University of British Columbia (Vancouver, BC)

selective, large (35,000 undergraduates) research institution located in one of the world's great cities; consistently ranked as one of the top 50 universities in the world and one of the top 2 or 3 in Canada; not surprisingly it has many strong majors, though social sciences, life sciences and the arts receives the most praise, especially art history, visual arts and Asian languages; facilities are excellent and the campus is beautiful with views overlooking the city, ocean and mountains; Vancouver is a young, vibrant, cosmopolitan city with many great neighborhoods and outdoor activities to explore; local skiing is less than an hour while Whistler is 3 hours up the road; as it is modeled on American universities and draws many international students, UBC would be a comfortable fit for American students; it is highly residential with a more active campus life than one seems to find at some other Canadian universities; entrance requirements are unique based on senior year grades only and standardized test scores; tuition is comparable to out of state tuition at elite US public universities; some financial aid is available for international students and PLUS student/Stafford parent loans can be used for Canadian institutions; a second campus is also offered in Kelowna with 4,000 undergraduates to provide a more intimate learning experience; while admission is competitive, UBC is less selective than its comparable peers in the US while offering a world-class education; students interested in "Public Ivies" like UNC and Michigan or large selective private universities like NYU, Cornell or Boston University should check out UBC at https://you.ubc.ca/ubc/htmlemailupload/File/admission_us_guide.pdf; K