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Ministry of Advanced Education and Labour Market Development

Media Room

Nothing but the Facts: Post-secondary Education in B.C.

British Columbia's public post-secondary education system is preparing students to take their places in the province's knowledge economy. Here's a statistical* profile showcasing higher learning in B.C.:

Record investments in post-secondary education

  • $17.8 billion – amount of money invested in post-secondary education in B.C. since 2001.
  • 53 per cent – the increase in annual operating funding for post-secondary institutions since 2001.
  • $1.9 billion – the amount invested in support of post-secondary education this year.
  • $9,909 – amount per full-time student funded by the provincial government, up from $8,440 in 2001-02.

Record investments in campus facilities

  • $1.8 billion – amount of capital expansion at public post-secondary institutions since 2001 – the largest post-secondary expansion in history.
  • More than 840 – capital projects on campuses throughout B.C. since 2001.
  • Seven – number of new campuses completed.

More affordable

  • Fifth-lowest tuition in Canada – the $4,700 average tuition undergraduate students paid last year at B.C.’s public institutions.
  • Approximately one-third – the proportion of their post-secondary education costs students pay through their tuition.
  • Two per cent – the limit on tuition fee increases again this year at B.C.’s public universities, colleges and institutes.
  • $2 billion – student financial assistance provided by government since 2001.
  • Over $70 million - the amount of loan-reduction funding provided annually to students through the B.C. Loan Reduction Program.

More choices

  • Seven – the number of new university campuses since 2001: Thompson Rivers University, Capilano University, University of the Fraser Valley, Vancouver Island University, Kwantlen Polytechnic University, Emily Carr University of Art + Design and the University of British Columbia Okanagan.
  • Over 250 – the number of new degree programs approved by the Minister of Advanced Education since 2001, giving students more choices.
  • 204,457 student spaces - the total number of full-time equivalent seats being funded by the provincial government this academic year.
  • 35,500 - the number of new full-time spaces for students added to B.C.'s 11 universities, 11 community colleges, three provincial institutes and the Industry Training Authority since 2001.
  • 2,500 – the number of graduate student spaces being added to B.C.’s four research-intensive universities from 2007-08 to 2010-11.
  • Over 2,000 - the number of online courses students can enrol in through BCcampus, BC's online learning centre for B.C.'s public post-secondary system.

More doctors and nurses

  • Double - the number of doctors who will graduate in B.C., compared to 2001 - 256 per year by 2011. The University of British Columbia (UBC) now has the highest number of seats of any English-speaking medical school in Canada.
  • Double - the number of education spaces added in nursing programs - over 4,000 spaces added since 2001, producing record numbers of graduates.
  • 2,278 - nursing credentials awarded by public post-secondary institutions in B.C. in academic year 2007-08, up from 1,343 in 2000-01. More than half received their bachelor of science in nursing, most of whom will go on to become registered nurses in B.C.

More students

  • Over 430,000 - the approximate number of students enrolled in public post-secondary institutions in B.C. This is the highest number ever.
  • Over 23,000 – the number of international students in B.C. public post-secondary institutions – the highest number ever.
  • Over 18,000 – the number of public post-secondary students who identified themselves as Aboriginal – an increase of 23 per cent since 2002-03.
  • 3.6 per cent – the unemployment rate of former students with bachelor degrees, two years after graduation. The unemployment rate among high school graduates only is 7.7 per cent.
  • 83.4 – the percentage of graduates with bachelor degrees who say their education helped them develop crucial skills to a “high” or “very high” extent.

*Statistics from most recent years available.