Students registered in the B.Sc. program may not at the same time be registered in courses at another secondary or post-secondary institution without prior approval. See Concurrent Studies at UBC and Another Post-secondary Institution.
A student who has passed a course will not be permitted to repeat that course for higher standing. Courses in the Science Credit Exclusion Lists are considered to be the same course for the purposes of this rule. A student who, because of a change of specialization, is required to attempt a course that shares credit exclusion with a course already passed should consult academic advisors in the appropriate department and also in Science Advising.
A student may repeat a failed course only once without special permission. A student can take a course a third time, but will need permission from the Assistant Dean Students in Science Advising to do so. Courses required to satisfy the Faculty of Science Communication requirement or MATH_V 100 (or equivalent) may be repeated twice without special permission. A student can take these courses a fourth time, but will need permission from the Assistant Dean Students in Science Advising. to do so. Courses in the Science Credit Exclusion Lists are considered to be the same course for the purposes of this rule. Appeals for further attempts must be directed to the Assistant Dean Students in Science Advising. A student repeating a course more than once will be required to limit the credits attempted in that term.
First-Year Students
First-year students normally enter with 1st year class standing, do not choose a specialization, and are not required to obtain Faculty approval before registering. The Science One Program and the First-Year Focus (FYF) Program described in First-Year Options are first-year course packages, not specializations.
Students entering first year and wishing to enrol in Science One must submit a formal application for admission to this course of study by April 30. Admitted first-year students wishing to enrol in the First-Year Focus Program register directly through Workday. See First-year Options.
Students should plan their first year knowing both the general Lower-level Requirements (must be completed before 108 attempted credits or be required to withdraw) and the specific courses required for their specialization(s) of interest. Guidance is provided through New Students. Students should consult the information on Credit as well as with New Students if their first-year program is non-standard because of advanced placement or transfer credit.
Students who are considering applying to transfer out of the Faculty of Science after first year should contact the other faculty directly and consult with a program advisor to plan elective choices that will facilitate this transition.
Advanced credit from enriched high school programs (see First-year credit) does not count as part of the credit load in the first year at UBC but may count toward degree requirements as long as equivalent UBC courses are not attempted.
Admission to a Specialization
Students who attain 2nd year class standing or higher by way of promotion or transfer must be admitted to a major, combined major, honours, combined honours, or General Science specialization before being able to register in courses. For such students, admission to all specializations is coordinated through a central online application process (Specialization Application) as some specializations have limited enrolment. Students will receive an email regarding this process in May or early June, but are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the application process and specialization prerequisites well in advance during first year (see Specialization Application).
Most honours and combined honours specializations are not part of the coordinated specialization application. Interested students should apply for the corresponding major and follow the department's instructions for how to apply to honours. Honours and combined honours options require students to complete a Winter Session load of at least 27 credits. Students who complete slightly fewer credits in first year may be considered for admission upon completion of second year if they have made up the credit deficit during their second Winter Session and have met other requirements. An appeal can be directed to the Assistant Dean Students in Science Advising with support from the honours advisor in the area of specialization.
Changing Specialization
Normally students continuing in second year are not permitted to change their specialization until the end of the Winter Session after which they were admitted.
Students are not permitted to change their specialization directly in the student system.
Students who wish to change their specialization must seek approval from a specialization advisor for the new specialization they wish to declare and may have to apply for admission through specialization-specific admission processes. Consult specialization web pages for more information and application deadlines (see Degree Planning). See also the information on honours and combined honours above. Changing specializations may result in lengthening of the time to complete the B.Sc. Students transferring into third year from another faculty or institution must seek admission to a specialization through the same processes prior to registering for courses.
Students who fail to meet the requirements for sufficient progress in a given specialization (see Promotion Requirements and Degree Progression), will be required to withdraw from the Faculty. Students approaching the credit limits and not making sufficient progress toward their current specialization should proactively take steps to gain admission to another.
Students intending to do a double major in Science or in Science and Arts, or a Dual Degree in Science and Arts must gain admission to a science major upon attaining 2nd year class standing and then obtain approval for the other major before attaining 3rd year class standing. A form is available from Majors, Honours, and Minors. The form requires approval of advisors in both major areas and of the Assistant Dean Students in Science Advising. Interested students are encouraged to plan first- and second-year courses so as to meet the prerequisite requirements for the desired major areas concurrently (see program listings in Bachelor of Arts and the Bachelor of Science).
Additional requirements apply to the Dual Degree in Science and Music and the Dual Degree in Science and Education (see Degree Requirements in this chapter).
Students who are pursuing a single major, a combined major, an honours, or a combined honours option may be approved to also pursue a Minor in Science, Arts, Kinesiology or Land and Food Systems; they must obtain approval before attaining 4th year class standing. A form is available from Majors, Honours, and Minors. Students intending to do a minor in Commerce must apply before attaining 3rd year class standing (see Minor in Commerce).
Students may pursue at most two specializations, e.g., two majors, a major and one minor, or a dual degree, in order to ensure that course space can be available to more students and to ensure that each admitted student has the possibility of completing degree requirements in a reasonable time.
Unless students are registered in a specific specialization their academic records cannot be adjudicated for graduation.