Students must complete a number of credits to be considered for promotion to the next year level.
Students are evaluated for promotion to subsequent years based on the courses completed up to the end of each Winter Session. The evaluation includes transfer credit. Summer session courses are included in the evaluation of your academic record in May/June of the year following course completion.
Promotion to Year Two
The following promotion rules are effective starting with the 2017-18 Winter Session. For prior rules, see the Academic Calendar Archive for Winter Session 2016-2017.
- 24 or more credits in total, which must include 15 or more credits of first-year Science coursework (100-level).
- SCIE 113 and CSPW 100 do count towards the 15 credits from first-year science courses.
- These requirements must be met within 48 attempted credits after admission to first year. Only passed (including transfer credit) and failed courses count toward “attempted” credits. Students who have exceeded 48 attempted credits at the end of Winter session (April) AND cannot be promoted to Year 2 will be required to discontinue their studies in UBC Science for lack of progress. See a Science academic advisor if you think this will be the case.
- Students going into Year 2 standing must apply to a specialization. They will be notified of their specialization before registering for courses for the following Winter Session. Review full details on the specialization application process.
Promotion to Year Three
The following promotion rules are effective starting with the 2017-18 Winter Session. For prior rules, see the Academic Calendar Archive for Winter Session 2016-2017.
- 48 or more credits in total
- In some specializations, one or more second-year courses must be completed in order to be promoted to Year 3 standing (see Specialization-Specific Courses Required for Promotion).
- An average of at least 60 percent is required in three-fifths (3/5) of the credits (rounded up to the nearest whole course) for the second-year named courses in the student’s specialization (not electives).
- Students who do not meet the minimum average will normally be removed from that program and required to gain admission to another. Some programs have limited enrolment and will not be able to accept all students who meet the minimum promotion requirements.
- Students in the Combined Major in Science and Integrated Science specializations require at least 12 credits at the 200-level or above in at least two areas of Science (e.g. Life Science and Computational Science), to support upper-level studies in their specialization. Integrated Science students should submit a draft contract to their program office by the end of second year.
- These requirements must be met within 78 attempted credits. Only passed and failed courses count toward “attempted” credits. Students who have exceeded 78 attempted credits at the end of Winter session (April) AND cannot be promoted to Year 3 will be required to discontinue their studies in UBC Science for lack of progress. See a Science academic advisor if you think this will be the case.
Some specializations have limited enrolment, and not all students who meet the minimum promotion requirements will be able to continue into Year 3 standing in that specialization. Review the following information, and consult your department if you have questions about your eligibility to advance to Year 3.
Biochemistry (major and honours) students completing Year 2 should be aware that space in the required BIOC 301 is limited. Because registration time is based on sessional average, those with a lower average in Year 2 may not get a seat, which could make it difficult to continue in the specialization on schedule. Biochemistry will contact Year 2 students after term 1 about this process and if necessary, schedule a meeting to discuss how to improve grades and other options. Learn more.
Honours CAPS (Cellular, Anatomical, and Physiological Sciences) students completing Year 2 must apply to the Department for admission into Year 3. Learn more.
Microbiology and Immunology (major and honours) students completing Year 2 core courses apply online for space in the required third-year lab courses. Learn more.
Pharmacology (major and honours) students completing Year 2 must apply to the department in March of their 2nd year. Learn more.
Students from all other specializations should read the information provided above under "Promotion to Year 3" and review the official promotion requirements as listed in the UBC Academic Calendar.
Promotion to Year Four
- 72 or more credits in total which must include 50 or more Science credits
- Students must have completed all Lower Level Requirements, the Communication Requirement, all courses specified in the first and second years of the specialization (not electives), and at least all but one of the courses required to satisfy the Science Breadth Requirement.
- In addition, at least 40% of the credits specified in the upper years by the specialization must be completed in order to be promoted to Year 4. Further, specializations may specify one or more upper-level courses that must be completed (see Specialization-specific Courses Required for Promotion). A student who does not meet the above requirements may be removed from the program.
- These requirements must be met within 108 attempted credits. Only passed and failed courses count toward “attempted” credits. Students who have exceeded 108 attempted credits at the end of Winter session (April) AND cannot be promoted to Year 4 will be required to discontinue their studies in UBC Science for lack of progress. See a Science academic advisor if you think this will be the case.
Note: Students must meet all graduation requirements within 180 attempted credits. Those who do not will be required to withdraw from the Faculty.
Transfer Students New to UBC
- In addition to University admission requirements, students applying for admission to Year 2 or Year 3 in the BSc from other post-secondary institutions must meet the Faculty of Science minimum promotion requirements to be eligible for that year level.
- Once admitted to the Faculty of Science, all of the above promotion rules apply.
