Recognized as one of BC's Top Employers (2024):
Mediacorp Canada Inc. staff editors (Feb 12, 2024)
Here are some of the reasons why UBC / University of British Columbia was selected as one of BC's Top Employers (2024):
- Along with working at one of Canada's most beautiful campuses, UBC employees can take advantage of the shoreline hiking trail with great views of the mountains and the surrounding Salish Sea -- employees are also encouraged to keep fit with subsidized memberships to extensive onsite fitness facilities
- UBC supports employees through various stages of life, including top-up payments for adoptive parents and mothers-to-be, flexible work options to help employees balance personal and family commitments, and phased-in retirement work options for those in the later stages of their career
- UBC helps employees plan for the future with retirement planning assistance services and contributions to a unique "Target Benefit Pension Plan" that features elements of both a defined benefit and defined contribution pension plan
Highlights
Industry | Post secondary schools, university |
Established in Canada | 1908 |
Major Canadian locations | Vancouver BC, Kelowna BC |
Full-time employees in Canada | 16,308 |
Part-time employees in Canada | 3,781 |
Average age of employees in Canada | 44 years |
Longest serving employee | 53.7 years |
Benefits note | UBC has multiple employee groups, the following programs and policies may vary by position |
Flexible work options | hybrid work option, flexible work hours, 35-hour work week (with full pay), shortened work week (fewer hours with less pay), telecommuting |
Long-term savings | defined-benefit (DB) pension, defined-contribution (DC) pension |
Health plan premium | as part of the health plan, the employer pays up to 100% of the premiums |
Health spending account | up to $250 each year |
Mental health practitioner benefit | up to $3,000 each year |
Maternity top-up (mothers) | up to 100% of salary for 16 weeks |
Adoption top-up | up to 100% of salary for 4 weeks |
Vacation allowance | new employees receive 3 weeks of paid vacation after their first year on the job |
Outside survey period | outside consultant surveys are held every 24 months |
Employee performance reviews | employees receive individual performance reviews every 12 months |
In-house training initiatives | apprenticeship/skilled trades programs, in-house training, online training, mentoring, leadership development programs, paid internships |
Tuition subsidies (related to job) | yes |
Employee charitable involvement | employees are involved in selection of charities, employees receive paid time off to volunteer |
Recognized as one of Canada's Best Diversity Employers (2024):
By Kristina Leung and Stephanie Leung, Mediacorp Canada Inc. staff editors (Mar 4, 2024)
Here are some of the reasons why UBC / University of British Columbia was selected as one of Canada's Best Diversity Employers (2024):
- UBC applied an inclusive lens to its benefits, recently introducing new family-friendly benefits that support all pathways to parenthood (generous coverage for fertility drugs and treatments, subsidies for surrogacy and adoption) as well as an Indigenous leave for ceremonial, cultural and spiritual events (employees who self-identify as Indigenous can request up to two paid days of leave)
- UBC recently formed an accessibility committee and organized accessibility listening sessions with members of the university's disability affinity group -- the organization also established a dedicated centre for workplace accessibility in 2022 and hired its first accessible buildings planner in 2023, who will help develop accessibility design guidelines for new and existing campus buildings
- Since 2019, UBC has hosted IBPOC (Indigenous, Black and/or People of Colour) Connections to provide a space for self-identifying staff to have candid conversations, collaborate, and coordinate when appropriate (group was formerly referred to as BIPOC but was revised in recognition of Canada’s commitment to put First Peoples first)
Highlights
Industry | Post secondary schools, university |
Major Canadian locations | Vancouver BC, Kelowna BC |
Full-time employees in Canada | 16,308 |
Management of diversity and inclusion initiatives | associate vice president of equity and inclusion (responsible for overseeing the organization's initiatives), employs a number of senior advisory positions to guide university leadership on the promotion of dimensions of equity and inclusion, including a senior advisor to the provost on women and gender diverse faculty and a senior advisor to the president on anti-racism and inclusive excellence, an inclusion action plan (guiding document that identifies priority goals for inclusion) and Indigenous strategic initiatives office (supports implementation of Indigenous strategic plan), new strategic equity and anti-racism framework (will guide the implementation of various equity and anti-racism plans and recommendations) |
Performance management and accountability | launched a revised employment equity survey to gather information about the organization's applicant pool |
Employee resource groups | IBPOC Connections for faculty and staff who self-identify as Indigenous, Black and/or People of Colour, IBPOC Stem Network, Disability Affinity Group (to build community and advocate for supports for faculty and staff with disabilities) |
Noteworthy diversity strategies and policies | anti-racism and inclusive excellence task force (released report with recommendations to address systemic racism against IBPOC) |
Recruitment initiatives | suite of inclusive recruiting resources (hiring equity training for search committees, resources on how to write equitable and inclusive job descriptions) |
Retention and development programs | leadership program to help identify, develop and advance female faculty towards leadership roles |
Training and awareness initiatives | mental health workshops and resources for faculty and staff (offered in collaboration with the Canadian Mental Health Association), Indigenous Peoples language guide (to help communications navigate terminology and associated meanings), Indigenous learning pathways (engage staff and faculty on Indigenous knowledges and perspectives), toolkit and training sessions to help transgender, Two-Spirit, and non-binary employees get the support they need in the workplace |
Diversity highlights | engaged its employee and family assistance program provider to encourage a broadening of the network of Indigenous counsellors and increased IBPOC workshop facilitators, Equity Enhancement Fund to support collaborative student, faculty and staff projects that advance equity and inclusion (was recently used for several projects to enhance UBC's curriculum through the inclusion of the Indigenous way of knowing, knowledge and perspectives), Anti-Racism Initiatives Fund to support initiatives that seek to celebrate and elevate diverse communities and advance anti-racism efforts, Indigenous Strategic Initiatives Fund to advance the goals and actions in the Indigenous strategic plan ($4-million across both campuses), Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre on campus (provides former students and their families with access to the Truth and Reconciliation records, and gives visitors a way to understand the history and lasting effects of residential schools) |
Highlights from the past year | created a new strategic equity and anti-racism framework that will guide the implementation of UBC’s various equity and anti-racism plans and recommendations, new envisioning equality award (recognizes exceptional women and gender-diverse faculty and staff at UBC), implemented a paid Indigenous leave policy for eligible employees who self-identify as Indigenous (can request up to two days to participate in ceremonial, cultural and spiritual events), offered the country's first bachelor's degree of Indigenous language fluency |
Recognized as one of Canada's Greenest Employers (2024):
Mediacorp Canada Inc. staff editors (Apr 15, 2024)
Here are some of the reasons why UBC / University of British Columbia was selected as one of Canada's Greenest Employers (2024):
- UBC's formal employee-led Sustainability Coordinator Program (established over 20 years ago) is comprised of over 100 members working to implement sustainable practices across the university's many departments
- UBC offers an impressive range of highly focused environmental initiatives across campus that aim to foster a culture of sustainability among staff, students and the community -- initiatives include sustainability tours, the Green Labs program promoting sustainable behaviours, and the 24-hectare on-campus certified organic farm with over 200 varieties of crops
- UBC is accelerating green building performance and regenerative design across its campus building portfolio through the Green Building Action Plan, which will result in a net-positive contribution to human and natural systems by 2035 -- as part of the plan, all new construction and renovations for institutional buildings must be LEED Gold certified, and some will also target other certifications such as Passive House and WELL Building Standard Certification
Highlights
Industry | Post secondary schools, university |
Major Canadian locations | Vancouver BC, Kelowna BC |
Full-time employees in Canada | 16,308 |
Part-time employees in Canada | 3,781 |
Employee green team | Sustainability Coordinators, Zero Waste Committee, Green Labs Program, Choose to Reuse Campaign |
Senior executive who oversees initiatives | VP External Relations; VP Academic & Provost; AVP Campus and Community Planning; Director, Sustainability Hub; Executive Director, Safety & Risk Services; Director, Environment Protection, Safety & Risk Services |
Formal strategy/policy name | Sustainability Initiative (est. 2010), Climate Action Plan (a 15 year plan that aims to an 85% reduction in campus operations emissions from buildings, energy and fleet and a 45% reduction in extended emissions from commuting, waste, food, air travel and the construction, maintaining and demolishing of campus buildings) |
Publishes sustainability report | yes |
Green highlights | UBC Workplace Sustainability Fund (offers $1,000 grants for sustainability coordinators to facilitate grassroots and department-led sustainability initiatives), Green Labs program (ongoing programs to help labs reduce energy consumption), UBC Food System Project (collaborative community-based research project moving towards sustainable food systems), Social, Ecological, Economic Development Studies (SEEDS) Sustainability program to engage and create collaborative partnerships between students, faculty and employees, Sustainability Scholars (internship work experience program for graduate students), Zero Waste Food Ware Strategy (introduced fees for single use items and encouraged the transition to reusable food ware, adopted more sustainable materials for single use items, discontinued some single use items like foam cups, plastic straws and plastic bags and improved recycling bins and signage), over 670 undergraduate, graduate and professional courses (and 40 programs) oriented towards sustainability, |
Noteworthy initiatives | unique bioenergy research demonstration facility processes urban wood waste to generate thermal energy for heating campus buildings, helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions |
Building footprint includes | PV solar panels, rainwater collection, green roof, solar water heating, geothermal heating/cooling, electric vehicle charging stations, solar air heating, onsite 24-hectare certified organic farm with over 200 varieties of crops (provides fresh produce to a number of dining operations and a farmers market that is open to students and employees), LEED Gold-certified is mandatory for all new building construction, ongoing LED lighting retrofit program, Continuous Building Optimization Program (partnership with BC Hydro to help optimize existing building performance) and the UBC Green Building Action Plan (long-term framework for incremental improvements across all buildings) |
Extended recycling | batteries, laboratory plastics, compostable materials, furniture and equipment reuse programs, styrofoam, organics, hazardous waste (has a formal zero-waste committee comprised of students, employees and faculty working towards the goal of becoming a zero-waste campus through the zero-waste action plan) |
Commuter amenities | ongoing green fleet strategy to reduce emissions (includes right-sizing and fuel-efficient vehicles, driver training and adoption of bicycles), Walk and Roll to School program (sustainable commuting program for elementary and high school students), Bike to Work Week (changed to Go By Bike Week during the pandemic to encourage employees to get outdoors and reduce their environmental footprint while working remotely), Campus Bike Share program (over 80 designated bike hubs across campus), walk to public transit, secure/sheltered bicycle parking, online carpool sign-up, transit subsidies |
The Career Directory
UBC / University of British Columbia has been selected for The Career Directory, our guide to entry-level recruitment for recent college and university graduates.
Highlights for New Grads
Industry | Post secondary schools, university |
Full-time employees in Canada | 10,001 to 25,000 |
Major Canadian locations | Vancouver BC, Kelowna BC |
Student opportunities | summer jobs, co-op opportunities |
Training | subsidies for professional accreditation, orientation program, online training, in-house training, mentoring, in-house career planning services, leadership training |
Annual tuition maximum | employer pays up to $5,292 in tuition subsidies for job-related courses per year |
Starting salary | $50K to $55K |
Work benefits | health benefits for new employees, flexible work hours, telecommuting, transit subsidies, employees receive paid time off to volunteer |
Vacation allowance | new employees receive 3 weeks of paid vacation after their first year on the job |
Academic fields recruited
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Bachelor of Arts
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Bachelor of Commerce / Business Administration
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Bachelor of Education
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Bachelor of Engineering
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Bachelor of Laws
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Bachelor of Science
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Community College Diploma
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Doctorate (Arts)
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Doctorate (Eng.)
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Doctorate (Science)
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Master of Arts
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Master of Business Administration
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Master of Education
- Administration
- Counselling
- Teaching
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Master of Engineering
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Master of Science
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Professional Accreditation
- Accounting (CA)
- Accounting (CGA)
- Accounting (CMA)
- Certified Nutrition Manager (CSNM)
- Financial Planning (CFP, FMA)
- Human Resources (CHRP, CEBS)
- Investment Planning (CFA, CIM)
- Other Business / Technical/ Industry Certifications
- Professional Engineer
- Purchasing Management (PMAC, CPP)
- Quality Assurance (TQM)
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Secondary Education
- High School Diploma