Coming to Montreal as a wide-eyed kid from rural Saskatchewan, I had no idea what a wonderful and transformative journey lay ahead of me at McGill. Neck craning, I took in downtown Montreal's towering buildings and bustling streets, a far cry from the silent tranquility of the town of five hundred people where I grew up.
Yet, as I ventured into this new chapter, McGill’s storied reputation for fostering innovation and honing bright young minds beckoned me forward. Immediately, I was welcomed by the tight-knit community of Douglas Hall on top of the hill, where I spent my freshman year. This dorm, steeped in history and camaraderie, became the first of many McGill environments that would shape my coming years.
My academic odyssey led me to a major in International Development Studies, along with a minor in French – as I dabbled in Quebecois culture and sought to assimilate into the new province I found myself in. My coursework proved not just educational, but transformative, pushing me to criticize, question, understand, and engage with the world more profoundly.
The wide-eyed kid from Saskatchewan who arrived in Montreal was transformed, shaped by the experiences, challenges, and triumphs of university life.”
Outside the classroom, my McGill years were rich with community involvement and leadership. I got the chance to build a network of like-minded friends and then, in my later undergraduate years, organize them to create impactful initiatives and communities that allowed us to start to change the world – and have a lot of fun while doing it. From captaining my “Beşiktaş U21” intramural soccer team, to collaborating on group projects in McLennan, to just sharing meals and stories in the Arts building Subway, these activities provided not only a platform for engaging in meaningful work but also a community of peers and mentors who supported me throughout my university journey.
Looking back on my time at McGill, I’m just amazed at how much I grew in those four years. This was despite the many challenges, both those typical to one’s college days and those that can only result from a once-in-a-lifetime global pandemic. The wide-eyed kid from Saskatchewan who arrived in Montreal was transformed, shaped by the experiences, challenges, and triumphs of university life.
The lesson of curiosity, a virtue McGill instilled in me, has become a cornerstone of my legal practice. It taught me to look beyond the surface, to delve deeper into cases, to seek out the nuances and complexities that lie beneath.”
McGill taught me the importance of curiosity, the value of perseverance, and the power of community. It prepared me to step into the world with confidence, equipped with the knowledge, skills, and compassion to make a difference. As I stood on the stage on graduation day, one of the class valedictorians, I was filled with a profound sense of accomplishment and gratitude. The journey through the halls of McGill had been both challenging and rewarding, teaching me lessons that I will carry with me as I embark on my new career as a law student at Harvard Law.
The lesson of curiosity, a virtue McGill instilled in me, has become a cornerstone of my legal practice. It taught me to look beyond the surface, to delve deeper into cases, to seek out the nuances and complexities that lie beneath. This curiosity has led me to innovative legal strategies and solutions, benefiting my clients and the broader community.
Community, a concept so integral to my McGill years, has translated into a commitment to pro bono work, as I work with Harvard’s Immigration and Refugee Clinic (HIRC) to serve those coming to strange shores with nowhere else to turn. More recently, in my work as a law clerk to the justices on the Supreme Court of Pakistan, I have witnessed firsthand how legal decisions can significantly impact communities at a national level. This experience has underscored to me the importance of legal frameworks that not only uphold justice but also promote societal well-being.
I am a product of McGill’s nurturing ground, where curiosity, community, and perseverance were instilled in me. These principles have now grown to become the bedrock of my legal career, guiding me through challenges and successes, and, ultimately, truly embodying what it means to be Made by McGill.