Canadian college/university

Admission from a Canadian college or university

General requirements

You must have attempted a minimum of 24 units of transferable post-secondary course work, and may transfer up to a maximum of 60 units toward your degree program. If you have completed 9 - 23 units and are in good academic standing (you have a minimum GPA of a 2.0) you will be required to meet the high school admission requirements.

If you are not in good standing or have a GPA of less than 2.00 ( 60%), you will not be admitted.

Admission is competitive. In the past, the average for admission has ranged from a 2.50 GPA to a 3.50 GPA depending on the program - for details see admission averages. Note: an admission average is calculated on all transferable courses attempted.

In addition to the general and program-specific admission requirements (listed below), you must meet our English language admission requirement and Quantitative skills requirement. If you do not meet these requirements on your college or university work, we may request your high school transcript.

Transfer credit

We will assess possible transfer credit only after we have received your admission application. We may request that you provide detailed course outlines, which should include:

  • a statement of course objective(s)
  • the duration/number of weeks (excluding final exam period)
  • hours per week of lecture (laboratory / tutorial / seminar / studio work) and the hours per week of required open laboratory work or open studio work
  • the method of evaluation and grading
  • the textbook(s) used
  • the amount of credit/units earned
Detailed course outlines can be emailed to transfer_credit@sfu.ca 

Information for applicants from BC colleges

A BC/Yukon transfer guide listing all first and second year transferable courses along with the SFU equivalent is available at www.bctransferguide.ca. Courses not listed in the transfer guide are not transferable.

BC Associate of Arts or Science degree holders will receive preference in admission, with a GPA 0.25 points less than the GPA required for regular transfer, but not less than 2.00 overall. If individually assigned transfer credit totals less than 60, the remainder will be general elective credit.

If you are not in good standing or have been required to withdraw from another post-secondary institution you will be considered for admission only if you have attempted a minimum of 24 units of transferable course work since being required to withdraw. A GPA on the further course work of at least .50 points above the regular admission GPA will be required.

Information for applicants from universities

For university transfer, we support the Pan-Canadian Protocol on transferability of first and second year courses from any recognized Canadian university.

If you are not in good standing or have been required to withdraw from another post-secondary institution you will be considered for admission only if you have attempted a minimum of 24 units of transferable course work since being required to withdraw. A GPA on the further course work of at least .50 points above the regular admission GPA will be required.

Information for applicants from colleges or institutes of applied arts and technology

If you have successfully completed a two or three year academic diploma program at a Canadian Institute of Technology or at a College of Applied Arts and Technology you may be considered for admission with a competitive overall program average. Admission is determined on an individual basis and transfer credit granted is limited.

Information for applicants not in good academic standing or required to withdraw

If you are not in good standing or have been required to withdraw from another post-secondary institution you will be considered for admission only if you have attempted a minimum of 24 units of transferable course work since being required to withdraw. A GPA on the further course work of at least .50 points above the regular admission GPA will be required.

Degree holders

If you have completed an undergraduate degree at a recognized university, you may wish to pursue a second or subsequent degree, or a post baccalaureate diploma or certificate. Your admission average is calculated on course work completed in your last two years as a student, and you are required to meet the Competitive Admission Average for the Faculty/Program applied to.

All applicants must meet the English Language Requirement and the Quantitative and Analytical Skills requirement.

PROGRAM SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS

Faculty of Applied Science

Computing Science, Geographic Information Science, Software Systems

Minimum 24 units of transferable coursework, including:

  • One Mathematics course from: MACM 101, 201, MATH 150 (or 151), 152, 240 (or 232)
  • One Computing Science course from: CMPT 125 (or 126, 128 or 135), 127, 225, 295 (or 150 or 250),276 (or 275)
  • One additional Mathematics or Computing science course chosen from the above lists. 

Engineering Science

A minimum of 24 units of transferable coursework, including:

  • One Mathematics course from: MATH 152, MATH 232 (or 240)
  • One Computing Science course from: CMPT 128 (or 135; or (125 and 127)), 225;
  • One Physics course from: PHYS 121 (or 141), PHYS 221, and PHYS 321.

Mechatronic Systems Engineering

A minimum of 24 units of transferable coursework, including:

  • One MATH course from: Math 152, 232 or 240
  • One Computing course chosen from: CMPT 130, 135 (or 128; or (125 and 127)) or 225
  • One Physics course from: PHYS 140 (or 120), 141 (or 121)

Sustainable Energy Engineering

A minimum of 24 units of transferable coursework, including courses that are accepted by SFU as equivalents to the following:

  • One MATH course from: MATH 152, 232, or 240
  • One CMPT course from: CMPT 130, 128, 135 or (both CMPT 125 and 127)
  • One CHEM course from: CHEM 120/121, 122/126
  • One PHYS course from: PHYS 140, 141, 120, or 121

Applicants must complete a supplemental application. Further instructions will be provided to applicants directly after their application is received.

Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences

Anthropology; Asia-Canada; Cognitive Science; Criminology; Economics; English; Explorations; First Nations; French; French Cohort; Gender, Sexuality and Women's Studies; Gerontology; Hellenic Studies; History; Humanities; International Studies; Labour Studies; Languages; Latin American Studies; Linguistics; Philosophy; Political Science; Psychology; Sociology; World Literature

Beedie School of Business

Accounting, Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Finance, Human Resource Management, International Business, Management Information Systems, Marketing, Operations Management, Strategic Analysis

Minimum of 24 units of transferable course work (minimum grade of C- required), including: 

  • BUS 232 (or BUEC 232 or ECON 233 or STAT 270)
  • BUS 237
  • BUS 251
  • BUS 272
  • ECON 103
  • ECON 105
  • MATH 157 (or 151 or 154)
  • One course chosen from the following list: ENGL 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 199, 1XX, 2XX, PHIL 100, 105 (or 001), 110, 120, 150, WL 101, 103, 104, 105.

Admission decisions for transfer applicants will be based on either a student’s performance on the required courses, or a combination of a student’s academic performance and an assessment of their supplemental application. For details, please see the Beedie School of Business website.

Faculty of Communication, Art and Technology

Communication

Contemporary Arts

Interactive Arts and Technology

Faculty of Education

Bachelor of General Studies

Bachelor of Education

Faculty of Environment

Bachelor of Arts - Archaeology, Human Geography

Bachelor of Science - Environmental Science, Geographic Information Science, Physical Geography

Bachelor of Environment - Resource and Environmental Management, Global Environmental Systems

Faculty of Health Sciences

Bachelor of Arts

Bachelor of Science

Faculty of Science

Behavioral Neuroscience, Biological Sciences, Biomedical Physiology and Kinesiology, Chemistry, Data Science, Earth Sciences, General Science, Mathematics, Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Physics, Statistics and Actuarial Science

Diverse Qualifications 

Admission pathway for students who meet minimum admission standards and have demonstrated commitment or excellence in other endeavours, or who have succeeded in their studies despite difficult circumstances.