McGill’s reputation precedes itself, not only as one of the most prestigious universities in the country, but also as a mecca of student partying. It is known that McGill students don’t shy away from a night out, or two, or three. The Bull & Bear recently posted a survey delving deeper into McGill’s famed party culture. Questions ranged from “How much have you spent on a single night out?” (the highest amount being $2,600) to “What is your favorite drunk food?” (various slang terms for McD’s). After gathering and examining the results, let’s take a look at some of the main trends surrounding drinking, drugs, and lust at McGill.
Drinks
From day one of Frosh, first-year students are exposed to the wild side of university nightlife, followed quickly by Carnival, Hype Weeks, and other faculty organized drinking events. Out of the 557 survey participants, widely made up of U1, U2, and U3 students in Management, Arts, and Science, nearly 60% admitted to going out once or more a week. As for libations, the majority of students stick with beer, but wine, spirits, and shots are not underrepresented in the survey.
Whether it’s shouted at the top of your lungs at pre-drinks, or in hushed, hung-over tones the morning after, we all like to talk about how much we drink (or drank), but just how merry do we get when we go out? While lacking quantitative boundaries, the majority of students conceded to enjoy getting ‘tipsy’, those resigning themselves to getting ‘buzzed’ and ‘wasted’ followed closely behind.
Drugs
There have been previous surveys conducted on McGill drug culture, but this survey focuses specifically on drug use in conjunction with partying. Montreal offers a vibrant, culturally driven nightlife scene, which many McGill students take full advantage of. As a consequence, some drug use can be expected. Of the respondents, 27% use drugs when they go out, 50% of which opted for Marijuana, 34% for MDMA and 13% for cocaine. We will look closer at where these drugs fit in with McGill party culture later on, but for now, let’s move on to the most powerful drug of them all.
Lust
Love, or more likely, lust, is the third pillar of a balanced university party schedule. The Bull & Bear asked students several questions regarding partying and hooking-up. When ranking components of a good night, “hanging out with friends” was placed first, leaving “looking for a hookup” last. Furthermore, students affirmed to either never, or rarely, having one night stands after social events, and that most rarely expect to hook up with someone on a night out. It seems that while students are entirely social creatures, we may be less sex-crazed than the stereotype suggests.
From drugs to love, and just about every spot you can have a pint in between, The Bull & Bear has looked at some of the major trends in our recent Party survey, which are shown in the charts below (complete with color commentary).
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What year are you in?
Which faculty are you in?
Was the lower drinking age in Quebec a decision factor for you to come to McGill?
I guess 27% of our participants are American. Hello friends, WELCOME TO QUEBEC!
How often do you go out?
Good grades, social life, getting enough sleep. Who says we can only choose two?
When you go out, how long do you stay out?
Montreal is freezing. If we’re making the effort to go out, we stay out. Plus, it’s really hard to go to Gerts for less than an hour. It’s about the length of time it takes to get a drink on Sangria night.
On average, how much money do you spend on a night out?
How does McGill’s 1% party?
Has a party you’ve hosted or been to ever been shut down by the police?
Popo shut half of us down! Why can’t the neighbors be nice for a change?
What types of parties do you prefer?
Where do you usually party in Montreal?
Not surprising that we don’t stray far from the McGill Bubble. Who wants to walk that far in heels anyway?
What makes a good party (1 being most important, 5 being least important)?
It’s not where you are, but who you’re with (and what music is playing).
What is your primary motivation for going out (1 being most important, 6 being least important)?
Bros before hoes, ovaries before brovaries, am I right?
What’s your drunk food of choice?
awoiejfa;e NOM NOM NOM…
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Do you drink at social events where alcohol is involved?
What is your drink of choice?
Gimme a can, gimme me a bottle, gimme a keg! Wait, I still have money left!?… Priceless.
How drunk do you get at parties?
We might not brush our teeth with a bottle of Jack, but we like to get tipsy!! Go us for letting loose!
Have you ever gotten blackout drunk and/or had to receive medical attention from alcohol use?
Just trying to figure out if half of us want to be able to plausibly deny everything we did last night or just can’t hold our damn liquor… Or is it our Canadian beer?
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Do you do drugs when you go out?
Here’s a weird paradox. We do drugs while we study, but not so much when we party. (#McLennanDrugRings)
Of those who do drugs when they go out, what is your drug of choice when you go out?
So half of us like to giggle for hours at a time and get the munchies… Or just keel over and fall asleep.
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When you go out, how often are you expecting to hook-up with someone?
Nice to know we are generally capable of enough self-control to keep our pants on. But sometimes, we gotta be a little naughty… Drunken stress relief at its finest.
How often, if ever, do you make out with a stranger at a social event?
How often, if ever, do you have a one night stand resulting from a social event?
Walk of shames aren’t fun. Enough said…
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Survey results are based on 557 responses
