UBC International Scholars Program 2027: A Guide for Nigerian Students

The UBC International Scholars Program is the University of British Columbia’s main award scheme for new international undergraduates who combine outstanding results with genuine financial need. It is built for students who have shown leadership and made a real contribution to their school or community, but whose families cannot pay for a degree in Canada. Nigerian students entering their first degree directly from secondary school can apply, and there is no country exclusion. Awards are decided after a financial assessment of your family. The deadline is 25 November 2026 at 12:00 pm Pacific Time, which is 9:00 pm the same day in Nigeria.

Quick Facts

Item	Detail
Deadline	25 November 2026 at 12:00 pm Pacific Time (extended from 15 November)
Level	Undergraduate, first degree only
Host country and institution	Canada, University of British Columbia (Vancouver and Okanagan campuses)
Funding	Need and merit based awards across four categories; UBC does not publish fixed award amounts for this programme
Who can apply	International students entering UBC directly from secondary school, with superior grades and significant financial need

Who Is Eligible

You must meet every requirement below. UBC states that there are no exceptions to the eligibility criteria.

• You are an international student who will study in Canada on a Canadian study permit.
• You are entering UBC directly from an accredited secondary school.
• For the 2027 Winter session, you graduated from high school no earlier than June 2026.
• You are applying for your first undergraduate degree.
• You can prove a significant level of financial need. UBC’s position is that it would be impossible for you to pursue a UBC degree without meaningful financial help, and you will be required to submit official documents that demonstrate your need.
• Your family is not able to afford a significant level of your educational costs and does not have access to external funding.
• You meet UBC’s admission requirements, including the general and degree-specific requirements, and you meet UBC’s English Language Admission Standard.
• You demonstrate superior academic achievement. UBC describes this as achieving all As or the equivalent standard.

Some degrees cannot be funded through this programme: the Bachelor of Nursing on both campuses, the Bachelor of Dental Science in Dental Hygiene, the Bachelor of Medical Laboratory Science, the Bachelor plus Master of Management degree, dual degrees, joint degrees between the two UBC campuses, and joint degrees with other institutions.

One important choice: if you apply to the International Scholars Program, you will not be considered for UBC’s merit-based awards. UBC asks you to review its merit and entrance award options first and decide which route fits your situation, because you can only be considered for one of the two.

What the Scholarship Covers

The programme offers four categories of need and merit based awards. You do not choose a category when you apply. UBC automatically considers you for the awards you are eligible for. The categories recognise different strengths: leadership that empowers others, academic excellence achieved under difficult circumstances such as poverty or war, leadership on sustainability and social justice issues, and outstanding students who enter through Vantage College because they do not yet meet the English Language Admission Standard for direct entry.

UBC does not state fixed award values for these categories on its programme pages. Your award is based on a financial assessment that reviews your family’s gross income, expenses and assets, and works out how much support you would require to live and study at UBC after all your own resources are counted. For the Vantage One Excellence Award, UBC states that awards range in value up to the full cost of a student’s academic program and living expenses.

Beyond the money, scholars get dedicated International Scholars Program advisors who support their academic, personal and career development, plus skill building workshops and retreats, and the option to take part in exchange and co-op placements.

If you are comparing several major awards side by side, our guide to fully funded scholarships for Africans shows how the UBC programme sits alongside other schemes open to Nigerian students.

How to Apply

UBC recommends starting as early as possible, because applications begun shortly before the deadline are less likely to succeed. The applicant is responsible for starting the award application, requesting a nomination, requesting a teacher referee, collecting the required information and submitting on time.

1. Decide on your academic program and campus. You will be considered for the awards based on your first choice program, so choose it carefully, and still select a second choice program.
2. Discuss the nomination with your school. You need one nominator, such as a guidance counsellor, principal or administrator, and one teacher referee who knows you and your work in your chosen area of study. They must be two different people. A high school can nominate up to two students for UBC Vancouver, including Vantage College, and one student for UBC Okanagan.
3. Apply for admission to UBC. You must complete your UBC admissions application before you can start the award application, because the award application asks for confirmation that you have applied.
4. Create your award application account. Before you start, set the time zone in your application settings to Pacific Time. Then invite your nominator and teacher referee from your tasks area using the Nomination form and Request a Recommendation options, and follow up with both of them to confirm they received the invitation.
5. Complete your own sections of the award application. You will provide your family’s annual income and expenses, family wealth and assets, dependents and their annual school fees, and your sources of financial support. You can use UBC’s cost estimator to calculate your family contribution and financial need. You will also add extracurricular information, awards you have won, and answers to four essay questions of roughly 150 to 250 words each.
6. Submit the completed application by 25 November 2026 at 12:00 pm Pacific Time. Your nominator and teacher referee should complete and submit their forms a few days before this date, because you cannot complete your award application until both forms have been submitted.
7. Submit your admission documents by 31 January. A few weeks after you apply to UBC, you will get an email titled “Your UBC Application: Next Steps”. As an International Scholars applicant, your document deadline is 31 January, not the date in that email. You must also meet the English Language Admission Standard by 31 January, so sit any required English test early enough for UBC to receive your official results by then.
8. Prepare for a possible video interview between January and March. Invited applicants get one week to record their video responses on the online platform. Results are released on a rolling basis from February to April, and UBC expects to tell all applicants whether they have received an award by early to mid April. If you plan to apply for UBC housing, wait until award decisions are released. The housing application deadline is 1 May.

Questions about the programme or the nomination process can be sent to international.awards@ubc.ca with your full name.

Documents to Prepare

• Official documents that prove your family’s financial position: gross income, expenses and family assets. These are required for the financial assessment.
• Financial details for the application form itself: annual income and expenses, dependents and their school fees, and any sources of financial support.
• Your nomination form, completed by your school nominator through the application system.
• A recommendation from your teacher referee, submitted through the application system.
• Answers to the four essay questions, each roughly 150 to 250 words.
• Your high school transcripts or academic certificates, submitted by 31 January. If they are not available by 31 January, submit them as soon as they become available.
• Official English language test results, if you need a test to meet UBC’s English Language Admission Standard, received by UBC by 31 January.

Common Mistakes

• Starting the application a few days before the deadline. UBC warns that late starters are less likely to succeed, because the nomination, referee forms, essays and financial information all take time.
• Leaving the time zone in your application account on the wrong setting. UBC specifically advises setting it to Pacific Time before you begin, and the deadline is 12:00 pm Pacific Time, not midnight.
• Choosing the same person as nominator and teacher referee. UBC requires two different people.
• Assuming your award application is complete while your nominator or referee has not submitted. Your application cannot be completed until both forms are in.
• Applying for a degree that the programme does not fund, such as Nursing or the Bachelor plus Master of Management.
• Using the document date in the “Next Steps” email instead of 31 January. International Scholars applicants have their own document deadline.
• Applying for this programme when your family could actually fund a large share of your degree. The scheme is reserved for significant, proven financial need, and the financial assessment will test that.

Key Takeaways

• The UBC International Scholars Program is a need and merit based scheme for new international undergraduates entering directly from secondary school.
• The application deadline is 25 November 2026 at 12:00 pm Pacific Time, and it was extended from 15 November.
• You need a school nomination, a separate teacher referee, a completed UBC admission application, essays and detailed family financial information.
• UBC does not publish fixed award amounts for the programme. Your funding follows a formal assessment of your family’s finances.
• Admission documents and the English language standard must be sorted by 31 January, even though the award application closes in November.

Frequently asked questions

Can Nigerians apply for the UBC International Scholars Program? Yes. The programme is open to international students who will study in Canada on a Canadian study permit, and UBC states no country exclusion. Nigerian applicants must be entering their first undergraduate degree directly from secondary school, show superior academic achievement, and prove significant financial need.

What is the deadline for the UBC International Scholars Program? The deadline is 25 November 2026 at 12:00 pm Pacific Time, which is 9:00 pm the same day in Nigeria. UBC extended it from the original date of 15 November 2026. Your nominator and teacher referee should submit their forms a few days earlier, because your application cannot be completed without them.

How much is the UBC International Scholars award worth? UBC does not publish fixed amounts for this programme. There are four categories of need and merit based awards, and your funding is worked out from a financial assessment of your family’s income, expenses and assets. For the Vantage One Excellence Award, UBC states that awards range up to the full cost of the academic program and living expenses.

I finished secondary school before June 2026. Can I still apply? No. For the 2027 Winter session, applicants must have graduated from high school no earlier than June 2026, and they must be entering UBC directly from an accredited secondary school for their first undergraduate degree.

Do I need my school’s involvement to apply? Yes. Your school must nominate you. You need one nominator, such as a counsellor, principal or administrator, and a separate teacher referee. A school can nominate up to two students for UBC Vancouver and one student for UBC Okanagan.

If I apply for the International Scholars Program, can I still receive UBC merit scholarships? No. UBC states that if you apply to the International Scholars Program, you will not be considered for its merit-based awards. You should compare both routes before applying and choose the one that fits your academic record and financial situation.

Last updated: 7 November 2026

Apply through the official UBC application page: 2027 International Scholars Program Application