University of British Columbia, Canada

Widely acknowledged as canada’s top public research varsity, UBC is consistently ranked among the world’s top 50 universities by reputable print media

Sited in the western seaboard city of Vancouver, which is currently hosting the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, the University of British Columbia (UBC) is widely acknowledged as Canada’s top public research varsity, and is consistently ranked among the world’s top 50 universities in trans-national surveys conducted by reputable print media. In the Times Higher Education-QS 2009 league table of the world’s top 200 universities, UBC is ranked 40 while Shanghai Jia Tong University, China rates it 36th in its 2008 ranking of the world’s best universities. Spread across two campuses in Vancouver and Okanagan, UBC comprises 18 faculties, 14 schools and three colleges and several research centres and institutes including the Bamfield Marine Research Centre, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research and the Botanical Garden and Centre for Plant Research.

Comments Stephen J. Toope, presi-dent, University of British Columbia: “UBC has grown into one of Canada’s finest universities, one that in so short a time already ranks among the world’s 40 best. Measured by any criterion — the intellectual calibre of our students, the quality of faculty teaching and research, the professionalism of our staff — UBC is an outstanding university, and plays a vital role in the cultural, social, and economic development of our region and country.”

Founded in 1908, UBC currently has an enrolment of 44,948 undergraduate and postgrad students with 6,403 international students from over 143 countries. Among its alumni it boasts Nobel laureate economist Robert Mundell; former Canadian prime ministers Kim Campbell and John Turner, and author and historian Pierre Berton.

Vancouver. Canada’s eighth largest city, Vancouver (pop. 578,000) was recently ranked as “the world’s most desirable place to live in” in a survey of 127 cities conducted by the London-based weekly The Economist. Situated between the North Shore and coastal mountains on the edge of the Pacific Ocean, Vancouver is also Canada’s largest and most diversified port, trading $75 billion (Rs.345,000 crore) in goods annually.

A cosmopolitan city, Vancouver offers all the amenities of an international metro — hundreds of restaurants and clubs, parks and recreation facilities, world-class entertainment and sporting venues. The city hosts more than 200 parks, including Stanley Park, one of the largest urban parks worldwide, with a 150-year-old forest, and 8.85 km of seawall.

Moreover Vancouver’s natural surroundings offer limitless opportu-nities for outdoor pursuits such as hiking and mountain biking in spring and summer, and skiing at the nearby Whistler-Blackcomb resort in winter. The city offers perhaps the mildest urban climate in Canada with temperatures averaging around 3oC in January and 18oC in July.

Campus facilities. UBC’s main campus is a 20-minute drive from downtown Vancouver’s Point Grey peninsula. The 402 hectare campus surrounded by 763 hectares of forest parkland, offers world-class teaching, sports and recreational facilities, student residences and administrative buildings.

Hosting numerous eco reserves including the UBC Botanical Garden and Centre for Plant Research and the Nitobe Japanese Memorial Garden, the campus also boasts the famous Chan Centre for the Performing Arts and Museum of Anthropology. The heart of student activity at UBC Vancouver is the centrally located Student Union Building which houses half a dozen restaurants and cafés, a pub and nightclub, the inexpensive 425-seat Norman Bouchard Memorial Theatre, several shops and a post office.

The university’s second campus is sited in downtown Kelowna in the scenic Okanagan region of British Columbia. The 260-acre Okanagan campus offers undergrad degrees in arts, science, nursing, education, business management and engineering as well as graduate degrees in most of these disciplines. Currently the campus is experiencing a C$450 million (Rs.1,935 crore) development and expansion makeover with construction of several new residential, teaching and research buildings.

UBC also has two satellite campuses in Vancouver — in Robson Square and Great Northern Way. The former is located in downtown Vancouver and offers humanities courses, technology and business management programmes. The Great Northern Way campus, located in east Vancouver, is a joint venture between UBC, Simon Fraser University, Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design, and the B.C. Institute of Technology.
UBC has the second largest research library in Canada with 5.8 million volumes, 5.3 million microforms, more than 833,000 maps, audio, video and graphic materials, and over 80,000 serial titles. The library has 21 branches including on and off-campus locations and the UBC Okanagan Library.

Sports facilities at UBC include the Aquatic Centre (indoor and outdoor swimming pools); Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre (ice hockey); Thunderbird Stadium (football and soccer); War Memorial Gymnasium (basketball and volleyball); and Thunderbird Park (soccer, rugby, baseball, track and field, and field hockey). Moreover there are over 300 student clubs encompassing an array of interests and activities.

Admission. The minimum eligibility requirement for admission into UBC’s undergraduate study program-mes is first class Plus Two certification. Moreover students need to demons-trate proof of proficiency in the English language (TOEFL and/or IELTS). For admission into postgraduate  programmes, a first class bachelor’s degree is mandatory. In addition to general admission requirements, each UBC faculty has a set of specific require-ments students must meet. These admission criteria are listed on www.ubc.ca. The winter session runs from early September to April, and the summer session from May to mid-August. The deadline for applications (for either session) is February 28.

For further information contact University of British Columbia, Enrol-ment Services, 2016 1874 East Mall Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z1. Tel: + 604 822 3014; Fax: + 604-822-6943; e-mail: www.askme.ubc.ca; website: www.ubc.ca.

Accommodation. UBC houses more than 8,000 students, faculty, and staff in eight residential complexes surrounding the Vancouver campus. Most first-year students reside in Totem Park or Place Vanier, which offer shared and single rooms, accessible rooms for students with disabilities, and co-ed or single-sex buildings. Rooms come with basic furnishings and high-speed internet connection. After the first year, many students continue to live in residence, and there are a variety of living options available, including Walter Gage Towers (offering high rise quads with kitchen facilities) and Fairview Crescent (a townhouse style community to share with suitemates year-round). Meal plans are compulsory for Totem Park and Place Vanier residents.

Degree programmes. UBC’s 18 faculties, 14 schools, and three colleges offer 187 undergraduate, 154 Masters, and 95 Ph D study programmes (see box).

Summiya Yasmeen