Life at UBC

The University is situated at the western tip of a peninsula adjacent to the Point Grey neighbourhood of Vancouver. From campus, there is access to beaches and coastal shoreline. The Economics Department is situated on the 9th and 10th floors of Buchanan Tower, offering spectacular views of the city, the coastal mountain range, and the waters of Georgia Strait and Howe Sound.

The department has its own computer lab for the exclusive use of our graduate students. The department lounge offers a comfortable space to chat with colleagues and faculty over coffee, and, of course, a whiteboard where issues of debate can be analyzed and worked-out explicitly! The UBC Library collection numbers over one million volumes. In terms of economics material, the holdings are particularly extensive in serial publications and the post-war literature.

The Graduate Student Centre, which all graduate students are members, is nearby and has facilities for social activities. Starting around 5:30pm on Friday afternoons, a beer garden is held at the Centre, and is well attended by both students and faculty from the department.

In addition to these informal gatherings, the department holds regular social activities during the year. These include the Grad Student Welcome Party in September, and the Department Holiday Party in December where students and faculty perform skits and receive a visit from Santa Claus himself! Members of our department also take part in activities such as intramural sports and the annual 10km Vancouver Sun Run.

Buffering the university and the city is Pacific Spirit Park which offers kilometres of jogging, hiking and biking paths. Immediately off-campus is the neighbourhood of Point Grey, with attractive homes, tree-lined streets, restaurants, coffeehouses, bookstores, and neighbourhood conveniences.

Vancouver is a cosmopolitan and ethnically-diverse city, consistently ranked as one of the “most liveable cities in the world” according to rankings by The Economist, Mercer Human Resource Consulting, and others. The city offers many cultural attractions, including annual film, folk, and jazz festivals. Downtown offers a lively local music scene, and is just a 20 minute trip from campus. The Museum of Anthropology at UBC is internationally renowned for its collections.

Recreational activities abound in Vancouver. Beaches and sailing centres are located close to campus. Stanley Park offers endless rainforest trails for jogging, hiking and biking. The Seawall allows you to walk or bike for hours while taking in views of the water, mountain, and city skyline. Local skiing is just a 30 minute drive from the city, and the world-class ski destination of Whistler-Blackcomb is just one-and-a-half hours away.

Finally, getting around town is easy, as the city is compact and well-organized. All UBC students are given a U-Pass, which provides access to Vancouver’s frequent and efficient public transit system.