Meeting the academic requirement

MEETING THE ACADEMIC REQUIREMENTS

If you’re thinking about applying to the MEL or MHLP, you might be wondering if you meet the academic requirements to pursue a graduate degree at UBC. In this article, Clement Yim, the MEL MHLP Program Manager, shares key information about the academic requirement.

WHAT’S THE MINIMUM ACADEMIC AVERAGE I NEED TO APPLY?

Anyone applying to a master’s degree program at UBC must meet the university’s minimum academic requirements.

If you completed your undergraduate degree at a Canadian or US post-secondary institution, you need a 76% average overall in your 300- and 400-level classes.

You can also meet UBC’s academic requirement if you attained an “A” grade in at least 12 credits of 300- and 400-level classes.

WHAT IF I STUDIED OUTSIDE CANADA OR THE US?

If you completed your undergraduate degree outside of Canada or the US, your academic average is calculated over the full length of your undergraduate degree.

Find UBC’s minimum academic requirement for your country of study to see if you meet the eligibility requirements. For example, if you completed your undergraduate degree in India, you must have attained a First Class, Division 1, 65% average, Very Good or 8 on a 10-point scale.

WHAT IF MY TRANSCRIPTS DON’T CALCULATE MY AVERAGE FOR MY UPPER-YEAR CLASSES ONLY?

We go through each application manually and review your transcripts line by line to calculate a percentage equivalent grade in each course. If you completed your degree in Canada or the US, we will use this data to calculate your average over your 300- and 400-level classes. And as I mentioned earlier, if you don’t meet the required average, we’ll look for 12 university credits with an “A” grade at the 300- or 400-level if you studied in the US or Canada. If your degree was completed outside of Canada or the US, we will calculate your average based on courses from your entire degree.

WHAT IF MY ACADEMIC AVERAGE IS A LITTLE BELOW THE REQUIREMENT?

Before you apply, be sure to fill out the am I eligible to apply form. A member of our Student Recruitment Team will review your submission and will email you personalised advice to let you know if you are eligible.

We evaluate each application holistically. So if you don’t quite meet the minimum academic criteria, but you do have significant professional experience in a field related to the program you want to study, we may encourage you to apply.

That being said, these are competitive programs so there is no guarantee that you will be accepted even if you meet the minimum academic average requirement!

ARE THERE ANY OTHER ACADEMIC REQUIREMENTS I NEED TO KNOW ABOUT?

Be sure to check out the program-specific requirements for the program you want to study.

Clean Energy Engineering requires students to have completed a second- or third-year thermodynamics course. If you’re applying to this program and you don’t meet this requirement, you can still apply and be accepted, but one of the conditions of your admission will be that you complete this course before your program starts.

If you need to take a thermodynamics course, or would like to freshen up your skills, you might want to check out the free, self-paced Coursera course which we accept for the Clean Energy Engineering requirement,.

Looking for more information? Check out the other articles on admissions questions, including eligibility requirements, reference requirements, why you should apply early and how to create a strong application. You’ll also want to take a look at the minimum score requirements on our website.