New Westminster, British Columbia (BC), Canada
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Established in 1970, Douglas College is the largest degree-granting college in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The college, which educates almost 25,000 students per year, has two major campuses in Metro Vancouver – New Westminster and Coquitlam – and several smaller training centres in Surrey, Burnaby and Maple Ridge. Both main campuses are located directly on SkyTrain lines, making the university among the most accessible post-secondary institutions in Metro Vancouver.
Douglas College offers the highest number of bachelor’s degrees and post-degree programs of any college in British Columbia. The college aims to blend the academic foundations provided by a university education with the career-ready skills offered by a stint at college. Nearly 17,000 students, including over 4,000 international students from more than 92 countries, enroll in for-credit courses at the college. The majority of the for-credit courses enable students to transfer to research universities in British Columbia – such as University of British Columbia and Simon Fraser University – and across Canada, thereby providing students with flexible pathways to fulfil their academic ambitions.
In addition to degree and credit courses, Douglas also offers numerous short-term, high-quality non-credit courses and workshops to about 8,500 students through Continuing Education and The Training Group. These courses cover subject areas such as business, career development, health, industry training, music, perinatal and more. More than 960 experienced, teaching-focused faculty ensure that students are exposed to academic rigor and acquire a touch of real-world experience in the classroom.
The college experience continues outside the classroom, with students having the opportunity to be part of clubs and collectives, explore activities that build their physical and mental health, and develop leadership and teamworking skills.
Douglas College is one of the largest education providers in Metro Vancouver, and its graduates benefit from a superb range of opportunities when it comes to taking the first steps after completing their programs.
A Douglas College qualification is typically a superb return on investment, since the college has some of the lowest tuition fees in British Columbia. With new initiatives aimed at creating affordable and sometimes even free opportunities to gain a high-quality Douglas education, a qualification from the college represents excellent value and alleviates some of the financial pressure new graduates normally face.
The majority of students enrolled on for-credit courses opt for university transfer pathways after one or two years at the college. These frequently result in successful transfers to SFU and UBC, as well as a selection of other universities in Canada.
There are 10 degree programs to choose from at Douglas College, and graduates of these programs enjoy a particularly high employment rate of 94 per cent. This highlights the strength of a Douglas degree when it comes to seeking meaningful employment opportunities after graduation, and adds significant long-term value to each graduate’s career journey.
Douglas College is a forward-thinking institution, which is continually looking for new ways to provide accessible educational pathways that benefit the local and regional communities in the Vancouver area.
Child education and youth care roles are among the most in-demand professions across the province, with 12,000 future child educators projected to be required in the next decade, according to WorkBC. To address this need for skilled professionals, the Douglas College English Upgrading department has developed a new educational pathway. This pathway makes a career in Early Childhood Education and Child and Youth Care more accessible to prospective students whose English proficiency needs improvement before reaching the level required for professional work.
This new initiative is being launched in partnership with the Ministry of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills, which has awarded Douglas College a grant of over CAD 116,000 to develop and deliver the course. This grant has allowed the college to keep the new course tuition-free for domestic applicants, and has also removed the need for an admission test.
By lowering the barriers to entry, Douglas College is making its high-quality curriculum accessible to groups of people who may otherwise not have felt able to pursue higher education, while at the same time directly addressing one of the province’s most pressing employment challenges.
11,76,393 Undergraduate Fees are for indicative purposes, check with institution for details
8,76,181 Postgraduate Fees are for indicative purposes, check with institution for details
12,25,221 Vocational Fees are for indicative purposes, check with institution for details
8,18,728 Living costs
3,18,394 To live on campus
Douglas College provides its international students with a range of scholarships and financial awards which are designed to help them fund the costs of their studies. The college currently offers nearly CAD 100,000 in entry scholarships to international students.
The college’s Douglas International Education Regional Entrance Award is worth between CAD 1,000 and 2,000. The award does not require an application, and students are automatically assessed for the award upon their application to Douglas College. Successful recipients of the Douglas International Education Regional Entrance Award typically have strong English language proficiency test scores and an above average grade point average, equivalent to B or above.
The Dr. Guangwei Ouyang International Education Entrance Scholarship, meanwhile, is valued at CAD 2,500 and awarded in recognition of the academic performance, personal development, and community engagement of applicants. To be considered for The Dr. Guangwei Ouyang International Education Entrance Scholarship, students must submit an entrance scholarship form and have already applied for a place at Douglas College.
There are also a number of continuing student awards and scholarships available to international students at Douglas College, in addition to the college’s Athletic Scholarship. Full details and associated criteria for all scholarships and awards available to international students at the college can be viewed on the Douglas College scholarships and awards for international students information page.
International students must meet the following necessary admission requirements for undergraduate level study (diploma, associate degree and bachelor’s degree):
International students must also demonstrate proof of English language proficiency by completing and submitting test scores from an accepted assessment system. Applicants can consult a comprehensive list of English language proficiency tests and scores accepted by Douglas College via the college’s international students admission requirements page.
Applicants should note that official test scores and language pathway completion certificates have a two-year validity period from the date they were completed. Prospective students can contact Douglas College’s International Admissions team with any questions or queries on academic and English language requirements. The college lists the most common ways of meeting English language proficiency requirements, and the international admissions team can advise applicants on any accepted qualifications which are not included on the entry requirements page.
If applicants do not meet the English language proficiency requirements for admission to the college, they can apply to the Douglas College English Language Learning and Acquisition Program (ELLA) or through one of its ESL Pathways partnerships. For entry onto ELLA programs, international students must have graduated from high school or be 19 years of age by the end of the first month of their first semester of studies at Douglas College. There are also English language proficiency requirements for ELLA programs. These can be viewed in full on the college’s ELLA program page.
With more than fifty years of experience delivering a wide array of academic and vocational tuition, Douglas College is one of Canada’s most established education providers.
The success of its courses is largely due to the quality of the curriculum and the expert team of teaching staff who deliver it. This group of around 960 teaching faculty is a diverse community of academics, educators, practitioners, researchers, and professionals who bring both rigour and experience to their classes. They are enthusiastic about the success of their students, encouraging them to reach their academic goals while also developing themselves personally.
Many tutors have spent years working in industry, and many are involved in ongoing research projects or professional work. This enables them to give up-to-date and professionally relevant insights that can help to inform each student’s own career aspirations.
Additionally, there are around 900 other college employees who support the teaching staff with the shared goal of establishing an inspiring and supportive learning environment, where students feel respected and have the resources and guidance to study in confidence.
Douglas College offers a range of higher education programs including bachelor’s degrees, associated degrees, and various other certifications and diplomas. In fact, the college offers the largest number of bachelor’s degrees and post-degree programs of any college in B.C. spanning a wide variety of subject areas and fields of research.
Programs are delivered by the college’s six academic faculties, which include the following:
There are more than 100 different programs to choose from, including the following 10 bachelor’s degrees:
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