Finance and FAQs
Below will give you an idea of the fees associated with an exchange to UBC. U-Pass and medical fees are mandatory. Housing fees will differ depending on where you live. Also think about what activities you might do here as this is a very active community with lots of opportunity to participate in indoor and outdoor activities.
U-Pass
Cost: $63 (per term)
All exchange students receive the U-Pass, a universal transportation pass that gives unlimited access to the Kelowna Regional Transit System buses during the Winter Session (September to April). Once you get your student ID card, you can register your U-Pass with the Student Union of UBC Okanagan (located at UNC 133).
The U-Pass is mandatory for all students attending UBC and it’s such a fantastic deal that you will be glad to have it!
*assessed for Winter Term 1 and Term 2 only
iMED
iMED is the basic health insurance required for all new international exchange students. Enrolment is automatic upon registration for your courses. Visit the website for further information (including coverage dates).
We recognize that many students come to UBC with health coverage from their home countries. However, because of the differing procedures in billing and reimbursement worldwide, we have found that exchange students do not always get the medical care they need in a timely fashion. Therefore, only students who already have MSP or another Canadian provincial health plan may opt out of iMED.
Cost
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As of August 1, 2023, iMED costs $237 for 3 months or $338 if you are a one-term exchange student.
Depending on your program and your period of studies at UBC, you might have iMED coverage for a specific number of months instead of the whole academic term (for example, if you will be enrolled for two months). In this case, iMED fees will be $79 per month.
Coverage Duration
One-term exchange students have iMED coverage for a period of 130 days (one academic term). The duration of iMED coverage takes the move-in date for UBC residence into consideration.
One-term exchange students are covered as follows:
- Summer Session Term 1 (May – June 2025): April 25, 2025 – August 31, 2025
- Summer Session Term 2 (July – August 2025): May 15, 2025 – September 21, 2025
- Winter Session Term 1 (September – December 2025): August 26, 2025 – January 2, 2026
- Winter Session Term 2 (January – April 2026): December 23, 2025 – May 1, 2026
For other non-degree seeking students such as unclassified, access studies, and visiting students, depending on your program and your period of studies at UBC, you might have iMED coverage for one academic term (same as exchange students above), or for a specific number of months instead of the whole academic term (for example, if you will be enrolled for two months).
UBC will automatically assess the iMED coverage period based on your program and your period of studies at UBC.
Exchange FAQs
This is normal, but you will need to apply for a “Date Change” with the insurance company DCIS. Complete and submit the iMED Date Change Form after arriving in Canada.
The automatic iMED coverage dates coincide with a standard academic term at UBC as follows:
- August 1 for Winter Session Term 1 (September – December)
- December 1 for Winter Session Term 2 (January – April)
- April 1 for Summer Session Term 1 (May – June)
- June 1 for Summer Session Term 2 (July – August)
Most students’ research dates are not aligned with UBC’s academic terms, therefore most students will need to request to have their coverage dates updated.
Please follow the instructions here, under Student Accounts (CWL Account Upgrader).
If you are still having any trouble signing in, please send an email to service.helpdesk@ubc.ca. Include your UBC ID number, and explain the situation, as well as any screenshots showing errors you are receiving. Please also provide the birthdate that you entered when asked for the default password.
Apply to obtain your UBC Student ID here. Once your card is ready, an email will be sent with instructions on how to pick up your card at a designated pick-up location. Please bring a piece of government-issued photo ID (usually a passport is sufficient) when you pick up your UBC Card in person.
UBC does not have a centralized repository for storing course syllabi. Students are responsible for contacting the individual instructors and obtaining the course syllabi, if available, on their own.
Detailed course syllabi are not always available in advance of the start of classes and availability varies by academic department. You may contact the instructor who will be teaching the course this year via email and request a current course syllabus. Contact information of the instructor can be found on Workday under each course. Please click on the course code and then click on the specific section. Please keep in mind that the course syllabi you will receive from the instructors right now may not be the final version. Further, in a few instances, the course syllabi are posted on the course schedule page. This is not common, so if you do not see the course syllabi, please use the method of contacting the instructor.
Students who have been registered into at least one course in the coming term will receive their iMED card via email prior to arrival in Canada. Please check your email “junk” or “spam” folders to see if the email with the iMED card as an attached document had been filtered there. If you do not find it and will be arriving in Canada within a week, please request to have the card resent to you by contacting David Cummings, the iMED insurance provider, at info@david-cummings.com. Please include your name, UBC student number, date of arrival and put “missing iMED card” in the subject field.
The Medical Services Plan (MSP) is a mandatory health insurance plan, for everyone who lives in British Columbia (B.C. province) for 6 months or longer. Medical fees in BC are very costly, so to protect yourself against surprisingly big bills that can go up to $150 just to see a doctor. With MSP, you will not pay when you seek basic medical care, and the fees for emergency care will be reduced to much less.
- $237 for 3 months of coverage during the waiting period for the Medical Services Plan (MSP) (provincial government health insurance mandatory for those residing in Canada for more than 6 months), or
- $338 for one-term exchange students
The fees are charged to your Workday account. Fees are subject to change.
See more information on iMED and MSP.
Shortly after course registration, exchange students are automatically enrolled in iMED, and the fees should appear on Workday. Students will also receive an email from David Cummings Insurance Services (DCIS) approximately one month prior to the start of each academic term, with the iMED insurance card attached. Please watch for the email in your inbox and junk mail folders.
Print your iMED card and keep it with you at all times. The IMED fees will be due before the first week of classes at UBC.
One copy of your transcript will be sent to your home university approximately six weeks after the end of the term. If you need to order an additional transcript, please visit this website for instructions on how to place an order.
Please notify Go Global at your earliest convenience if this is a possibility. It is also your responsibility to contact each of your UBC instructors to inform them of your late arrival and make up for any missed course material.
Your personalized final exam dates are posted on your Workday. UBC Enrollment Services will release the exam schedule midway into the term. Please confirm your exam schedule before booking your return flight.
Please refrain from booking flights until you receive an official Letter of Acceptance (LoA) from Go Global before purchasing a ticket. If you chose to purchase your ticket before you receive your admission decision, make sure you buy cancellation insurance.
Exchange students will not be charged any tuition fees. They will have the mandatory International Health Insurance (IMED) and the U-Pass Program fees assessed and charged to their student account. You may view and pay these fees on UBC’s Workday by logging in with your Campus Wide Login (CWL) Information. See this page for more information on living expenses to be aware of during your exchange term.
As Go Global does not manage housing in any capacity, your inquiries would be best addressed by UBC housing at information@housing.okanagan.ubc.ca
UBC Housing usually contacts students in June/July via email with information about their residence placements for September and the next steps you will need to take. If you are joining us in January, you should expect to hear during November/December. If you have further questions please contact UBC Housing at information@housing.okanagan.ubc.ca
1. Go to the Housing and Conferences Online Service Centre and log in under “UBC New Applicants, Students, Staff with CWL ID.”
2. Login with your CWL.
3. Select “Application,” and then “Apply.”
4. Select the application for the Winter Session (September – April). [IMPORTANT: SELECT THIS OPTION REGARDLESS OF YOUR EXCHANGE TERM]
5. When asked for your faculty, enter “Exchange Program, year 1.”
There is a $50 non-refundable application fee. A deposit must be paid by Visa or MasterCard and is due upon acceptance of your room offer.
We will inform the housing office whether you are coming for one or two terms as there is no place for you to indicate this on their application.
If you have any further questions related to housing, please contact UBC housing directly at information@housing.ubc.ca.
Waitlists are not available for all courses, and being on the waitlist does not guarantee registration in the course. Students on a waitlist should check their registration in Workday to see if they have been officially registered into the course.
- If there is a waitlist for the course, register for the waitlist and contact go.global@ubc.ca to ensure you have a token to be able to get off the waitlist into full registration when a seat becomes available
- Check the departmental website to review their waitlist procedures
- Keep your eye on the course via Workday
- Check the course on your Workday after the first class
- Attend your waitlisted course(s) where possible, and have a backup plan in place
Undergraduate exchange students typically take between 9 and 15 credits per semester at UBC, depending on degree requirements at home university. Go Global is not able to advise you on the minimum course load required by your home university. Students must maintain registration of minimum of 9 credits per term to be considered as a full-time student at UBC. If you are living on campus or considering working with a valid Study Permit, you must maintain your full-time student status. There is a credit limit for both full-year (30 credits/year) and single-term students (18 credits/term).
