGill and Concordia, with the French language minister blaming anglophone students for anglicizing Montreal.
Steele said the government is 'making Quebec unpopular for students (from other places), like (American) detentions at the border have made U.S. travel unpopular for Canadians.'
He added: 'Academics elsewhere in Canada have been openly musing why McGill wouldn't simply relocate out of Quebec, to a province that actually wants it.'
Universities usually undertake brand repositioning exercises 'to address external or even internal misperceptions,' Steele said. In this case, however, McGill already has 'one of Canada's strongest brands.'
Founded in 1821, McGill has 36,000 students and is one of Canada's oldest and most prestigious universities.
It was recently ranked as Canada's top university in the QS World University Rankings, a globally influential assessment. Domestically, Maclean's latest rankings named McGill the leading medical-doctoral university.
Steele said the university's 'big challenge may be positioning Montreal and Quebec as welcoming for anglophones. It's a bigger brand challenge than merely positioning the university.'
In the tender document, McGill includes a list of 'primary audiences' for its branding: prospective students (local, national, international), current students, faculty, researchers, staff, donors, alumni, government, opinion leaders, the business community and the 'general public in Quebec.'
Simpkins said securing the backing of Quebec's business community — and of French-speaking Quebecers more broadly — is critical.
Francophone business leaders have been largely silent about the government's treatment of English universities, even though their companies heavily rely on the institutions for employees, he said.
Many Quebecers appear to hold negative views of McGill, he added.
'Your average francophone Quebecer sees McGill as a threat or as being snobby or anti-French.' They think money spent on McGill should instead be spent on French universities, he added.
Yet McGill is one of Quebec's best-known brands internationally.
Simpkins said the university could try to 'get Quebecers to stop just focusing on Quebec, to take a broader perspective.'
Healthy English universities can help attract quality students and faculty to the province, with well-rounded graduates ending up filling key jobs, he said.
Many may not realize that 20 per cent of McGill's students have French as their mother tongue.
Simpkins said McGill should 'communicate consistently all of the francophone success stories that have come out of McGill,' including its well-regarded law and medical schools.
'There are thousands of francophone success stories.'
Without francophones on board, he said, 'it becomes a much more difficult political sell for the government to support McGill.'
McGill's rough two years
Once best known for its international academic prestige, McGill University has, since 2023, found itself in the spotlight — not for accolades, but for controversy and crises.
Quebec government
Since the fall of 2023, Premier François Legault's government has targeted McGill and Concordia, accusing them of undermining the French language.
The Coalition Avenir Québec government has framed the issue as a broader clash between anglophone institutions and Quebec's francophone majority.
The government hiked tuition for out-of-province students, introduced a new international student funding framework, and announced French proficiency requirements.
The measures blindsided McGill and Concordia and attracted national and international attention, largely because of McGill's global reputation.
McGill and Concordia went to court, calling the measures unconstitutional and unsupported by any data from Higher Education Minister Pascale Déry. A judge partially agreed.
Out-of-province students
Quebec initially announced it would almost double tuition for out-of-province students at McGill and Concordia — from $9,000 to $17,000. It later scaled back the increase to $3,000, or 33 per cent.
Even so, the new rate priced Quebec's English universities out of the national market.
The move triggered confusion and dismay across Canada, with media quoting frustrated students vowing to study elsewhere. Many ultimately opted not to apply to McGill or Concordia, feeling unwelcome and deterred by the higher fees.
In April, a court ruled the tuition hike was 'unreasonable,' giving Quebec nine months to revise the fee structure.
McGill and Concordia saw the decision as a reversal of the increase. But Déry disagreed, saying the judge objected not to the hike itself, but to 'the path we've taken and the reasons invoked for the increase.'
International students
For international students, the new rules focused on a government clawback and a new minimum annual tuition rate of $20,000, though in many cases, actual tuition didn't increase.
Coming amid the outcry over out-of-province tuition hikes, the changes caused confusion and hesitation among prospective students worldwide, leading to a drop in applications.
More recently, new federal and provincial limits on foreign enrolment further hampered international recruitment.
French requirement
In the fall of 2023, Quebec announced French proficiency requirements for non-Quebec students at McGill and Concordia.
Starting in 2025, 80 per cent of newly enrolled undergraduates would need intermediate-level spoken French by graduation, with financial penalties for universities that fell short.
The move prompted uncertainty and pushback, with concerns that students from outside Quebec might need an extra semester. A graduation test initially seemed possible, but Quebec confirmed in February 2025 that none would be required.
The rule's future is uncertain. In April, a court ordered it scrapped. Two months later, Déry said she would 'continue discussions' with McGill and Concordia.
Israel and Gaza
Within hours of the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attacks on Israel, which killed 1,200 — mostly civilians — McGill faced controversy when a student group praised the assaults as 'heroic,' prompting a university condemnation.
In the following months, McGill became a protest hot spot, drawing international attention as pro-Palestinian activists camped on its front lawn for 75 days. They condemned Israeli attacks on Gaza and accused McGill of complicity for refusing to sever ties with Israel and divest from companies supporting its military.
Jewish students also lashed out at McGill. In April 2025, a Jewish undergraduate sought approval for a class-action lawsuit alleging McGill failed to take 'meaningful disciplinary action' against campus antisemitism since October 2023.
Mohawk Mothers
For years, the Mohawk Mothers, a group of Indigenous women, have criticized McGill's handling of searches for possible unmarked graves at the former Royal Victoria Hospital and Allan Memorial Institute site.
McGill and Quebec are redeveloping the area in an $870-million project called the New Vic.
As work accelerated over the past two years, the Mohawk Mothers accused them of rushing archeological digs and violating a court-approved investigation agreement. McGill and Quebec maintain they are committed to uncovering the truth.
The group has kept attention on the issue through protests, press conferences and legal action.
Financial troubles
McGill's shaky finances have raised concerns.
In February, the university announced plans for up to 500 job cuts to address a $45-million deficit, but ended up laying off about 60 employees. McGill has since warned of 'more hard decisions this year — including cuts and potentially more staff reductions.' It has almost 13,000 employees.
The university, whose annual budget is about $1.1 billion, blames factors such as the out-of-province tuition hikes, provincial grant reductions, tuition clawbacks and limits on international student admissions.
Despite the fiscal pressure, McGill's $2-billion endowment keeps it far from financial ruin.