English language competency requirements

1. Complete four or more consecutive years of recognized, full-time education in English within Canada immediately prior to attending UBC.
2. Complete four or more consecutive years of full-time education in English in a country other than Canada where English is the principal language. These four years must be immediately prior to attending UBC.
3. Achieve a final exam grade of 70% or better on the provincial examination portion of Alberta English Language Arts 30-1, BC English 12 (achieved August 2019 or earlier), or equivalents.
4. Achieve a final grade of 4 or better on Advanced Placement (AP) English Language & Composition or AP Literature & Composition; or achieve a final grade of 5 or better on International Baccalaureate English A: Language and Literature or English A: Literature (higher-level or standard-level).
5. Achieve the competence standard indicated by one of the tests of English language proficiency that evaluates skills in listening, reading, speaking, and writing.
6. Successfully complete the equivalent of six credits of transferrable post-secondary first-year English studies at a recognized university in an English-speaking country. You must submit a transcript showing completion of these courses by February 15. For students at North American post-secondary institutions registered in English courses in the January to April term, we will accept a final transcript showing completion of these courses until May 15, if there are spaces left in your degree.
7. Graduate from a recognized degree program at an accredited university at which English is the primary language of instruction in a country where English is the principal language.
8. Attend four or more years at an eligible international secondary school that uses English as the language of instruction but operates in a country where the primary language is not English. These four years must be immediately prior to attending UBC. You will need to submit a transcript as soon as possible to UBC’s Undergraduate Admissions Office.
9. Achieve a UBC Certificate in English Language or CEL by completing Level 600 of the UBC English Language Institute’s English for Academic Purposes program on UBC’s Vancouver campus.
10. Complete UBC Okanagan’s English Foundation Program.
11. Achieve at least 70% in EAPD 030 and EAPS 030 (or EAPW 030 and EAPR 030) in Okanagan College’s English for Academic Purposes program.

If you are fully proficient in English but do not meet any of the eleven options listed above, you may request a waiver for the English Language Admission Standard.

If you need to submit evidence of English language proficiency, you will receive an email from UBC. If you submit an application that does not have proof of English language proficiency, you will not be evaluated until we receive proof or until a waiver is granted.

One of the ways you can do this is to achieve the minimum score on one of the tests listed below. Applicants for the 2025/2026 Winter Session must submit test scores from January 1, 2023 onwards.

To submit your evidence of English language proficiency, log in to the Applicant Service Centre to see if your documents are eligible to be uploaded. If that option is not available to you, then please make arrangements for your transcripts to be sent from your school directly to UBC. Visit our Submit your documents page for instructions.

Some testing agencies are able to send your results to UBC electronically. Please contact the test centre and select this option if it’s available.

Unless otherwise stated, the score is the minimum on each part of the examination. You must achieve these minimum scores in a single sitting of the test (scores across multiple instances of a test cannot be used to satisfy minimum component requirements). Applicants for the 2025/2026 Winter Session must submit test scores from January 1, 2023 onwards.

If you have completed an online English language proficiency test that is not listed in the table above (e.g. IELTS Indicator or other) and you would like us to consider it to satisfy our English Language Admission Standard, please email the test result along with a waiver request by February 15.

You may meet the English Language Admission Standard if you attended a school outside Canada that uses English as the language of instruction and falls into one of the following categories. If you attend a bilingual school, you will need to complete an English waiver request.

1. International Baccalaureate Diploma Program

   • You are currently completing the IB diploma program.
   • You have studied at a school that meets the above criteria for four years and are completing IB higher-level or standard-level English A: Language and Literature or English A: Literature.
   • You’ve studied fewer than four years, but your final grade in IB English A: Language and Literature or English A: Literature is 5 or higher.

2. Council of international schools

   • Your school is an accredited member of the Council of International Schools.
   • You have studied at a school that meets the above criteria for four years and are completing the senior or Grade 12 level (non-ESL).

3. Schools that offer regionally accredited US curricula

   • Your school has appropriate US regional accreditation.
   • You have studied at a school that meets the above criteria for four years and are completing the senior or Grade 12 level (non-ESL).
   • You’ve studied fewer than four years, but your exam grade in Advanced Placement English Language & Composition or Literature & Composition is 4 or higher, or your final grade in IB English A: Language and Literature or English A: Literature, higher-level or standard-level, is 5 or higher.

4. Schools that offer full Canadian curricula

   • Your school is provincially authorized to offer the Canadian high school curricula.
   • You have studied at a school that meets the above criteria for four years and have completed the senior or Grade 12 level (non-ESL).
   • You’ve studied fewer than four years, but your exam grade in Advanced Placement English Language & Composition or Literature & Composition is 4 or higher, or your final grade in IB English A: Language and Literature or English A: Literature, higher-level or standard-level, is 5 or higher.

5. British curriculum (A Levels and GCSEs)

   • You achieved a final grade of A or B in A Level English Language or English Literature (non-ESL). The General Paper does not count.

6. Indian secondary school curricula

   • Your school is affiliated with the Central Board of Secondary Education or the Council for the Indian School Certificate.
   • You are pursuing or have completed the curriculum leading to either the Indian Senior School Certificate (SSC) or the Indian School Certificate (ISC).
   • You have achieved a minimum grade of 75% (Indian grading scale) on your senior English subject. UBC will use interim grades (e.g., Grade 12 Term 1 results) if you are currently attending secondary school. UBC will use final Class XII grades if you’ve graduated from secondary school.

UBC reserves the right to exclude schools from exemption. 

If you do not meet UBC’s English Language Admission Standard but believe that you have the proficiency of a native English speaker, you may request to have the requirement waived.

Your waiver request request must be submitted by February 15 and include:

1. Your student number and full name.
2. A brief letter explaining why you believe the requirement should be waived.
3. A letter of recommendation from your school’s English teacher, guidance counsellor, principal, or headmaster, which attests that your level of English proficiency is close to or equal to that of a native speaker. The recommendation should be submitted via email and include the writer’s contact information (phone number and email address preferred). It should also include the student’s UBC ID number and full name.
4. A transcript of grades, including courses in progress and anticipated grades. This transcript must be emailed by your school, together with their recommendation, to elas.waivers@ubc.ca. Please ensure that your school mentions your full name and student number in the subject of their email.

You may also include any additional evidence demonstrating your English competence, such as achievement test scores (e.g., Scholastic Aptitude Test [SAT] scores).

Please note: Completed waiver request packages must be emailed to elas.waivers@ubc.ca by February 15. We strongly suggest that you try to meet the requirement through one of the specified means, in case your waiver request cannot be granted.