The quality of Concordia, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, is not just an opinion: in 2024, Times Higher Education (THE) ranked it 80e rank in its ranking of the best universities under 50 worldwide. In addition, we are ranked first in Canada for the seventh consecutive year and occupy the first position in North America for the first time.
Concordia is so deeply woven into the fabric of Montreal and Quebec that it can be easy to forget how much it has grown. Over the years, the university has become a magnet for talent and a world leader in research and the arts. In fact, with a modern, downtown campus and a traditional campus arranged around a central courtyard in the residential neighbourhood of Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, it is impossible to tell where Concordia ends and the rest of the city begins.
Chances are there is a Concordian in your family, workplace or network. Of our 260,000 graduates, 180,000 live in Quebec. These individuals are leaders in business, the creative industry and the community sector, and they contribute in countless ways to the prosperity we all enjoy today.
The University itself is not to be outdone, as it adds nearly $2 billion to the Quebec economy each year through its purchasing power as well as by enriching human capital, stimulating productivity and accelerating innovation.
Like Montreal, Concordia is a place of diversity, a fertile ground for opportunity and transformation. Anglophones, allophones and francophones rub shoulders here. Two-thirds of the university’s student body is from Quebec, and the rest comes from more than 150 countries. Many of these students are the first in their families to realize the dream of a university education, often having to overcome social norms and economic barriers to do so. Collectively, Concordia students embody Montreal’s unique character, being both proudly rooted in Quebec and citizens of the world.
Our professors and graduates are omnipresent on the cultural scene, not only here in Quebec, but throughout Canada and around the world. They have won Pulitzer, Giller, Sobey, Tony, Emmy and Grammy prizes, as well as Oscars and Governor General’s Awards. Concordians are very present in the media, in the gaming industry and in the aerospace field, as well as in the cybersecurity and IT sectors.
With 80,000 of our graduates living abroad, we are building an incredible network of ambassadors—some of whom literally serve as ambassadors—helping to raise the profile of Montreal, Quebec and Canada.
In a city rich in great universities, Concordia owes part of its success to its ability to innovate, to stand out and to make things happen.
We consciously direct research into innovative areas that generate the greatest value for society and the economy. For example, after leading a national engineering network dedicated to net-zero energy building design for more than a decade, Concordia is now leading a $200 million research and training consortium focused on next-generation cities and the electrification of society, called Volt-Age.
Nationally and internationally, we benefit enormously from the brand of our John Molson School of Business and the prestige of our Gina Cody School, the only faculty of engineering and computer science named after a woman in Canada.
We are also making bold choices operationally. By the end of the year, we will be the first Canadian university to fully convert its foundation portfolio to sustainable investments. We have also committed to fully decarbonizing the infrastructure on both our campuses by 2040.
In the past, Concordia has sometimes distinguished itself by its ability to go with the flow. But we are currently at a critical moment for higher education in North America, for Quebec’s English-language universities, and for Montreal’s university sector. As we approach our 50th anniversary, it is time to reflect not only on where Concordia has come, but also on what we can achieve in the future.
We are a university bursting with creative energy, social dynamism and entrepreneurial spirit. We are committed to experimenting, innovating and building partnerships to accomplish great things with and for the community to which we owe so much of our identity.
So, thank you Montreal! And thank you to our students, employees, professors, graduates, artisans, friends and supporters. No list of achievements in the world could ever measure the pride and gratitude we feel for being part of this remarkable city.
The best is yet to come.