About the Program
The MA is a research-oriented degree. As such, it is the preferred route for individuals planning to pursue a doctoral degree after the Master’s. While the MEd also includes research courses, its focus is primarily on knowledge of professional practice.
On-campus
The on-campus MEd can be done as a full-time or part-time program. Courses are chosen by the student in conjunction with the supervisor from across the Faculty of Education. For a list of program requirements for the on-campus MEd, please see here.
Online
The Online MEd is a part-time only program. The online program runs as a cohort and has a predetermined course schedule for the program (with the choice of two electives).
For a list of program requirements for the online MEd, please see here.
Full-time and part-time designations refer to payment schedules and not to the minimum (or maximum) number of credits that need to be taken per term. All students, both full-time and part-time, must be registered in at least one course per term throughout the entirety of their program.
Graduate tuition is assessed as an annual program fee, which is divided into three equal installments due at the beginning of academic terms starting in September, January and May. Tuition per term will always be the same regardless of how many course credits the student is registered in.
Full-time students are assessed tuition according to Schedule A. Part-time students are assessed tuition according to Schedule B. All graduate students (except those in some online programs) are assessed according to Schedule A (full-time tuition), unless they apply for Schedule B (part-time) at the beginning of their program.
For more information on tuition Schedules A and B, please see the UBC Calendar under 'Master of Arts and Master of Education (full-time) in the Faculty of Education' and 'Master of Arts and Master of Education (part-time) in the Faculty of Education.'
MA
The average time to complete the MA program is 2.6 years for a full-time student, and 3-4 years for part-time students.
MEd
The average time for completion for the on-campus MEd program is 2.3 years for a full-time student. Part-time students take 3-4 years on average. The online MEd is designed to take exactly 2.6 years and is considered a part-time program.
All graduate programs in ECED (MA, MEd on-campus and online) start in September. We do not accept admissions any other start date.
Admission Process, Eligibility, and Required Documents
All graduate programs in ECED (MA, MEd on-campus and online) start in September. The admissions portal will be open November of the preceding year until January 31. For example, to apply for a September 2017 start, an applicant would need to submit their application between November 2016 and January 31, 2017. We only accept applications for a September start date and we do not accept late applications.
We do not offer conditional admission for the following: work experience; English language test scores.
We will consider your application if your are still in the process of completing your academic requirements. For example, if you are in the final terms of your Bachelor's degree (or equivalent).
Please see the How to Apply page for requirements for the ECED Masters programs.
If you are an international student and would like to see if your GPA meets minimum requirements, please see the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies site for details of academic requirements based on country of the institution.
The MA and MEd requires a minimum 2-years professional experience working with young children in an appropriate setting. Appropriate settings include any paid or volunteer position in a formal workplace setting working with students pre-Kindergarten to grade 3 (e.g., preschool, childcare, Strong Start, etc.).
All applicants from a university outside Canada in which English is not the primary language of instruction must provide results of an English language proficiency examination as part of their application. The ECED program only accepts TOEFL or IETLS scores and adheres to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies minimum required scores. Please see the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies site for details of English language proficiency examination score requirements.
All English Language Test scores, if required, must be received by the application deadline. We do not offer conditional admission.
No, the ECED program does not require either a GRE or GMAT test score.
If you do not meet minimum work experience, English language test score, or academic requirements at the time of application, you are not eligible for admission to the program. The exception to this is if a degree is in progress and will be completed before the program starts; in this case, you may be eligible for a conditional admission to the program.
Please review the Faculty of Graduate Studies’ guide to writing a statement of intent/interest.
For MEd applicants: Your Statement of Intent should include a description of your potential graduating project (250-500 words). This description must include an introduction to your topic of interest and address the significance of this topic to the field of Early Childhood Education.
You must submit a writing sample in your application. If you do not have a term paper or similar available to you, any piece of writing that uses a scholarly format is acceptable. If you have no such document, you may create one for purpose of your application. Writing samples are not required to be on the topic of Early Childhood Education.
Funding and Fees
Tuition and fee information is available on the Faculty of Graduate Studies’ tuition, fees and cost of living page.
Funding opportunities information is available on our Graduate Student Funding page.