Sven Clark, Senior Recruiter from University of British Columbia (UBC), pointed out that international students are eyeing Canadian universities with the same reasons as to what makes some of the Canadian universities the top universities in the world.

Let's face it. When you go looking to study abroad, students have a multitude of options available to you.

But let's say you want to get your education in a country of diversity like no other. You want to be with people of numerous cultural and racial backgrounds. You want both wilderness and skyscrapers. You want educational choices, beginning with either French or English as the language of instruction as well as going through literally hundreds of specialisations from aerospace engineering to zoology.

You want to pick from among institutions that enroll 1,000 students and 60,000 students, with every size in between. You want to live in a cosmopolitan city, but it has to be close to a large park where you can ski, swim, canoe, hike and bike; or you want to live in a small town that is only a short train ride to a big city, where you can see an award-winning stage musical or a big league hockey or baseball game.

If you want diversity in your study abroad destination, then Canada is your pick.

What makes them the top universities in the world are the unique curriculum and heavy research undertakings. In UBC for example, this is reflected by the fact that the fees for local Canadian students will be the same as international students, UBC is consistently ranked among the top 35 universities in the world and is ranked above the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Stanford in the US patents filed and start-ups formed per US$100 million of research funding.

Another amazing feature of Canadian universities is their large size and their integration with the community around them.

Peter S T Chen, a Bruneian who had studied in Canada, now a trade commissioner at the Canadian High Commission Office, said UBC Vancouver alone has around 400 buildings. UBC Vancouver, the University's principal campus, is 1,000 acres in size, and an award-winning model for environmental sustainability. Set on Canada's spectacular Pacific coast, Vancouver has been voted one of the world's most beautiful and livable cities.

Canada, he said, is an immigrant country that is reflected by the student's population such as the University of British Columbia. UBC located on two campuses - Vancouver on Canada's spectacular Pacific coast and Okanagan in the scenic interior of British Columbia - UBC has a total enrollment of over 45,000 students, with 25,000 full-time undergraduates and 8,000 postgraduates. International students make up 12 per cent of the student body.

Programmes at the undergraduate, professional, and postgraduate levels are available through 18 faculties and 14 schools, leading to globally recognised degrees and diplomas. Bachelor degree students have hundreds of options for their major, minor, or specialised degree.

"Nothing can beat experience is term of capability", Sven Clark said, saying that one of the features that the University of British Columbia is proud of is the UBC Cooperative Education.

Co-operative Education is a structured and formalised programme that integrates a student's academic studies with relevant, quality work experience. Co-op students alternate study terms and work terms in appropriate fields of business, industry, government, social services and the professions that offer suitable learning situations. The student's progress is monitored by the Co-operative Education office and their performance on the job is evaluated by the student's employer.

The UBC Co-operative Education programme has grown to be the largest programme offered at post-secondary institutions in British Columbia with over 3100 annual work terms. Co-op students are available in programmes offered in applied science, arts, commerce (Sauder School of Business), forestry, human kinetics, and science.

Another feature is the ability of students, for instance, who are studying Chinese culture, to actually go to China to study first hand. He said UBC has large mutual networks outside Canada.

Canada ranked among the most multicultural nations in the world. Regardless of ethnic origin, students feel at home in our diverse communities and campuses.

In UBC, the university has 40,000 students in total, and 6,000 of them are international students from 140 countries around the world. The general cost of living plus tuition fee in UBC is approximately between $43,000 to $51,000 per year.

Recently, Bruneian and international students are invited to submit applications for the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships (Vanier CGS) programme valued at B$65,000 per year for up to three years.

Offered by the Canadian Government, the programme is designed to attract and retain world-class doctoral students by offering a financial award to assist them during their studies at Canadian universities. To be eligible, applicants must demonstrate leadership skills and a high standard of scholarly achievement in the social sciences and humanities, natural sciences and engineering, and health-related fields. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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written by Cardinal Beaver , November 22, 2009

"UBC is consistently ranked among the top 35 universities in the world and is ranked above the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Stanford in the US."

Sorry UBC, but you lost me there. Are you quoting an academic or diversity ranking? UBC is a good university, but MIT and Stanford are far superior.

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