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History, Affiliations and Rankings
The University of Northern British Columbia, also known as UNBC, was established in June 1990 when the members of the BC legislative assembly passed the UNBC Act. Located in the spectacular landscape of northern British Columbia, it is one of Canada’s best universities. It has a passion for teaching, discovery, people, the environment, and the North. The university is British Columbia’s research-intensive institution that is also affiliated with the University of the Arctic. The university is also ranked in the top 250 young universities worldwide, 1 out of only 3 from Canada and they are positioned in the top 1000 world universities as well by Times Higher Education. On October 7, 2021, for the third time in seven years, Maclean’s Magazine has ranked the University of Northern British Columbia as the top university in its category in Canada. It is one of the four research-concentrated universities in Canada making it big enough to offer marvellous experiences yet small enough that one won’t get lost in the crowd.
Infrastructure, Campuses and Courses
UNBC provides magnificent undergraduate and postgraduate learning opportunities that explore cultures, health, economies, sciences, and the environment. It is known to be Canada's Green University because of the rocky mountains to the coastal plains Northern BC has it all. Apart from its extremely beautiful campus at Prince George, it has campuses in Quesnel, Terrace and Fort St. John as well as enjoying a federation agreement with the Wilp Wilxo’oskwhl (House of Wisdom) Nisga’a Institute located in the Nass Valley in the village of Gitwinksihlkw. The university offers a total of 1,827 courses. 62 bachelor’s Degree, 29 Master’s and 3 PhD are extended to the students by the UNBC. The average classroom size of the first-year is 62, making it the perfect place to learn and grow.
Accomplishments and Alumni
In Canada’s Greenest Employers list by Mediacorp Canada Inc, UNBC is the only listed employer in Northern Columbia. For providing many benefits and professional development programs like tuition waivers for most employees, spouses and eligible dependents; topping up salaries for new parents taking leave, and offering discounted rates for employees at the Charles Jago Northern Sports Centre at the Prince George campus, UNBC has been recognized as one of British Columbia’s top employers. UNBC marks a tremendous surge in the Alumni Count, i.e., from 6 in 1994 to 16,000 today. To mention some stories from the UNBC’s alumni journey, Dr Kirsten Reimer recently completed her PhD at Yale University, where she studied how our cells make and edit ribonucleic acid (RNA). Sharing her experience she said, “The research opportunities I had at UNBC had a huge impact on my decision to go to graduate school”.
Student Diversity and Visiting Companies
UNBC welcomes international students from more than 50 countries. There are in total 3500+ undergraduates and 735+ graduate students at UNBC, among which 11% are international and 12% are indigenous students. There are a total of 50+ student clubs at the university. The UNBC Student Job Board available on the UNBC Student Career Centre website helps students in grabbing job opportunities. The Accounting Recruitment Event, Volunteer Fair and Career Fair are organised by the university on a regular basis to ensure opportunities flow throughout the season for the students.
