Admission Requirements

Applicants for admission must satisfy both Parts A and B below.

Part A—UCC B.Ed. Pre-admission Requirements

The UCC Bachelor of Education (Elementary) program is a two-year program, which starts in September of each year. While it is recommended that applicants have a Bachelor's degree from another Faculty (normally Arts or Science), applicants will be eligible for admission with a minimum of 90 credits acceptable to the UCC School of Education, normally in arts, fine arts, mathematics, science, music, or physical education. Priority is not given to students who have a completed degree.

Pre-admission requirements:

1. 6 credits of English, including both literature and composition
2. 3 credits of course work in each of Mathematics (not statistics), Science with a laboratory component, and History or Geography
3. 6 credits of Canadian Studies taken in Humanities or Social Sciences
4. 18 credits of third- and fourth-year level courses in one teachable area – Art, Dance, Drama, Language Arts, Mathematics, Music, Physical Education, Science, and Social Studies (any combination of Anthropology, Economics, Geography, History, Political Science or Sociology)
5. 30 credits of senior course work to meet the British Columbia College of Teachers' Acceptable Degree Policy (see Part B, below). These 30 credits include the 18 credits in number 4, above.
6. A minimum GPA of 2.67 is required for consideration, but does not guarantee admission. Admission averages are calculated on a total of at least 33 credits, including 1, 2, and 4 above.

One hundred (100) hours minimum of relevant volunteer or paid experience working with groups of elementary school-aged children is required.

Part B—British Columbia College of Teachers Pre-admission Requirements

In addition to satisfying the UCC B.Ed. pre-admission requirements, applicants should note that the British Columbia College of Teachers requires at least 30 senior credits in:

1. Any one of or any combination of art/visual arts, English, French language and literature, biology, chemistry, computer science, geography, geological science, history, home economics, mathematics, music, physics or technology studies (these are the subjects with an asterisk on the Acceptable Degree Courses for Admission list); or
2. Any combination of subjects included in the British Columbia public school curriculum with a maximum of 12 credits in any single subject other than the subjects listed above (these are the subjects without an asterisk on the Acceptable Degree Courses for Admission list included with this package).
3. Of the 30 senior credits required, no more than 18 credits may be of a studio or performance nature (e.g., physical education activity courses, music or theatre performance, or fine art studio).
4. The British Columbia College of Teachers regards as senior all third- and fourth-year courses, as well as courses not of an introductory nature that are completed following six credits of introductory coursework in the same subject area. For example, when a student completes UCC HIST 112 (3 credits) and HIST 122 (3 credits), then later completes HIST 202 (3 credits), HIST 202 will be regarded as a senior-level course. Note that the UCC requirement of 18 credits of third- and fourth-year courses still applies.
5. The British Columbia College of Teachers has the authority to issue teaching certificates under the B.C. Government Teaching Profession Act. Persons convicted of a criminal offence, or who have been given an absolute or conditional discharge, should write to the Registrar, B.C. College of Teachers for clarification of their status before undertaking a teacher education program.
6. Current information concerning the membership and certification requirements of the B.C. College of Teachers can also be obtained from:

   The Registrar, British Columbia College of Teachers

   #400 – 2025 West Broadway
   Vancouver, BC V6J 1Z6
   Phone: (604) 731-8170 Fax: (604) 731-9142
   Website: http://www.bcct.ca/

Recommendations for all applicants

The UCC School of Education usually receives many more applications than spaces available in our program. As a consequence, some applicants who meet the minimum admission requirements may not be admitted. Applicants are encouraged to complete a broad range of post-secondary studies, more extensive subject preparation, and higher grades than the minimum specified.

Applicants are reminded that they are subject to all requirements and regulations of the Faculty in which they are registered while they are completing the admissions requirements to the School of Education. It is important for students seeking admission to the B.Ed. program to satisfy all the requirements of the Faculty in which they are registered as they proceed, so that they can complete the remaining degree requirements later. Individual students wishing to complete their initial degree after obtaining their B.Ed. degree will be subject to the degree regulations at the time of their admission to those initial degree programs.

Practicum Placements

The teacher education program includes four teaching practica. Practica in Year 1, Terms 1 and 2, occur in Kamloops schools. The remaining two practica (Year 2, Terms 1 and 2) are held in school districts in the UCC region including those listed below. At least one-half of the students are placed outside of School District #73 (Kamloops/Thompson).

• School District #27 (Cariboo-Chilcotin) - Williams Lake/100 Mile area
• School District #53 (Okanagan Similkameen) - Oliver area
• School District #58 (Nicola-Similkameen) - Merritt area
• School District #73 (Kamloops/Thompson) - Kamloops area
• School District #74 (Gold Trail) – Ashcroft/Cache Creek area
• School District #83 (North Okanagan-Shuswap) - Salmon Arm area

Student teachers admitted to the UCC B.Ed. program will be asked to indicate their choices of school district locations for the practica in Year 2, Terms 1 and 2. Special consideration regarding practica placement may be granted to students on a case-by-case basis.

Admission Deadlines

Careful consideration will be given to all applicants who meet the minimum admission requirements. Application is made through Admissions, Registrar's Office, The University College of the Cariboo. No application will be considered by the Education Admissions Committee until ALL required documentation is received. Final grades should be submitted as soon as they are available. Those applicants to Education who are graduating from UCC need not submit their final grades, as these are available to the Admissions Committee. The deadline for admission is February 13, 2004. All required forms, fees and documents should be received by this date. Final transcripts deadline is May 14, 2004, if students are studying at an institution other than UCC.

All forms, documents and reference letters should be submitted to Admissions, UCC, Box 3010, Kamloops, B.C. V2C 5N3. An application will not be considered unless all required documents have been received.

Documents Required

1. UCC Application Form for the B.Ed. program
2. Application Fee of $25.00 for all students new to UCC
3. Supplementary Application Form
4. Two confidential statements from "referees" qualified to attest to the applicant's suitability for teaching
5. Official transcripts from all post-secondary institutions attended except for UCC

Note: All required forms for 1, 3, and 4 above are included in the Admissions Package, available at UCC. Please contact Admissions in person, by mail, or by phone (250-828-5093) to obtain an application package, which also includes the admission requirements and the BC College of Teachers list of acceptable degrees.