Tuition and Fees for New Programs
For a new program, the Provost’s Office1, assists the Faculty or School in determining the appropriate tuition, to be recommended by the President to the Board of Governors, including an assessment of whether the proposed tuition is feasible and sustainable, in the long run. Typically, costs to deliver a new program, tuition fees of similar programs at UBC and at peer institutions, the anticipated demand for the program, anticipated labour market outcomes, currency exchange rates, and other relevant factors are evaluated in determining a recommended tuition for domestic and international students. Once the Faculty or School has determined the amount of tuition believed to be appropriate for the new program, and has completed a recommended tuition fee template and a draft Board of Governors’ docket, the Provost’s Office1 will consult with Enrolment Services - Student Financial Management to ensure the Faculty or School did not omit any relevant fees and that the fee structure can be implemented in the student information system (Workday), before the Faculty or School conducts a student consultation, with the support of the Office of the Vice-President, Students, and prepares a final Board docket. The Provost’s Office1 assists the Faculty or School in completing and submitting the Board docket to meet the Board submission timeline and obtaining the approval of the Provost and the President.
Attachment: 2024/25 Appendix 1 - Tuition Fees Template
Tuition for Existing Programs
For an existing program, the Provost’s Office2 assists the Faculty or School in the determination of an appropriate change to the current tuition fee, subject to government policies. The rationale for the change must be presented by the Faculty or School, in their draft Board submissions. Similar to the process for new programs, Enrolment Services3 assists and determines whether the revised structure is implementable in the student information system (Workday).
For a change in the fee structure (e.g., instalment-based to credit-based or instalment-based to course-based), it is best if the proponent first discusses the proposed change with the Vice-Provost & Associate Vice-President, Faculty Planning (in Vancouver) or the Associate Provost, Academic Programs, Teaching and Learning (in Okanagan), and provides the rationale for the change. Once the Provost’s Office has agreed, in principle, that the recommended change can proceed, the program should then discuss the proposal with Enrolment Services3 to ensure the change can be implemented correctly in the student information system (Workday). The conventional fee change requirements apply in this case, including a student consultation, with the support of the Office of the Vice-President, Students, the Provost’s and President’s approval and the Board of Governors’ approval.
If the recommended change is to be included as part of the annual recommended increases/changes of tuition fees and program fees, Enrolment Services3 will prepare a board docket and submit the recommended change along with other proposed increases to the Board by November of each year. Otherwise, the Provost’s Office1 will assist the program in completing the materials needed for the Provost’s, President’s and Board’s approval.
Non-Refundable Acceptance Deposits
New Non-Refundable Acceptance Deposits
A program typically needs to provide a rationale for charging a non-refundable acceptance deposit. For a new program, if a deposit is required, the recommendation is normally included as part of the Board docket provided for the approval of the new tuition. For an existing program, if a non-refundable acceptance deposit is to be introduced, the Faculty or School must conduct a student consultation with the support of the Office of the Vice-President, Students. The Faculty or School must prepare the student consultation materials, and Enrolment Services3 will assist in finalizing the fees section and coordinate the submission of the Board docket as a request for approval by the Board of Governors Finance Committee, in accordance with authority delegated by the Board of Governors.
The tuition deposit is generally non-refundable if the student decides to not attend UBC. If the student accepts a program’s offer and then subsequently accepts another UBC program’s offer of admission, then the non-refundable tuition deposit will be applied against the tuition for the program in which the student registers, unless the initial program is a professional or post-baccalaureate program. In the latter case, the deposit will be forfeited. Senior citizens (BC residents who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents aged 65 years or over during the session in which they are registered) are not asked to pay a deposit in some graduate programs. Undergraduate students who have no registration activity may have their deposit refunded for exceptional circumstances if they contact Enrolment Services. Graduate students may have their deposits refunded or deferred for exceptional circumstances at the discretion of the program director. The deposit becomes non-refundable immediately upon registration in any course, and cannot be transferred to another session, nor can it be applied to non-refundable student fees (i.e., U-Pass, Medical Insurance). Exceptions may be made if an international student is refused a study permit by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).
Once a new non-refundable acceptance deposit has been approved, Enrolment Services will set up the deposit on the Applicant Services Centre (ASC). Applicants will be prompted to pay the acceptance deposit to accept their admissions offer. The deposit will be automatically credited on the student account, to be applied toward future tuition and fee charges.
There are no specified maximum or minimum deposit amounts. The amount of the deposit depends on the rationale for charging a deposit and should be similar to the deposits established for similar UBC programs or of peer institutions. The proponent should remember that while payment of a deposit indicates a student’s commitment, large deposits may deter some qualified students from accepting an admission offer. The timing and amount of a deposit can create some issues. For example, if a student applies to several institutions, it is in the student’s interest to have all offers before being required to make a financial commitment. Small deposits may have little effect on a student’s “hedging” behaviour; multiple offers may be held or the student may not make the final decision to attend until a very late date4.
The deposit amount can be adjusted, upon request. The request for change should follow the process for establishing a deposit for a first time.
Eliminating Non-Refundable Acceptance Deposits
A Faculty or School can simply stop collecting a deposit. A memo to Enrolment Services3 indicating that the deposit is no longer being collected would allow Enrolment Services3 to remove the deposit from the ASC and update its documentation. The Faculty or School is required to update the information on their website and remove the information related to the deposit. For graduate programs on the Vancouver campus, please also inform the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies.
1 On the Vancouver campus, through the New Programs Hub (NPH). On the Okanagan campus, through the Associate Provost, Academic Programs, Teaching and Learning.
2 On the Vancouver campus, through the Vice-Provost & Associate Vice-President, Faculty Planning, and the NPH. On the Okanagan campus, through the Associate Provost, Academic Programs, Teaching and Learning.
3 For both campuses, through the Associate Director, Student Financial Management.
4 Nick Heath, Nicholas Heath Consulting Services Inc. (2011, March). An overview of admissions practices at BC post-secondary institutions. Vancouver, BC: BC Council on Admissions and Transfer.