Master of Sustainable Forest Management (MSFM)

Overview

The Master of Sustainable Forest Management (MSFM) is a 9-month, course-based master’s program that prepares students for careers as forestry professionals and sets the stage for life-long learning.

The MSFM provides advanced study in natural resource stewardship. Program components include: tree and stand dynamics, forest to landscape: structure and function, forest management, economics and administration of forestry, leadership skills, communication and critical reasoning, information acquisition and analysis, professionalism and ethics.

For specific program requirements, please refer to the departmental program website

What makes the program unique?

The MSFM is accredited by the Canadian Forestry Accreditation Board (CFAB). This enables graduates to apply to become Registered Professional Foresters (RPF) with member agencies of the Canadian Federation of Professional Foresters Associations (CFPFA), including the Association of BC Forest Professionals.

The MSFM program is also accredited by the Society of American Foresters (SAF). MSFM graduates meet the education requirements for the SAF Certified Forester® credential, as well as the education requirements for those US states in which foresters are required to be licensed or registered. Individual states may have additional experience and licensing exam requirements.

Program Structure

As an MSFM student, you will spend 9 months studying full-time on UBC’s Vancouver campus. The program’s curriculum includes a mix of coursework, hands-on fieldwork, and real-world experience, including:

The fundamentals of land management, land info acquisition and analysis, site-level and landscape-level management, and sustainable land management
Two one-week field camps, including one in a research forest
Integration of diverse skills and problems to address

Quick Facts

Faculty Faculty of Forestry

Academic Unit Department of Forest & Conservation Sciences

Specialization Forestry

Mode of delivery In person at UBC Vancouver

Program Components Coursework only

Tuition (First Year) Domestic: 21,021.00 | International: 43,166.00

Tuition & Financial Support

Tuition

Fees	Canadian Citizen / Permanent Resident / Refugee / Diplomat	International
Application Fee	$116.25	$168.25
Tuition *
Installments per year	3	3
Tuition per installment	$7,006.99	$14,388.68
Program Fee	$21,020.97	$43,166.04
Int. Tuition Award (ITA) per year (if eligible)		Not applicable
Other Fees and Costs
Student Fees (yearly)	$1,144.10 (approx.)
Costs of living	Estimate your costs of living with our interactive tool in order to start developing a financial plan for your graduate studies.
Deposit to accept offer (if admitted)
Deposit requirement	$1000.00	$1000.00

* 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.

Program Funding Packages

For funding details, please see our webpage.

Employer support

Organizations may provide their employees with tuition benefits as part of an employment package to support lifelong learning of their workforce.

Scholarships & awards (merit-based funding)

Professional / course-based programs usually do not provide merit-based funding. Some programs may offer bursaries.

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 24 hours a week during academic sessions.

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

Enrolment, Duration & Other Stats

These statistics show data for the Master of Sustainable Forest Management (MSFM). Data are separated for each degree program combination. You may view data for other degree options in the respective program profile.

ENROLMENT DATA

	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019
Applications	47	45	149	97	96
Offers	25	25	25	25	30
New Enrolment	17	18	20	20	23
Total Enrolment	19	18	20	20	23

Completion Rates & Times

This program has a graduation rate of 99% based on 83 students admitted between 2015 - 2018. Based on 80 graduations between 2020 - 2023 the minimum time to completion is 0.68 years and the maximum time is 1.02 years with an average of 0.94 years of study. All calculations exclude leave times.

Disclaimer

Admissions data refer to all UBC Vancouver applications, offers, new enrolment 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.

Program Website

Program Enquiries

If you have reviewed the information on this program page and understand the requirements for this program, you may send an enquiry

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

Overview

What makes the program unique?

Program Structure

Quick Facts

Admission Information & Requirements

1) Check Eligibility

Minimum Academic Requirements

English Language Test

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

IELTS: International English Language Testing System

Other Test Scores

Prior degree, course and other requirements

Course Requirements

2) Meet Deadlines

3) Prepare Application

Transcripts

Letters of Reference

Statement of Interest

Supervision

Citizenship Verification

4) Apply Online

Tuition & Financial Support

Tuition

Financial Support

Program Funding Packages

Employer support

Scholarships & awards (merit-based funding)

Financial aid (need-based funding)

Foreign government scholarships

Working while studying

Tax credits and RRSP withdrawals

Cost Estimator

Career Options

Alumni on Success

Dan Macmaster

Patrice Meteunou

Enrolment, Duration & Other Stats

ENROLMENT DATA

Completion Rates & Times

Disclaimer

Related Programs

Same specialization

Related Disciplines

Further Information

Specialization

UBC Calendar

Program Website

Faculty

Academic Unit

Program Identifier

Classification

Program Enquiries

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