Skip to main content
The University of British Columbia
UBC - A Place of Mind
The University of British Columbia
Faculty of Science Department of Zoology

Main navigation

  • About
    • Department History
    • News
    • Departmental Announcements
    • In Memoriam
    • Contacts and Information
    • Jobs
    • Buildings
    • Cycling
    • Parking
    • Transit
    • Walking
  • People
    • Faculty - Research
    • Faculty - Educational leadership
    • Lecturers
    • Staff
    • Graduate Students
    • Postdoctoral Fellows
    • Associate Members
    • Adjunct Members
    • Affiliate Members
    • Research Associates
    • Research Lab staff
    • Emeriti
    • Alumni
    • Awards
  • Research
    • Facilities
    • Affiliated Research Centres
    • Graduate Theses
  • Undergraduate Program
    • Undergraduate Research Opportunities
    • Biology Program
    • UBC Sciences – Biology
  • Graduate Program
    • Prospective Students
    • Current Students
    • Student Finance & Funding
    • Apply to TA
    • Wellness Resources
    • Department Forms
    • Zoology Graduate Student Association
    • Contacts
  • Events
    • Weekly Seminars
    • Special Seminars and Events
    • CELL seminars
    • Discussion Groups
    • Calendar
    • Recorded Seminars
    • Event Archive
  • Resources
    • EL Biostatistics Search - candidates and interview schedule
    • Evolution Search - candidates and interview schedule
    • Workday
    • Building access: keys and cards
    • Room and Vehicle Bookings: Biosci & BRC (log in)
    • Room Bookings: North & East wings Biosci
    • Shipping & Receiving
    • Aquatics (private)
    • Computing (ZCU)
    • Finance
    • HR: Human Resources
    • Safety
    • Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Resources
    • Harassment and Discrimination complaints: steps and resources
    • Zoology Internal pages (private)
    • COVID-19 Safety
    • Zoology Logo
    • Edit My Profile (private)
  • CWL Login

Breadcrumb

Home
»
Graduate Program
»
Student Finance & Funding

Main Menu: Secondary

  • Prospective Students
  • Current Students
    • Newly Admitted Students
    • Supervisory Committees
    • Doctoral Program
      • Thesis Proposal
      • Comprehensive Examinations
        • Checklist: Comprehensive Examination
    • Master's Program
      • Master's Thesis Defence
        • Checklist: MSc Defence
    • Registration & Courses
    • Contacts & Resources
  • Student Finance & Funding
  • Apply to TA
  • Wellness Resources
  • Department Forms
  • Zoology Graduate Student Association
  • Contacts

Student Finance & Funding

The Department of Zoology has a minimum funding policy for all Graduate students. The minimum level of financial support is currently $28,000 per year and will increase to $30,000 per year beginning September 2023. This minimum can come from a combination of Teaching Assistantships (TA), awards/scholarships, or Graduate Research Assistantships (GRA) paid from the supervisor’s research grants.

For further details, please consult the different forms of financial support information below.

The minimum level of support may be adjusted every few years for cost of living. 

All students making satisfactory progress will continue to be supported throughout their graduate degree at the minimum level or higher. All financial support is contingent on satisfactory performance and subject to yearly review.

Students are personally responsible for paying any tuition and fees assessed by the University.


The current PhD tuition fees can be found under the Standard Doctoral Degree Programs table.

Note: All PhD students currently receive the Faculty of Science PhD Tuition Award during the first 4 years of their program. This award is an additional benefit and does not contribute to the minimum set out in the program funding policy.


The current MSc tuition fees can be found under the Standard Master’s Degree Programs table.

Students that need a tuition deadline deferral because they're waiting to be paid by GRA and/or TAship appointments can apply for a tuition deferral directly through Enrolment Services. The deadline is usually the last day of the preceding month before a new term starts. If you have any problems with the application (eg. not finding the proof of compensation the form asks for on your Workday profile), please contact the graduate program.

Tuition Fee Deferral Application

To achieve the minimum level of financial support, a student may be required to TA up to two terms per year. Graduate students in Zoology are not permitted to TA more than two times in an academic year. Most Zoology graduate students TA for the undergraduate Biology Program though there are often TA opportunities in other programs as well.

Prospective TAs will be assigned to an appropriate TA position in late summer for one or both terms. Students should contact the instructor directly regarding duties and scheduling issues and contact the TA Team and Graduate Program as soon as possible about any scheduling conflicts between assigned positions and courses. There is a preference system for hiring TA’s based on length in program and experience; you can visit the CUPE 2278 website for more information.

Salary, work hours and conditions are determined through the CUPE 2278 collective agreement. The current TA salaries are also published under the CUPE 2278 salary scale at UBC Human Resources.

Apply for a Biology TAship

Many students are paid Graduate Research Assistantships (GRA) directly from their supervisor’s research grant. This represents a major way in which a student’s pay is brought from the amount given by teaching assistantships and awards to the total salary required by the department.

GRA’s are given in support of the student’s own research towards their degree. Satisfactory progress towards the student’s research is expected for payment of a GRA, but work not related to the student’s research program should not be required. Graduate students may be hired for additional wages for work unrelated to their degree, but these wages should not be counted towards their minimum level of support (unless both supervisor and student agree that extra work can be done in lieu of a TA-ship).

All students are expected to contribute to the shared chores of a lab and to fulfil weekly requirements of the supervisor. The latter category can include lab meetings, one-on-one meetings, seminar attendance, etc. The total time for tasks required by the supervisor can be up to an average of five hours per week across the four academic terms in the year. Any additional work not directly related to a trainee’s own research must be paid either through an hourly wage at the GTA1 marking rate or through an additional GRA.

Doctoral Students

Faculty of Science PhD Tuition Award

The Faculty of Science currently covers tuition fees for students in their first four years of their PhD program. To be considered, tuition must not be funded from other sources.


Master’s Students

Zoology MSc Partial Tuition Award

All Zoology Master's students receive a partial tuition award of $1,000 per year until the end of their second year of MSc studies. The award will be assigned in August of each year.


International Students

International Tuition Award


Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies Graduate Student Travel Fund ($500)

Graduate students who present a paper or poster at an official conference or symposium may apply once per degree program for the Graduate Student Travel Fund (maximum value $500).

If you have expenses that can be claimed from department or research funds (most commonly from your supervisor or if you were successful for a Travel Award), you can claim these expenses through Workday (called Expense Reports). Please ensure you receive preapproval to claim these expenses from the fund unless otherwise discussed or your claim may be denied/sent back.

When submitting an expense report, remember to include:

  • itemized and payment receipts
  • detailed explanation of the expenses
  • a list of attendees (if applicable)

Please follow the link below for the complete guide.

Guide: How to get reimbursed for expenses
Department of Zoology
4200 - 6270 University Blvd.
Vancouver, BC Canada V6T 1Z4
604 822 2131
E-mail info@zoology.ubc.ca
Back to top
The University of British Columbia
  • Emergency Procedures |
  • Terms of Use |
  • UBC Copyright |
  • Accessibility