UBC Nursing admission requirements: why Vancouver needs university credits and Okanagan takes high school students

UBC Vancouver's MacIsaac School of Nursing runs a 20-month BSN for students who already have a bachelor's degree, or at least 48 non-nursing university transferable credits toward one. Those credits must include 3 credits of first-year English and 6 credits of Human Anatomy and Physiology. It accepts domestic students only.

UBC Okanagan runs a four-year BSN that admits high school students as well as university transfers. It also has access programs for Licensed Practical Nurses and Registered Nurses. If you're in Grade 12 and want a UBC nursing degree, Okanagan is the route.

From Ontario, UBC's requirements tool lists ENG4U and Biology (SBI4U) at the Grade 12 level for Okanagan Nursing. You also need Grade 11 math (MCR3U or MCF3M) and Grade 11 Chemistry (SCH3U). UBC recommends six Grade 12 courses but doesn't require them.

Grade 12 Chemistry and Calculus aren't on the list. Plan your Grade 11 and 12 courses with our course planner.

UBC's requirements tool doesn't show a grade range for either nursing degree. UBC says it reviews your academic Grade 11 and 12 marks with special attention to courses related to the degree, so your Grade 12 Biology and English marks are central.

UBC doesn't publish a nursing acceptance rate; see our UBC acceptance rate page for what it does publish. Ontario students can still work out a Top 6 with our Top 6 average calculator.

High school students applying to almost any UBC degree on either campus write a personal profile, and university transfer students applying to Okanagan Nursing write one too. Each answer runs 500 to 2,100 characters, about 50 to 500 words.

You list two referees. If you're in high school, one must be a school official, such as a counsellor or teacher, and neither can be a friend, family member or paid agent. UBC uses the profile to judge fit and entrance scholarships. Read our UBC personal profile guide.

First year includes nursing lab practice, foundations of health, the nursing profession, nursing research, relational practice and your first nursing practice course. Second year adds pharmacology, community health, mental health and practice in the community.

Third year covers palliative care, the childbearing family, child health and practice in medical and surgical settings. Fourth year brings leadership, primary care nursing, an acute care capstone preceptorship and a community health preceptorship. UBC Okanagan notes possible summer terms after second year.

UBC lists no co-op for either BSN. At Okanagan, practice is built in. In fourth year you can apply for a 420-hour specialty internship with an Interior Health unit, such as emergency, perioperative, perinatal or critical care, on top of a 240-hour final practicum on the same unit.

A Global Health Practicum can take you to Ghana or Zambia, or to a remote community in BC or the Yukon such as Haida Gwaii or Whitehorse. A Research Preceptorship pairs you with a faculty researcher.

The Okanagan BSN is accredited by the British Columbia College of Nurses and Midwives and the Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing. UBC Okanagan says its spring 2024 students had a 100% pass rate on the NCLEX licensing exam.

If you'd rather earn the Vancouver BSN, you'll need university study first. Plan for the 48 transferable credits, with first-year English and 6 credits of Human Anatomy and Physiology, before you apply.

Once admitted to Vancouver, you must attend orientation, follow provincial health authority immunization rules, and complete a criminal record check, First Aid and CPR at the BLS level, and an N95 mask fit test. Vancouver graduates with Honours standing are in the top 15% of their class with at least 85% in third and fourth year.

From British Columbia, UBC lists English Studies 12 or English First Peoples 12 and Anatomy and Physiology 12 for Okanagan Nursing. You also need Pre-Calculus 11 or Foundations of Mathematics 12, and Chemistry 11.

From Alberta, you need English Language Arts 30-1 and Biology 30, plus Math 20-1 or Math 30-2 and Chemistry 20. UBC says disruptions from the Alberta teacher strike won't count against your application.

Every UBC applicant must meet the English Language Admission Standard. Four or more consecutive years of full-time study in English in Canada, right before you start at UBC, meets it, and UBC lists nine ways in total.

If you need a test, UBC lists IELTS Academic 6.5 with no part below 6.0, or TOEFL iBT with an overall score of 90. Send your documents by February 15, 2027.

If your child has their heart set on Vancouver, a nursing degree there starts with university study somewhere first. Okanagan is the only UBC campus that admits Grade 12 students to nursing.

UBC Okanagan lists careers such as critical care, emergency, labour and delivery, neonatal, oncology, mental health and school nursing. The BSN prepares graduates for professional licensure as registered nurses.

UBC Okanagan charges Nursing students $206.69 a credit as Canadian students. International students starting in 2026 or later pay $1,720.94 a credit, with increases capped at 3% a year. UBC Vancouver's 2026-27 table lists Nursing at $6,200.70 for 30 credits for domestic students.

For UBC's Presidential Scholars Awards, apply by December 1, 2026 and answer yes in the awards section. The awards include a one-time award of about $5,000 and renewable awards worth up to $40,000 at Okanagan and $80,000 at Vancouver over four years.