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The University of British Columbia (UBC) is located on Point Grey near Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Located just 20 minutes from downtown Vancouver, the university is near several beaches and has views of the local mountains. The 7.63 km² Pacific Spirit Regional Park serves as a green-belt between the campus and the city. UBC, along with Pacific Spirit Regional Park and the residential community of University Hill form the University Endowment Lands, which technically do not fall within Vancouver's city limits.
| University of British Columbia coat of arms
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UBC_Coat_of_Arms.gif
UBC Coat of Arms
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| Motto | Tuum est (Previous official translation: "It's up to you"; now: "It's yours")
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| Founded | 1908
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| School type | Public
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| Chancellor | Allan McEachern
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| President | Martha Piper
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| Location | Vancouver, British Columbia
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| Enrollment | 28,893 undergrad, 6,489 grad
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| Campus surroundings | Forest, ocean, beach
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| Campus size | 1.7 km² maintained
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| Mascot | Thunderbird
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Facts and figures
In 2003, UBC had 3,167 full-time faculty, and 4,612 non-faculty full-time employees. It boasts 33,566 undergraduate students, 7,379 graduate students, and 180,000 alumni in 120 countries. UBC had an operating income of $366 million CAD in 2001. Buildings on campus occupy 1,091,997 gross m2, located on 1.7 km² of maintained land. The current UBC president is Dr. Martha Piper and the VP Students is Brian Sullivan.
UBC is set to become a world class university. In 2000, Martha Piper proclaimed that her mission was to get UBC at par with Harvard.
In 2001/2002, UBC had one of the lowest undergraduate tuition rates in Canada, at an average of $2,181 CAD per year for a full-time program. This was due to a freezing of tuition rates by the New Democratic Party government. In 2001 the Liberal government came into power and removed government restrictions on the tuition fees the universities and colleges in BC could charge. In 2002/2003 UBC chose to increase its undergraduate and graduate tuition rates by roughly 30%; give or take 10%, depending on faculty/school. This has led to increased enrollment and better facilities, but also to student unrest and union strikes. UBC again increased tuition by 30% in the 2003-2004 season, and yet again by approximately 15% in the 2004-2005 season. At this point, it is undecided what the outcome will be for the following year, however, the current tuition rates are now at par with most Canadian universities.
 One of UBC's oldest buildings: Chemistry The university's street plan is mostly in a grid of malls (for driving and pedestrian-only). Lower Mall and West Mall are in the southwestern part of the peninsula, with Main, East, and Wesbrook Malls northeast of them.
Alumni
The most famous alumni from UBC include:
- Nobel Prize laureate in Economics, Robert Mundell
- Nobel Prize laureate in Physics, Bertram N. Brockhouse
- founder, Texas Instruments, Cecil H. Green
- CEO and Chairman of the Board, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals, Henry A. McKinnell
- CEO, Computer Associates, John Swainson
- Supreme Court of Canada Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin
- past B.C. premiers Ujjal Dosanjh and Mike Harcourt
- author and historian Pierre Berton
- opera singers Ben Heppner and Judith Forst
- composer Michael Conway Baker
- educator and Man In Motion, Rick Hansen
- writer William Gibson
- filmmaker Bruce Sweeney
- actor Nicola Cavendish
- astronaut Bjarni Tryggvason
- senator Pat Carney
- former Canadian prime ministers Kim Campbell and John Turner
- University of Victoria president Dr. David Turpin
- journalists Allan Fotheringham and Stevie Cameron
- mathematician and pi researcher Peter Borwein
- honorary degrees given to the 14th Dalai Lama, Bishop Desmond Tutu, and Shirin Ebadi on April 19, 2004
Famous instructors
List of Presidents
- Frank Wesbrook (1913-1918)
- Leonard Klinck (1919-1944)
- Norman MacKenzie (1944-1962))
- John B. Macdonald (1962-1967)
- Fredrick Kenneth Hare (1968-1969))
- Walter Harry Gage (1969-1975)
- Douglas Kenny (1975-1983)
- George Pedersen (1983-1985)
- Robert Smith (1985)
- David W. Strangway (1985-1997)
- Martha C. Piper (1997-)
Brief history
- 1877: UBC's history begins when a proposal for a provincial university is first made.
- 1899: Vancouver College is created near Vancouver General Hospital and is affiliated with Montreal's McGill University.
- 1906: Vancouver College is taken over by McGill and renamed McGill University College of British Columbia (MUCBC).
- 1908: The University of British Columbia is established with the provincial legislature's passing of the University Act.
- 1910: Point Grey is chosen as the location for the new campus.
- 1914: First year of construction at the new Point Grey location, but building is stopped by next year by the First World War.
- 1915: UBC opens at temporary facilities at the former MUCBC facilities. This is traditionally considered the official birth of UBC.
- 1922: The Great Trek: students, frustrated with over-crowded conditions, march from the present downtown campus to the Point Grey location, after collecting 56,000 signatures for a petition to complete the new campus.
- 1925: UBC officially moves to the Point Grey campus.
Current faculties and schools
- Faculty of Agricultural Sciences[1] (http://www.agsci.ubc.ca): based at the MacMillan Building
- Faculty of Applied Science[2] (http://www.apsc.ubc.ca)
- Faculty of Arts[3] (http://www.arts.ubc.ca): based in the Buchanan Complex
- School of Audiology and Speech Sciences [4] (http://www.audiospeech.ubc.ca/)
- School of Community and Regional Planning [5] (http://www.scarp.ubc.ca/)
- Continuing Studies Department[6] (http://www.cstudies.ubc.ca/)
- Faculty of Dentistry[7] (http://www.dentistry.ubc.ca/): at the Macdonald Building
- Faculty of Education[8] (http://educ.ubc.ca/): located in the Scarfe Building and the Ponderosa buildings E, F, G and H
- Faculty of Forestry[9] (http://www.forestry.ubc.ca/): based at the Forest Science Centre
- Faculty of Graduate Studies[10] (http://www.grad.ubc.ca/): based at the Thea Koerner Graduate Student Centre
- College of Health Disciplines [11] (http://www.health-disciplines.ubc.ca/)
- School of Human Kinetics[12] (http://hkin.educ.ubc.ca/): based at the War Memorial Gym
- School of Journalism[13] (http://www.journalism.ubc.ca/): located at the Sing Tao Building
- Faculty of Law [14] (http://www.law.ubc.ca/): based at the George F. Curtis Building
- School of Library, Archival and Information Studies[15] (http://www.slais.ubc.ca/)
- Faculty of Medicine[16] (http://www.med.ubc.ca/)
- School of Music[17] (http://www.music.ubc.ca/): based at the Music Building
- School of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene[18] (http://www.soeh.ubc.ca/)
- Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences: [19] (http://www.supporting.ubc.ca/faculties/pharmacy/)based at the Cunningham Building
- School of Rehabilitation Sciences[20] (http://www.rehab.ubc.ca/)
- Sauder School of Business[21] (http://www.sauder.ubc.ca): based at Angus and David Lam Management Research Centre. It was, until June 5, 2005, known as the Faculty of Commerce and Business Administration (still its formal name)
- Faculty of Science[22] (http://www.science.ubc.ca/)
- Departments of Zoology and Botany: based at the Biosciences Centre
- Department of Physics and Astronomy ("PhysAstro"):
- Physics Program: based at the Hebb Theatre and Hennings Building
- Astronomy Program: based at the Geophysics and Astonomy Observatory Building
- Engineering Physics Program: based in the Hennings Building
- Department of Chemistry: based at the Chemistry Building
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology: based at the Wesbrook Building
- Department of Computer Science: based at the CICSR building (pronounced "ceasar"), with most courses conducted at the new Hugh Dempster Pavilion.
- Department of Mathematics: based at the Mathematic Annex and Building
- Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences: based at the EOS Main Building (formerly Geological Sciences Building)
- School of Social Work and Family Studies:[23] (http://www.swfs.ubc.ca/) based at the Jack Bell Building
Sites of interest
Gardens
- UBC Botanical Garden and Centre for Plant Research [24] (http://www.ubcbotanicalgarden.org/): the first UBC department, it holds a collection of over 8000 different kinds of plants used for research, conservation and education
- Nitobe Memorial Garden [25] (http://www.nitobe.org): built to honour Japanese scholar Inazo Nitobe, the garden has been the subject of a 15+ year study by a UBC professor, who believes that its construction hides a number of impressive features, including references to Japanese philosophy and mythology, shadow bridges visible only at certain times of year, and positioning of a lanterns that is filled with light at the exact date and time of Nitobe's death each year. The garden is behind the university's Asian Center, whose roof features a glass and wood structure from Japan's exhibit at Tokyo Expo.
Museums and galleries
Libraries
- Asian Library: The Asian Library houses the largest research collection in Asian languages in Canada, its holdings in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, South Asian and Indonesian exceeding 500,000 volumes. Special materials include the valuable Puban collection (蒲坂藏書樓藏書), Swann collection, Song Xuepeng collection (宋學鵬藏書), Jing Yi Zhai (景頤齋藏書), Japanese government publications, research materials on Chinese Canadian settlement in British Columbia and Pearl Delta Area as well as Japanese Canadian studies collections. Its rare book collection, mainly from the Puban collection, ranks 5th in North America.
- Main Library: After a recent renovation of the third-floor atrium in 2001, the Chapman Reading Commons [28] (http://www.library.ubc.ca/chapmanlearningcommons/) and the Chung Collection of immigration documents [29] (http://www.library.ubc.ca/chung/) were created. In autumn of 2003, one-third of it (formerly Ridington Computing Room, Fine Arts Library, and the Design Art Gallery at the basement) was demolished in preparation for new glass-walled study areas, the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre [30] (http://www.ikebarberlearningcentre.ubc.ca/), to be completed in 2005.
- Walter Koerner Library: built in 1997, adding to the Sedgewick Library. Koerner Library is almost entirely dedicated to the humanities and is home to 800,000 volumes. Its modern design (most walls are see-through glass) contrasts that of Main Library, which locates across from it through a plaza that contains a fountain and the 33.8-metre Leon Ladner Bell Tower (ringing every half an hour, sometimes with classical music). It includes as its lower levels the former Sedgwick Library.
Performance arts theatres
- Chan Centre for the Performing Arts: classical music; many high school students graduate here.
- Frederic Wood Theatre ("Freddy Wood Theatre"): mostly performed by UBC's own BFA drama students.
Student services and residences
- Student Union Building (SUB) [31] (http://www.ams.ubc.ca): offices of many clubs, half a dozen restaurants, and the inexpensive 425-seat Norman Bouchard Memorial Theatre ("The Norm Theatre"). The SUB Gallery contains mostly students' work. Beside the SUB, there is a small mound, about 2-metre, which is the content of the open pool dug near the Aquatic Centre.
- Totem Park: A residence primarily for first and second year undergraduate students.
- Place Vanier: A residence primarily for first and second year undergraduate students.
- Gage Towers: A residence primarily for second and third year undergraduate students.
- Fairview: A residence primarily for second, and third year undergraduate students.
- Thunderbird: A residence primarily for graduate students and fourth year undergraduate students.
- Green College: A residential college for graduate students
- St. John's College [32] (http://www.stjohns.ubc.ca/): A residential graduate college with an international focus
Sports arenas and recreation
- Aquatic Centre [33] (http://www.aquatics.ubc.ca): except for designated times, there is a charge for students and non-students alike.
- Thunderbird Winter Sports Centre: when unused during final exam periods (December and May), hundreds of chairs and tables are placed inside for students to take tests.
- In between Main and Koerner Libraries is an artificial 6-metre deep valley, whose massive amount of dirt was transported to a bog in the Pacific Spirit Park decades ago, now being criticized as an anti-environmental act. The valley was intended as a student gathering place for eating lunches, meeting and relaxing. But it is mostly unused due to its lack of visibility and dangerously slippery muddy grass.
- SUB contains an arcade, where some students, mostly males, admit to be very addicted to. There is also a rock-climbing wall in SUB, hidden behind the movie theatre sceen, which is operated by the UBC Varsity Outdoor Club.[34] (http://www.ubc-voc.com)
- The UBC Debating Society is the only debating team in Canada that's a part of the university's varsity athletics program.[35] (http://www.ubcdebate.com)
Student media
- The Ubyssey [36] (http://www.ubyssey.bc.ca), a twice-weekly student newspaper. Established in 1916.
- The Graduate [37] (http://www.gss.ubc.ca/services/graduate), a monthly magazine of news, opinion, and humour, by graduate students.
- Discorder ("That magazine from CiTR") [38] (http://discorder.citr.ca), a music and entertainment magazine produced by the campus radio station.
- CITR "Thunderbird Radio" [39] (http://www.citr.ca), the campus radio station.
- The Point, a weekly student paper of athletics, clubs, and whats happening at UBC.
- The Paradigm, the official publication of the Science Undergraduate Society.
Athletics
UBC is represented in Canadian Interuniversity Sport by the UBC Thunderbirds.
See also
External links
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