Elective Courses

The majority of CELL students are required to successfully complete both of the Program’s Process courses (to a total of 6 credits) and at least two of the Program’s Content courses (to a total of 3 credits). For the additional credits required by G+PS for students who wish to remain in the M.Sc. program or who wish to transfer from the M.Sc. program to the Ph.D. program, students select a total of at least 3 additional credits of elective courses. The ability to choose elective courses permits the design of a strong program of courses that is tailored to an individual student’s background, specific research area and goals.

Most students select additional courses from the Program’s roster of Content courses for their electives. However, some students elect to take specialized course(s) offered by Departments or Graduate Programs outside the CELL Program. A complete list of courses available at UBC is in the Vancouver Academic Calendar. Prior to registering in a non-CELL course, you will need approval from your Research Supervisor, the Course Instructor, and the CELL Program Graduate Advisor.

Students can also take courses from Simon Fraser University after completing the Western Deans’ Agreement form (contact the CELL Program Coordinator for more details). The WDA requires CELL Program, G+PS and host institution approvals. A list of graduate-level courses offered by SFU’s Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, for example, is available here.

Personal and professional development courses and workshops. The CELL Program encourages students to participate in non-credit workshops, seminars and other activities that complement the Program’s academic curriculum. Offerings at UBC cover a wide range of personal and professional development topics to support you throughout your time in graduate school and to allow you to develop some of the skills and competencies that will help with your career after you graduate. Topics covered range from presentation skills to TA Training Programs to career preparation.

Workshops and other events are offered by:

• The Graduate Pathways to Success program.

• The Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology.

• The Mitacs Step program.

G+PS has also compiled a listing of electronic resources for graduate school success, career development, leadership, etc, available here.