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Ministry of Advanced Education

Education Costs | Post-Secondary Data

Affordable higher education for both students and taxpayers.

Tuition fees at B.C. public post-secondary institutions became similar to other provinces in 2004/05. Since September 1, 2005, Government policy has limited tuition fee increases to 2% annually.

  • Tuition is limited to a 2% increase for 2011/12 and 2012/13
  • Tuition is free for Adult basic education (ABE) in B.C. (announced September 7, 2007).

B.C. Public Post-Secondary Institutions1 Academic Arts
Annual Tuition Fees2 for Full-Time Students by Sector3

Download detailed Tuition Fees spreadsheets.

  2010/11 2011/12 Increase
Colleges
Camosun College $2,915 $2,973 2.0%
College of New Caledonia $2,376 $2,376 0.0%
College of the Rockies $2,348 $2,394 2.0%
Douglas College $2,658 $2,712 2.0%
Langara College $2,498 $2,547 2.0%
North Island College $2,531 $2,581 2.0%
Northern Lights College $2,777 $2,831 1.9%
Northwest Community College $2,385 $2,432 2.0%
Okanagan College 4 $3,078 $3,078 0.0%
Selkirk College 5 $2,317 $2,363 2.0%
Vancouver Community College $2,288 $2,333 2.0%
Simple Average $2,561 $2,602 1.6%
Weighted Average 6, 7 $2,605 $2,647 1.7%
 
Institutes
British Columbia Institute of Technology $4,848 $4,945 2.0%
Nicola Valley Institute of Technology8 $2,195 $2,239 2.0%
Simple Average $3,522 $3,592 2.0%
College and Institute Simple Average $2,709 $2,754 1.7%
College and Institute Weighted Average6, 7 $3,048 $3,104 1.7%
 
Universities
Capilano University 9 $3,335 $3,402 2.0%
Emily Carr University of Art + Design9 $3,503 $3,572 2.0%
Kwantlen Polytechnic University 9 $3,635 $3,707 2.0%
Royal Roads University 10 $6,160 $6,280 1.9%
Thompson Rivers University 11 $3,610 $3,682 2.0%
University of the Fraser Valley 9 $3,713 $3,788 2.0%
Vancouver Island University 9 $3,784 $3,859 2.0%
Simple Average $3,963 $4,041 2.0%
Weighted Average 6, 7 $3,749 $3,824 2.0%
 
Research Universities
Simon Fraser University 12 $4,815 $4,914 2.1%
University of British Columbia $4,518 $4,608 2.0%
University of Northern British Columbia $4,538 $4,629 2.0%
University of Victoria $4,766 $4,862 2.0%
Simple Average $4,659 $4,753 2.0%
Weighted Average 6, 7 $4,642 $4,735 2.0%
Universities & Research Universities Simple Average $4,216 $4,300 2.0%
Universities & Research Universities Weighted Average 6, 7 $4,353 $4,440 2.0%
 
System Simple Average $3,400 $3,463 1.8%
System Weighted Average 6, 7 $3,927 $4,004 1.9%

Notes:

  1. The Justice Institute of B.C. is not included because students at this institution are almost exclusively part-time or short-term.
  2. Tuition fees do not include books or other student fees.
  3. "Sector" refers to groupings by type of institution.
  4. Effective July 1, 2005, Okanagan University College became Okanagan College and UBC Okanagan.
  5. Beginning in 2005/06, Selkirk streamed the students into associate degrees and changed reporting to reflect the fees advertised on its website for an associate of arts (English) degree. Fees are averaged over the two years of the program.
  6. Weighted averages for tuition fee ($) amounts are derived by using institution size (number of full-time equivalent students) to create an average that more accurately reflects average amounts paid.
  7. Simple and weighted averages for percent increases in tuition year-over-year have been revised to be more reflective of average year-over-year increases. Previous calculations derived these averages from the difference, or change, in an average tuition $ amount computed for an entire sector or system. Revised calculations report the average percentage increase in tuition year-over-year for those institutions within the applicable sector or system. For direct comparison purposes, the above averages have been restated to reflect this change.
  8. The Institute of Indigenous Government transferred its operations to Nicola Valley Institute of Technology in June 2007.
  9. Effective September 1, 2008, Capilano College became Capilano University, Emily Carr Institute of Art + Design became Emily Carr University of Art + Design, Kwantlen University College became Kwantlen Polytechnic University, University College of the Fraser Valley became University of the Fraser Valley, and Malaspina University-College became Vancouver Island University.
  10. Royal Roads University has no arts program; its B.Sc. in environmental science was used for tuition comparison purposes.
  11. Effective April 1, 2005, BC Open University and Open College joined University College of the Cariboo to become Thompson Rivers University.
  12. SFU's 2.1% increase for 2011/12 over 2010/11 is due to rounding. 

Government has taken action to limit tuition and mandatory fee increases to the rate of inflation.

Limit

For 2011/12 and 2012/13, the limit for tuition and mandatory fees is 2%.

Timing

The tuition limit policy took effect September 2005.

Scope

The tuition limit applies to:

  • Professional programs.
  • Cost recovery/continuing education credentialed programs.
  • All other credentialed and open enrolment programs.
  • Mandatory fees, including capital construction support (e.g., building fees), consumable fees (e.g., fees charged for field trips and consumable supplies) and other mandatory fees (e.g., application fees and technology fees).

The tuition limit does not apply to:

  • International student tuition and mandatory fees.
  • Third-party contracts.
  • New programming (first year). Institutions may set the initial tuition and mandatory fee rate for new instructional programs (not amendments to existing programs). After the first year, tuition and mandatory fees will be subject to the tuition limit policy.
  • Community/continuing education non-credentialed courses. Most of these are short-term courses offered in the evening or on the weekend (e.g., first aid, photography).
  • Mandatory fees for student association or society fees (collected on behalf of student associations).

These data come from the Student Outcomes Surveys which try to reach every degree graduate approximately two years after leaving their studies.

These surveys attain a high response rate (56% for the most recent survey), and are considered valid and reliable. The amount reported by the Ministry is a median (50% of the students report indebtedness below that level, and 50% report indebtedness above that level).

  2008 2009 2010
Overall
Incurred Gov't Student Loan Debt 41.9% 39.0% 36.4%
Median Gov't Student Loan Debt Incurred $20,000 $20,000 $20,000
Arts and Science
Incurred Gov't Student Loan Debt 40.3% 37.0% 33.4%
Median Gov't Student Loan Debt Incurred $20,000 $20,000 $20,000
Business and Management
Incurred Gov't Student Loan Debt 36.7% 32.4% 29.9%
Median Gov't Student Loan Debt Incurred $18,000 $18,000 $15,175
Education
Incurred Gov't Student Loan Debt 49.5% 49.8% 46.3%
Median Gov't Student Loan Debt Incurred $15,000 $15,000 $15,000
Engineering and Applied Sciences
Incurred Gov't Student Loan Debt 42.3% 40.1% 36.9%
Median Gov't Student Loan Debt Incurred $18,000 $20,000 $20,000
Health
Incurred Gov't Student Loan Debt 41.8% 41.0% 43.4%
Median Gov't Student Loan Debt Incurred $30,000 $28,000 $25,000
Human and Social Services
Incurred Gov't Student Loan Debt 48.3% 44.9% 42.9%
Median Gov't Student Loan Debt Incurred $23,000 $25,000 $24,000
Visual and Performing Arts
Incurred Gov't Student Loan Debt 41.5% 38.4% 36.2%
Median Gov't Student Loan Debt Incurred $20,000 $20,000 $20,000
  • Incurred Gov't Student Loan Debt shows the percentage of valid responses that were greater than $0.
  • Median Gov't Student Loan Debt Incurred is based on responses where amount of debt incurred was greater than $0.

Source: BC Student Outcomes Surveys, BGS Database, BC Stats
All surveys were conducted approximately two years after graduation; e.g. Survey Year 2010 indicated graduates from 2008.