UBC Engineering adding 338 new domestic student spaces starting in 2024

UBC Engineering students

UBC Engineering is adding 338 new domestic seats across the Vancouver and Okanagan campuses. This will increase opportunities for Canadian students, and increase the number of engineers available to work on the grand, twin challenges of climate change and human inequity.

Starting in fall 2024, the Faculty will gradually add 180 spaces in undergraduate chemical, computer, and integrated engineering, and 58 spaces in biomedical engineering — all at UBC Vancouver. One hundred undergraduate engineering spaces will be added at UBC Okanagan.

“UBC Engineering graduates the world over are helping solve the twin, grand challenges of climate change and human inequity,” said James Olson, Dean, UBC Faculty of Applied Science. “Thanks to the BC Government’s investment into engineering education, there’ll soon be even more engineers trained to create a cleaner, more equitable economy where everyone can thrive.”

Image
Woman student speaker speaks at a podium, flanked by BC flags and in front of a UBC banner
Coralie Tcheune, a fifth-year engineering undergraduate student, speaks in response to the BC Government funding 338 new domestic seats for engineering students. (Credit: Paul Joseph)

The expansion opens up more impactful, high-paying engineering careers for students like Coralie Tcheune, a fifth-year engineering undergraduate student. "My experience in Applied Science has been instrumental in shaping my career trajectory. The BC Government’s recent investment in STEM education not only opens doors for more students but also demonstrates a commitment to fostering innovation and opportunity in British Columbia.”

At the announcement event, Tcheune spoke about how the education, professional development opportunities offered at UBC have helped build her technical skills and given her workplace experience, all before even graduating.

The announcement was made at UBC by BC’s Minister of Jobs, Economic Development and Innovation, the Honourable Brenda Bailey.

“The students who will be filling these hundreds of seats at UBC will help increase the supply of talent into the province’s rapidly expanding tech sector,” said Bailey. “These graduates will be rewarded with well-paying careers while helping to advance health care and research to improve life for British Columbians, and build our clean, innovative economy of the future.”

Image
The Honourable Brenda Bailey speaks at a podium, in front of two BC flags and in front of a UBC banner
The Honourable Brenda Bailey, BC’s Minister of Jobs, Economic Development and Innovation, announced 338 new domestic student spaces within UBC Engineering. (Credit: Paul Joseph)

The announcement also added new student seats within the faculties of medicine, pharmaceutical sciences and science. UBC’s total of 778 new spaces will be added over six years, including an investment of $5.4 million in capital funding to equip and renovate labs and classrooms, and a total of $17.7 million in start-up and on-going operating funding over the first three years of the planned expansion.

UBC Crest The official logo of the University of British Columbia. Arrow An arrow indicating direction. Arrow in Circle An arrow indicating direction. Caret An arrowhead indicating direction. E-commerce Cart A shopping cart. Time A clock. Chats Two speech clouds. Facebook The logo for the Facebook social media service. Social Media The globe is the default icon for a social media platform. TikTok The logo for the TikTok social media platform. Calendar Location Home A house in silhouette. Information The letter 'i' in a circle. Instagram The logo for the Instagram social media service. Linkedin The logo for the LinkedIn social media service. Location Pin A map location pin. Mail An envelope. Telephone An antique telephone. Play A media play button. Search A magnifying glass. Arrow indicating share action A directional arrow. Speech Bubble A speech bubble. Star An outline of a star. Twitter The logo for the Twitter social media service. Urgent Message An exclamation mark in a speech bubble. User A silhouette of a person. Vimeo The logo for the Vimeo video sharing service. Youtube The logo for the YouTube video sharing service. Future of work A logo for the Future of Work category. Inclusive leadership A logo for the Inclusive leadership category. Planetary health A logo for the Planetary health category. Solutions for people A logo for the Solutions for people category. Thriving cities A logo for the Thriving cities category. University for future A logo for the University for future category.