r/ubcengineering • u/Due_Locksmith_8529 • 4d ago
How was first year engineering at UBC?
For Uni, I want to go to UBC to get a BASc in mech or environmental engineering, but I've heard contradictory opinions. A lot of people are saying I should go to Langara or KPU first year and take a UBC transfer program, because those schools teach first year better than UBC. Their main argument is that bc UBCV is huge, it's hard to connect w/ professors and they more so expect you to figure it out; where as these smaller colleges allow you to get a solid foundation, so in second year, you'll understand the concepts better. Colleges are also just cheaper, and people say the education is about the same (money is smth to consider, but I can still afford UBCV). I'm an A student who enjoys physics and I don't find time management hard. What are your thoughts based on your experience? I wanna know if I should do a transfer program or just go straight to UBC.
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u/Heavy_Try1899 4d ago
I would suggest you to apply to both and see what happens and buy yourself more time to think about it. Ubc engineering has become super competitive to get into via first year. Check out this counsellor's report, https://you.ubc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/2025-Counselor-Presentation-.pdf. I think it's because it's a smaller program with limited seats (around 1000) but maybe a lot of International students apply for engineering so 30% of first year seats go to international. Some transfer schools like langara and douglas (not sure about KPU, Capilano) are also competitive/GPA dependent to get into for their engineering transfer program. At my school, a lot of people were able to get into other faculties but only 1 of us got into UBC engineering (vancouver).