IMPORTANT: Update on UBC's Language Requirements

I hope most of you were in attendance this afternoon when representatives from UBC came to speak to us. In case you were not there, or in case you did not understand/missed this piece of information, I am repeating it here because changes have been made for students applying for admission in September 2010. It pertains the language requirements both for admission and to take first-year English courses.

English Language Requirement for Admission (you must meet one of the following criteria to have your application considered for admission):

• Three consecutive years of full-time education in English in Canada, including BC grade 12 English (or its equivalence), OR
• Four or more consecutive years at an eligible international secondary school that uses English as the language of instruction, OR
• A minimum 70% on the provincial exam of either English 12 or English Literature 12, OR
• Reaching the competence level in one of the UBC-recognized language admission tests (click here for more details)

Following admission, most first-year UBC students are required to take 6 credits of English courses (each course is worth 3 credits). To do so, UBC also has a language proficiency requirement, which can be waived if:

• You have a best mark of 75% or above in English 12 (formerly, the mark is 80%; this lower requirement is new for this year).
• You have achieved a level 5 on the Language Proficiency Index (LPI) exam.
  

Failure to meet the first-year English requirements does NOT affect your admission to UBC. However, you would have to take either non-credit courses to improve your English competency, or re-write the LPI until you have a level 5.

This information is new for applicants for the September 2010 term. If you are not clear on this information, please come and see me, or ask the recruitment officer at UBC (I have her contact information).