Ministry Objectives

1.1   Align post-secondary education training and programs with labour market demand to achieve a highly skilled workforce

1.2   Respond and adapt to the diverse and changing needs of students

1.3 Increase participation and successful completion of all students

UBC Select Strategies

• Faculties continuously monitor student demand, labor market and sector needs to add new programs and to close or reduce programs
• To ensure program relevance and adaptability to changing industry and labor needs, faculties and departments have advisory councils or committees with representatives from professional associations and related sectors
• UBC continues to expand its university-wide Flexible Learning Initiative. In 2014, 109 courses were transformed on the Vancouver campus, reaching 14,155 students. This initiative focuses on developing, delivering and evaluating learning experience resulting in dramatic improvements in student achievement.
• Programs are in place to assist students adjust to university life and provide support, including orientation, peer programs, Jumpstart and Jumpback programs
• Early Alert, a program for triage and early identification of students at risk of not completing, is in its second year. Since its launch in 2012, more than 1,700 faculty, staff and Teaching Assistants have been trained to use Early Alert.
• Broad-based admissions are in place in all of UBC’s undergraduate programs to better align student aspirations with academic goals
• Each entering student is assigned an Enrolment Services Specialist who will stay with them throughout their time at UBC
• 71% of graduating students participate in experiential learning opportunities (international learning opportunities, internships, co-ops, service learning, research based experiences, leadership and professional skills development)

Ministry Objectives

2.1 Develop a highly internationalized educational system

2.2 Build on current strengths to enhance the quality of our post-secondary education

UBC Select Strategies

• UBC collaborates across the system through leadership in the Research Universities Council of BC, the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada and  the U15 group of research universities
• University level international partnerships include APRU, U21, Max Planck Society, Fraunhofer Institute and Science Po
• Collaborations are also built through research partnerships with other universities, government and the private sector. Examples include:

o    Extractive industries (UBC/SFU)
o    Composite Research Network (University of Victoria, University of the Fraser Valley and the Composites Innovation Centre in Winnipeg)
o    IC-IMPACTS (UBC, University of Toronto, University of Alberta)
o    Industrial Biocatalysis Network (UBC, Concordia University and the University of Toronto)
o    Survive and Thrive Applied Research (UBC’s Okanagan Campus, Helios Global Technologies, and Imperial College London)

• Examples of teaching program collaboration include UBC, SFU, BCIT and Emily Carr awarding joint degrees in the Masters of Digital Media Program at Great Northern Way; and the UBC Langara Aboriginal Transfer Program to provide Aboriginal learners a pathway from college to university
• Vantage College, an international college to increase access to higher education for international students, accepted its first cohort in September 2014 with 188 students.
• UBC’s China Council was established and is actively fostering research collaboration.
• The Indian government committed nearly $2 million to support new science and engineering scholarships at UBC
• International students at UBC come from 139 countries. There are 11,965 international students on the Vancouver and international and Okanagan campuses, a 17% increase over 2013/14
• 22% of graduating undergraduates in Vancouver and 20% at UBC Okanagan participated in an international university experience

Ministry Objectives

3.1 Lead a post-secondary education system that is strong, accountable, transparent, flexible and delivers value

3.2 Foster knowledge development to support the creation of new ideas and solutions to a range of economic, social, scientific and environmental issues

3.3 Use and provide quality information for decision making and better societal outcomes

UBC Select Strategies

• The University attracted over $564M in research funds to develop new ideas and solutions
• In addition to faculty research, UBC partners with government and non-profit agencies (1,052 projects valued at $ 108.6M) and industry (1,301 projects valued at $48.4m)
• There were 8,442 research projects, 28 licenses issued, 128 invention disclosures and 8 new spin offs (cumulative 161)
• Knowledge was shared through scholarly outputs. UBC researchers collaborate with over 3,300 institutions around the globe, producing over 25,000 co-authored publications.
• UBC has recruited the Canada Excellence Research Chair (CERC) in Quantum Materials and Devices, and is in the planning and development stages of the CERC in Economics.
• UBC successfully submitted its initial application to the Canada First Research Excellence Fund Stage 1 competition in March 2015
• Discoveries are moved into communities to improve societal outcomes, e.g. HIV/AIDS research being put into practice has resulted in a 90% reduction in mortality rates; personalized cancer genomic medical approaches improve cancer outcomes
• UBC launched a 5-Point Innovation Strategy to boost BC’s knowledge-intensive economy
• Community Service learning,  which provides hands on experience for students to contribute to solutions on societal issues, has tripled over the past three years
• Align UBC’s budget to focus on core academic priorities and ensure spending is efficient and transparent