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Overview

Offered by the Occupational and Environmental Health Division in the School of Population and Public Health (SPPH), this Master of Science program leads to professional or research careers that make a difference to community and work environments and to people's health.

The "occupational and environmental hygiene" field refers to recognition, evaluation and control of chemical, physical and biological hazards in workplaces and the community. The MSc OEH program teaches the sciences of exposure measurement, exposure control, and assessment of health effects of occupational and environmental exposures.

Students come to the program from diverse undergraduate backgrounds, including biology, chemistry, engineering, geography, kinesiology, laboratory science, microbiology, nursing, medicine, physics, psychology, and resource management. This diversity provides a stimulating and creative learning environment as each student brings their specialized knowledge to bear on problem solving.

 
 

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Program Enquiries

Still have questions after reviewing this page thoroughly?
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Meet a Representative

MSc OEH Open House

2206 East Mall, Vancouver, BC Canada V6T 1Z3
Date: Tuesday, 19 November 2024
Time: 12:00 to 13:30

Admissions is now open for Master of Science in Occupational and Environmental Hygiene at the University of British Columbia! This degree could open doors to exciting careers in research, policy, hygiene, health, and safety, offering competitive salaries. The application deadline is January 15, 2025. Apply to become a leader in OEH! The UBC Master of Science in Occupational and Environmental Hygiene program invites you to our Open House event on Tuesday, November 19, 2024, from 12:00 to 1:30 pm. Meet faculty members, students, and staff while experiencing the program firsthand. Get to know the program better through an interactive game, and enter a draw to win prizes. We’ll provide snacks, but registration is required. Register to attend by completing this form.

Admission Information & Requirements

1) Check Eligibility

Minimum Academic Requirements

The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies establishes the minimum admission requirements common to all applicants, usually a minimum overall average in the B+ range (76% at UBC). The graduate program that you are applying to may have additional requirements. Please review the specific requirements for applicants with credentials from institutions in:

Each program may set higher academic minimum requirements. Please review the program website carefully to understand the program requirements. Meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission as it is a competitive process.

English Language Test

Applicants from a university outside Canada in which English is not the primary language of instruction must provide results of an English language proficiency examination as part of their application. Tests must have been taken within the last 24 months at the time of submission of your application.

Minimum requirements for the two most common English language proficiency tests to apply to this program are listed below:

TOEFL: Test of English as a Foreign Language - internet-based

Overall score requirement: 100

Reading

22

Writing

21

Speaking

21

Listening

22

IELTS: International English Language Testing System

Overall score requirement: 7.0

Reading

6.5

Writing

6.5

Speaking

6.5

Listening

6.5

Other Test Scores

Some programs require additional test scores such as the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Graduate Management Test (GMAT). The requirements for this program are:

The GRE is required by some applicants. Please check the program website.

2) Meet Deadlines

September 2025 Intake

Application Open Date
15 October 2024
Canadian Applicants
Application Deadline: 15 January 2025
Transcript Deadline: 15 January 2025
Referee Deadline: 23 January 2025
International Applicants
Application Deadline: 15 January 2025
Transcript Deadline: 15 January 2025
Referee Deadline: 23 January 2025

3) Prepare Application

Transcripts

All applicants have to submit transcripts from all past post-secondary study. Document submission requirements depend on whether your institution of study is within Canada or outside of Canada.

Letters of Reference

A minimum of three references are required for application to graduate programs at UBC. References should be requested from individuals who are prepared to provide a report on your academic ability and qualifications.

Statement of Interest

Many programs require a statement of interest, sometimes called a "statement of intent", "description of research interests" or something similar.

Supervision

Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.

Instructions regarding thesis supervisor contact for Master of Science in Occupational and Environmental Hygiene (MSc)
Applicants should browse faculty profiles and indicate in their application who they are interested in working with. No commitment from a supervisor prior to applying is necessary, but contacting faculty members is encouraged.

Citizenship Verification

Permanent Residents of Canada must provide a clear photocopy of both sides of the Permanent Resident card.

4) Apply Online

All applicants must complete an online application form and pay the application fee to be considered for admission to UBC.

Tuition & Financial Support

Tuition

FeesCanadian Citizen / Permanent Resident / Refugee / DiplomatInternational
Application Fee$116.25$168.25
Tuition *
Installments per year33
Tuition per installment$1,838.57$5,130.99
Tuition per year
(plus annual increase, usually 2%-5%)
$5,515.71$15,392.97
Int. Tuition Award (ITA) per year (if eligible) $3,200.00 (-)
Other Fees and Costs
Student Fees (yearly)$1,116.60 (approx.)
Costs of livingEstimate your costs of living with our interactive tool in order to start developing a financial plan for your graduate studies.
* Regular, full-time tuition. For on-leave, extension, continuing or part time (if applicable) fees see UBC Calendar.
All fees for the year are subject to adjustment and UBC reserves the right to change any fees without notice at any time, including tuition and student fees. Tuition fees are reviewed annually by the UBC Board of Governors. In recent years, tuition increases have been 2% for continuing domestic students and between 2% and 5% for continuing international students. New students may see higher increases in tuition. Admitted students who defer their admission are subject to the potentially higher tuition fees for incoming students effective at the later program start date. In case of a discrepancy between this webpage and the UBC Calendar, the UBC Calendar entry will be held to be correct.

Financial Support

Applicants to UBC have access to a variety of funding options, including merit-based (i.e. based on your academic performance) and need-based (i.e. based on your financial situation) opportunities.

Scholarships & awards (merit-based funding)

All applicants are encouraged to review the awards listing to identify potential opportunities to fund their graduate education. The database lists merit-based scholarships and awards and allows for filtering by various criteria, such as domestic vs. international or degree level.

Graduate Research Assistantships (GRA)

Many professors are able to provide Research Assistantships (GRA) from their research grants to support full-time graduate students studying under their supervision. The duties constitute part of the student's graduate degree requirements. A Graduate Research Assistantship is considered a form of fellowship for a period of graduate study and is therefore not covered by a collective agreement. Stipends vary widely, and are dependent on the field of study and the type of research grant from which the assistantship is being funded.

Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTA)

Graduate programs may have Teaching Assistantships available for registered full-time graduate students. Full teaching assistantships involve 12 hours work per week in preparation, lecturing, or laboratory instruction although many graduate programs offer partial TA appointments at less than 12 hours per week. Teaching assistantship rates are set by collective bargaining between the University and the Teaching Assistants' Union.

Graduate Academic Assistantships (GAA)

Academic Assistantships are employment opportunities to perform work that is relevant to the university or to an individual faculty member, but not to support the student’s graduate research and thesis. Wages are considered regular earnings and when paid monthly, include vacation pay.

Financial aid (need-based funding)

Canadian and US applicants may qualify for governmental loans to finance their studies. Please review eligibility and types of loans.

All students may be able to access private sector or bank loans.

Foreign government scholarships

Many foreign governments provide support to their citizens in pursuing education abroad. International applicants should check the various governmental resources in their home country, such as the Department of Education, for available scholarships.

Working while studying

The possibility to pursue work to supplement income may depend on the demands the program has on students. It should be carefully weighed if work leads to prolonged program durations or whether work placements can be meaningfully embedded into a program.

International students enrolled as full-time students with a valid study permit can work on campus for unlimited hours and work off-campus for no more than 20 hours a week.

A good starting point to explore student jobs is the UBC Work Learn program or a Co-Op placement.

Tax credits and RRSP withdrawals

Students with taxable income in Canada may be able to claim federal or provincial tax credits.

Canadian residents with RRSP accounts may be able to use the Lifelong Learning Plan (LLP) which allows students to withdraw amounts from their registered retirement savings plan (RRSPs) to finance full-time training or education for themselves or their partner.

Please review Filing taxes in Canada on the student services website for more information.

Cost Estimator

Applicants have access to the cost estimator to develop a financial plan that takes into account various income sources and expenses.

Career Options

Graduates of this program often become certified professionals after writing the exams offered by either the Canadian Registration Board of Occupational Hygienists or the American Board of Industrial Hygiene.

Enrolment, Duration & Other Stats

These statistics show data for the Master of Science in Occupational and Environmental Hygiene (MSc). Data are separated for each degree program combination. You may view data for other degree options in the respective program profile.

ENROLMENT DATA

 20232022202120202019
Applications6664734740
Offers2015121618
New Registrations1413101011
Total Enrolment2724232219

Completion Rates & Times

This program has a graduation rate of 95% based on 42 students admitted between 2015 - 2018. Based on 38 graduations between 2020 - 2023 the minimum time to completion is 1.7 years and the maximum time is 3.07 years with an average of 1.85 years of study. All calculations exclude leave times.
Disclaimer
Admissions data refer to all UBC Vancouver applications, offers, new registrants for each registration year, May to April, e.g. data for 2022 refers to programs starting in 2022 Summer and 2022 Winter session, i.e. May 1, 2022 to April 30, 2023. Data on total enrolment reflects enrolment in Winter Session Term 1 and are based on snapshots taken on November 1 of each registration year. Program completion data are only provided for datasets comprised of more than 4 individuals. Graduation rates exclude students who transfer out of their programs. Rates and times of completion depend on a number of variables (e.g. curriculum requirements, student funding), some of which may have changed in recent years for some programs.

Research Supervisors

Supervision

Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.

Instructions regarding thesis supervisor contact for Master of Science in Occupational and Environmental Hygiene (MSc)
Applicants should browse faculty profiles and indicate in their application who they are interested in working with. No commitment from a supervisor prior to applying is necessary, but contacting faculty members is encouraged.
 
Advice and insights from UBC Faculty on reaching out to supervisors

These videos contain some general advice from faculty across UBC on finding and reaching out to a supervisor. They are not program specific.

 

This list shows faculty members with full supervisory privileges who are affiliated with this program. It is not a comprehensive list of all potential supervisors as faculty from other programs or faculty members without full supervisory privileges can request approvals to supervise graduate students in this program.

  • Amri, Michelle (Global Health Ethics; normative nature of health equity; Health Equity; Public Policy; Governance; Global Health; International health)
  • Brauer, Michael (Environmental and occupational health and safety; Health sciences; Public and population health; air pollution; built environment; Community Health / Public Health; environmental health; environmental epidemiology; healthy cities; remote sensing)
  • Davies, Hugh William (Environmental and occupational health and safety; Health sciences; Public and population health; Antineoplastic drug hazards; Community Health / Public Health; environmental health; Exposure Assessment; Noise and Health; Occupational Health; Occupational Safety and Health)
  • Kalua, Khumbo (Population health interventions; Infectious diseases; Global health; Epidemiology (except nutritional and veterinary epidemiology); Neglected Tropical Eye Diseases; Global Eye Health; Cluster Randomized Trials; Implementation Science; International Global Health; Community Based Research; Clinical trials)
  • Koehoorn, Mieke (Occupational health, injury, compensation policies, Worksafe BC, Gender Work and Health)
  • McLeod, Christopher (occupational heath and the social epidemiology of the working life course.)
  • Poon, Brenda (Population-level early identification and early intervention for children with special needs; Complex systems of coordinated service delivery and supports; Family-centered services; Integrated child health information systems; Community-based research regarding social determinants of children)
  • Yassi, Annalee (occupational health, health of health workers, international health, global health, community-based research, capacity building, Latin America, evidence-based best practices, workplace injury and illness prevention, HIV and TB prevention and care for health workers, South Africa )

Further Information

The program's major research themes include acoustics, noise and vibration; exposure assessment; analytical methods development using immunological, biological, chemical and microsensor methods; occupational and environmental epidemiology; and risk assessment and translation of research to policy.

Faculty Overview

Program Identifier

VGMMSC-SV
 

Apply Now

If you don't have a UBC Campus-Wide Login (CWL) please create an account first.
 

September 2025 Intake

Application Open Date
15 October 2024
Canadian Applicant Deadline
15 January 2025
International Applicant Deadline
15 January 2025
 
Supervisor Search
 

Departments/Programs may update graduate degree program details through the Faculty & Staff portal. To update contact details for application inquiries, please use this form.

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