Perhaps you’re fresh out of high school. Or maybe you’re looking to create new opportunities for yourself after some time in the working world. Either way, the College of New Caledonia’s university transfer courses can offer you a path into a satisfying, rewarding future.
“University transfer courses at CNC give you the opportunity to tailor your education to what you want to make out of your life,” says Chad Thompson, Vice President Academic at the College of New Caledonia. “You’re creating your own future.”
At CNC, students have the option of taking university transfer courses for one year or two years before moving on to complete a degree at another institution. To ensure credits earned at CNC transfer seamlessly, as part of the BC Transfer System, CNC courses transfer to all BC universities, including UBC, UVic, SFU, and UNBC Students can also transfer to schools in other provinces and countries.
There are several benefits of taking university transfer courses at CNC. Below, Thompson and CNC Associate Dean Jonathon Penny offer their top seven reasons for registering as a university transfer student at the college.
-
Smaller class sizes
At CNC, class sizes range from 20 students to a maximum of 37, which creates a more productive learning environment.
“You’re not just a face in a lecture auditorium,” Thompson says. “You have the chance to know your instructor by name, you have a chance for those one-on-one conversations with your instructor.”
Penny adds that students also get to know their peers much better in smaller classes. Those closer relationships, he says, lead to students supporting each other in their learning.
-
Work directly with instructors
Students who step straight into university settings often discover much of their learning happens in tutorials, which are led by tutorial assistants. Students who start at CNC, on the other hand, have the advantage of working directly with their instructors.
“Our instructors are qualified, dedicated and experienced, holding at least Master’s degrees and often PhD’s in their disciplines,” Penny says. “That differentiates us from universities, where first- and second-year courses are typically taught by TAs and grad students.”
Thompson estimates 90 per cent of the university-level courses at CNC are taught by full-time instructors.
-
Lower tuition
Attending CNC for one or two years of university study also makes sense financially because students receive high-quality instruction at a lower cost.
“We have the second-lowest arts and sciences tuition in the province,” Thompson says. “It’s $288.76 for most courses, $430.26 for a course with a lab. The average tuition for a full-time student for a year is just over $3,000.”
For students who live in Northern B.C. – particularly in Prince George, Quesnel, Mackenzie, Vanderhoof or Fort St. James, where CNC has campuses – the “stay home and save” option is worth considering.
“It’s bigger value for smaller money,” Penny says. “It’s a wily investment in personal growth and future opportunity. And if you change you get partway through and need to make a change, you haven’t spent yourself into a big hole. This gives you some flexibility of choice and room to experiment as a student.”
-
Learn how to learn
Starting university-level courses at CNC creates a smooth transition for newly-graduated high school students or people refocusing on their education.
“Studies from the BC Council on Admissions and Transfer show that students who transfer to a university from a college do better than their peers who started directly at a university,” Thompson says. “That speaks to that transition – the idea that the smaller size, the smaller classes mean you get the support you need to make that transition into post secondary.”
-
Transfer options
Students can transfer after one year or two years. CNC offers two-year associate degrees in arts and sciences which bring preferential admission at Simon Fraser University and the University of Northern British Columbia.
“Associate degrees guarantee you 60 credits of transfer to any four-year public institution in B.C.,” Thompson says. “That’s the UT pathway.”
-
Wide variety of courses
Several streams of study – both in arts and sciences – are available for students choosing university transfer courses at CNC.
“It may be surprising to some students,” Penny says. “We teach philosophy and anthropology, history and literature, chemistry and engineering, and all kinds of things they may not associate with CNC.”
The variety of options also means flexibility in customizing an educational plan.
“You have a lot of leeway to design your own program, to choose your own classes, to develop your own schedule and to change your mind,” Thompson says.
Students can even take a single class or single semester to get themselves started.
“This is a good place to get some traction, make some decisions and then move on,” Penny says.
-
Build a foundation for your life
Starting a university education at CNC and eventually earning a degree – or degrees – gives a person invaluable tools for the future and leads to rewarding careers and lifestyles.
“The World Economic Forum has been saying that 70 per cent of the jobs in which current high school students will work don’t yet exist,” Thompson says. “And so this idea of learning how to learn, the foundation for learning, these university-level programs are teaching you how to adjust, change, continue and be ready for whatever happens.”
For more information on university transfer courses, speak with a CNC advisor or visit the BC Council on Admissions and Transfer website at https://www.bctransferguide.ca.