This guide brings together what international applicants need to know about the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC): the programs on offer, entry requirements for international students, tuition and living costs, and the application timeline. Every fact below was taken from UNBC’s official website (unbc.ca) as it appeared on August 6, 2026. Where the university does not publish a figure, this guide says so rather than guessing.
About the University of Northern British Columbia
The University of Northern British Columbia is a public research university in northern British Columbia, Canada. It was officially created in June 1990, when the provincial legislature passed the UNBC Act, and the university celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2015. UNBC describes itself as one of Canada’s best small universities and brands itself Canada’s Green University™ — these are the university’s own claims, not comparative rankings. According to the university’s facts page, 3,819 students were enrolled in academic programs in 2023/24, of whom 3,060 were undergraduates and 763 were graduate students; about 59% of students come from northern B.C. and international students make up about 22% of the student body. The University of Northern British Columbia’s motto, ‘En Cha Huná, is a Dakelh phrase that university materials interpret as “respecting all forms of life.”
Campuses and locations
The University of Northern British Columbia’s main campus is in Prince George, B.C., at 3333 University Way, on the unceded traditional territory of the Lheidli T’enneh. UNBC also operates three regional campuses: Peace River-Liard (Fort St. John), Northwest (Terrace and Prince Rupert) and South-Central (Quesnel), plus research stations including the John Prince Research Forest, the Quesnel River Research Centre and the Aleza Lake Research Forest. Campus facilities at Prince George include the Geoffrey R. Weller Library, the Canfor Winter Garden, the Northern University Student Centre (NUSC), the First Nations Centre and the David Douglas Botanical Gardens. The Charles Jago Northern Sport Centre — about 145,150 square feet, described by UNBC as the largest facility of its kind in British Columbia — has a 280-metre elevated track and is home to the university’s basketball teams, members of the Canada West Universities Athletic Association.
Programs and degrees
UNBC’s program search page lists nine undergraduate degree types at the University of Northern British Columbia: Bachelor of Applied Science (BASc), Bachelor of Arts (BA), Bachelor of Commerce (BComm), Bachelor of Education (BEd), Bachelor of Health Sciences (BHSc), Bachelor of Planning (BPl), Bachelor of Science (BSc), Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BScN) and Bachelor of Social Work (BSW). Bachelor of Arts majors include Anthropology, Economics, English, Environmental and Sustainability Studies, First Nations Studies, General Studies, Geography, Global and International Studies, History, Nature-Based Tourism Management, Northern Studies, Political Science, Public Administration and Community Development, and Women’s Studies. The Bachelor of Commerce offers Accounting, Finance, General Business, Human Resources Management, International Business, Management Information Systems and Marketing. Bachelor of Science majors include Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Conservation Science and Practice, Environmental Science, Forest Ecology and Management, Geography, Integrated Science, Landscape Conservation and Management, Mathematics and Statistics, Physics, Psychology, Wildland Conservation and Recreation, and Wildlife and Fisheries. The Bachelor of Planning covers First Nations Planning, Natural Resources Planning and Northern and Rural Community Planning. Most programs are taught at the Prince George campus; Integrated Science is also offered in Terrace. Graduate degrees and doctoral programs are listed in UNBC’s official program catalogue.
Entry requirements for international students
The University of Northern British Columbia says it hosts more than 396 international students from over 40 countries, and that each international application is reviewed on its own merits, with requirements set out country by country on the admissions pages. For applicants from mainland China, the official China admission requirements document (September 2021 edition, linked from the current international admissions page) states that applicants should present either the Hui Kao (Senior Secondary School Certificate) or the Gao Kao (National College Entrance Examination) with a minimum overall average of 70% (B), or a pass in English plus three academic subjects and an elective. Transfer applicants need at least 15 credit hours of acceptable university-level coursework from a recognised institution, together with the school’s grading scale, and official documents must arrive in sealed envelopes before the start of semester. Admission averages: for most Arts, Commerce, Science and Planning programs, meeting the listed requirements plus a 65% average across five Grade 12 courses (English plus three academic courses plus one additional course) guarantees admission; Applied Science (engineering) is competitive, requiring a 75% average, with the actual cutoff set each year by the applicant pool.
English language requirements
English is UNBC’s primary language of instruction, so applicants whose first language is not English must show proficiency before admission to the University of Northern British Columbia. Widely used options in the undergraduate calendar: TOEFL iBT 90 or higher with no component below 20 (UNBC’s institutional TOEFL code is 0320); IELTS Academic 6.5 overall with no band below 6.0; Duolingo English Test 125 or higher with no subscore below 115; PTE Academic 65 overall with no skill below 60; CAEL or CAEL CE 70 with no subtest below 60; or MELAB 80 with a minimum of 3 on the Speaking Rating Scale. Exemptions exist — for example, applicants who completed five consecutive years of instruction and examination entirely in English, or two full years of degree-level study at an institution where English is the language of instruction. Nursing programs carry higher English requirements; check the official calendar for the current list.
Tuition and cost of living
The University of Northern British Columbia’s tuition page gives approximate costs per academic year at 30 credit hours (10 courses): international tuition about C$26,750, student fees about C$1,315 and books about C$1,400, for a total of roughly C$29,456. Canadian domestic students pay about C$8,510 under the same calculation. These figures are from the August 6, 2026 version of the page, and the university notes that tuition, fees and books are subject to change and vary by program. For living costs, UNBC estimates per academic year: on-campus housing about C$5,845 (an average of eight months of one-bedroom rent in Prince George, excluding fees and damage deposit), a 7-day meal plan about C$6,190, a 5-day meal plan about C$5,840, and off-campus housing about C$10,000.
Application deadlines
For the University of Northern British Columbia’s general-entry programs (BA, BComm, BPl, BSc), the international application deadlines are July 11 for the September semester and November 8 for the January semester; domestic applicants are accepted on a continuing basis. Applications for the 2027-2028 intake open in early October. Competitive programs close earlier: Bachelor of Applied Science (Engineering) is March 1, 2027 for the September intake (domestic and international alike); Bachelor of Education, February 15, 2027; Bachelor of Social Work (Prince George), February 1, 2027. Nursing intakes close January 15, 2027 and are not open to international applicants. Two official notes matter for international applicants: they can only be considered if seats remain after all on-time domestic applicants, and applying after the stated deadline risks not receiving the documentation needed to study in Canada before the semester starts.
Planning your application
For most international applicants, the practical work is sequencing documents, language scores, deadlines, budget and housing into one timeline. The University of Northern British Columbia’s own pages indicate that international students normally need a Canadian study permit, and processing times for that permit sit outside the university’s control — so it is worth leaving a comfortable buffer between admission, permit application and the semester start date. The university’s published numbers for housing and meal plans make a realistic first-year budget straightforward to sketch, and UNBC’s published award figures give a sense of the support available. If your situation — current grade level, English score, budget or target program — does not line up neatly with the published templates, our advisors on this site can walk through the timeline and cost checklist with you, tailored to your own circumstances.
Data currency
All information in this guide is from the University of Northern British Columbia’s official website as of August 6, 2026. Fees, deadlines and admission requirements change by academic year; always check the university’s latest pages for current figures.