For high school graduates we will be looking for a number of grade 11 and 12 courses, and strong grades in the A and B range. You can browse admission requirements for students attending a Canadian high school here, US high schools here, and international high school here.

If you have 24 or more transferable credits (about one full year of study), you will be considered for admission as a transfer student. Admission requirements for Faculty of Science programs can be found here. If you have 23 or fewer transferable credits, you will be considered for admission as a High School graduate (though you would still receive transfer credits for relevant work).

Students who have previously completed a degree will be considered for admission as a university graduate. On the application form you will be able to select a Science non-degree program, and once admitted would have access to take a single course (or more if you choose). All applicants, including non-degree seeking applicants, will also need to meet SFU's English and Quantitative requirements. 

You will apply initially as a non-degree seeking student and, once at SFU, work with departmental advisors to declare a major in a second degree. A second bachelor’s degree must be in a different subject than the first.

Visiting students currently attending another post-secondary school should follow these admission requirements and obtain a Letter of Permission (LoP) from their ‘home’ school. For graduates, no LoP is needed and they should follow these requirements.

One thing I do always want to mention to prospective visiting/non-degree seeking students is that we cannot guarantee you will be able to enroll in the course you want to take. SFU students completing their degree with us have priority access to course enrollment over visiting/non-degree seeking students and the courses can fill up. Non-degree students will need to meet all the equivalent pre-requisites for the course(s) they want to take, and not every course is offered every term. It is important to note that some courses are not open to visiting/non-degree seeking students and reserved exclusively for SFU students completing a major in a related program, such as BPK 326.

Our application periods are:

• Fall (September) 2026 | apply October 1 – January 31 (high school students) or March 1 - April 15 (transfer students)
• Spring (January) 2027 | apply August 1 - September 15
• Summer (May) 2027 | apply December 1 - January 15

A great way to start thinking about what you might want to major in is to consider the high school or college courses you enjoyed, and use that as a springboard to explore in the Faculty of Science. We recommend checking out the SFU calendar so you can browse every program available to you.

When you apply, you will be asked if you would like to select a specific program, or you can be “undeclared” in the Faculty of Science – there is no difference in the admission requirements so no pressure! Sometimes students might change their minds about a program during the application process or in their first year, and our staff can assist with that too.

Joint majors are a bit unique in that students cannot enter them directly - you will start off in one program and then add the second. Generally speaking for adding the second program, students will need good grades and to complete some pre-requisite courses once at SFU

The Faculty of Health Sciences and Faculty of Science definitely have a fair amount of overlap - both offer Bachelor of Science (BSc) degrees, and both are popular among students interested in pursuing careers in medicine. Quite a few folks will even do a major in Science and minor in Health Science, and vice versa. The biggest difference between our Faculties is that Health Sciences is very focused on topics like infectious disease, global population health, and policy - what impacts the world on a large scale . More information about their programs can be found here.

Comparatively, many programs in the Faculty of Science tend to be studied on a smaller scale, like one human body, one species of animal, or a collection of cells. The Biomedical Physiology program tends to be a good fit for students interested in everything from family medicine to surgery, Chemistry and MBB for students interested in research in fields like genetics and cancer, etc. Either Health Sciences or Science would prepare you well for medical school in the future!

Offers of admission for Summer 2026 are typically sent between January and March, with some offers going out in April after final grades are received.

The Undergraduate Admissions Office has begun evaluating applications and started sending out offers of admission in late 2025. Offers of admission will continue to be sent throughout March, April and May, and for transfer student even some over the summer

For admission to the Faculty of Science for high school graduates, it is not required to have all three science courses. For many programs in our Faculty of Science, you will likely need to take courses that have Chemistry 12, Physics 12, or Biology/Anatomy & Physiology 12 as a pre-requisite. If you haven’t taken the course you need in high school, there are other courses at SFU you can take to meet that pre-requisite, or you can complete the grade 12 course you need through adult education in a school district. If you have transferred from another college or university, you may have completed a transferable course that meets a pre-requisite in some cases.

Faculty of Science programs are based at the Burnaby campus, so that's where the vast majority of our classes are. However, it is also an option to take first-year courses at the Surrey campus as we offer quite a few of them out there as well. If you would like to take your courses at the Surrey campus and you didn’t list it on your application, contact Nadia Williams at science_advisor@sfu.ca

For most students admitted for Fall 2026, the deadline to accept your offer of admission is May 1. For students admitted from mid-April onward, we have rolling deadlines typically one-to-two weeks after the offer of admission is made. For students admitted to Summer 2026, your deadline is also rolling. Admitted students can find their deadline in their acceptance email/letter

We in the Faculty cannot extend deadlines which are set by the Undergraduate Admissions Office. You can reach out to them online here or at 778-782-6930, but in the mean time I would recommend you make your plans assuming the deadline cannot be changed.

PALs will be provided to students after they have accepted their offer of admission and paid their confirmation deposit. If you have accepted your offer but not received a PAL yet, reach out to the Undergraduate Admissions Office online here or at 778-782-6930, and International Services for Students (ISS) at iss_office@sfu.ca or 778-782-4232.

We will be looking to see students complete their in-progress courses with grades in the same competitive range as when they were admitted (mid-to-high 80s for high school students, and approximately a 2.8 GPA for transfer students). Further details on conditions can be found here.

Online courses need to be 50% by March 15, and 100% complete by June 30. Full details can be found here.

On your student centre at https://applicant.sfu.ca and you can select "Transfer Credit Report" under the "Academics" header. You can compare how these align with the degree requirements for your major using the SFU calendar.

1XX credits means general credits within a subject, which count towards the total needed to graduate but cannot replace a specific course (for example, BPK 1XX cannot be used in place of completing BPK142 as part of a degree). These credits are usually helpful for fulfilling elective requirements.

I know the 'illegal repeat' phrasing looks concerning, but rest assured it is nothing to worry about! It just means you have more than one course that meets SFU's FAN or FAL requirements. Rest assured it is nothing to worry about.

If you’ve been admitted and would like to change your program from one Faculty of Science program to another, contact Claire Wilson at science_recruiter@sfu.ca and she will assist you. If you would like to change to another Faculty, you can contact the Undergraduate Admissions Office to see if it is possible to change your program on your application form. If it is not possible, you will need to pursue an internal transfer to that Faculty and should contact the academic advisor for your intended program.

When you are ready to make a decision, simply sign on to your student centre at https://applicant.sfu.ca and select "Accept or Decline" - if accepting your offer, you will need to pay the admission deposit to hold your spot. This is not an extra fee, it will be applied towards your future tuition fees.

Generally speaking no, the Admission Deposit is not refundable. If there are extenuating circumstances that prevent you from attending SFU, such as visa delays or something else outside your control, then it would be possible to request a refund of the admission deposit by contacting the Undergraduate Admissions Office online here or at 778-782-6930.

If you are not able to attend SFU this semester, but would like to attend in the future, you can request a deferral. 

This is something you will want to have updated before tuition is due for the term you are starting at SFU. I would recommend you contact SFU's Records office at urecords@sfu.ca, as they should be able to let you know what documentation they need to update your status.

For students admitted for Fall 2026, selecting your courses will happen in July. From mid-April onward, you will be invited to a course called University Prep which is a great way to start preparing. The New Undergrads page is also useful!

If you’ve been admitted to Summer 2026, I highly recommend connecting with an academic advisor for your program, or one of the staff in Sci-Space.

You can request a deferral after accepting your offer of admission, and deferrals may be granted for up to one full year. An important note is that deferrals are not granted when a student intends on continuing their studies elsewhere. Full details on the admission deferral process can be found here.

Enrollment appointments for Fall 2026 begin in early July and continue all throughout the month. You should be receiving an email with your enrollment date in mid-to-late June.

Which courses you take each semester is up to you! Most full-time students take 3-5 courses each semester, with fewer courses meaning more time for other activities like extra-curriculars or working. Taking fewer courses per term can mean your degree takes longer than 4 years, but this is very normal. For many full time students, 4 courses is considered a manageable courseload. For part-time students, this would typically mean taking 1 or 2 courses a term. For more considerations on course loads, see this page.

It can be a good idea to take a smaller course load in your first term to make the transition to university easier. SFU operates on a tri-semester system, meaning that it offers courses 3 terms per year that you have flexibility on when you take courses.

Usually I recommend taking at least one or two elective classes each term, but this is very flexible!

If your student centre at https://applicant.sfu.ca has changed from a green-check to a blue square that says “Ready to Enroll”, you have successfully accepted your offer of admission – congratulations! If your offer of admission is conditional, make sure you stay on top of those requirements. If you need further assistance, contact the Undergraduate Admissions Office online here or at 778-782-6930.

I would recommend connecting with International Services for Students, who can assist with the study permit application process - they are our resident experts! They can be reached at 778-782-4232 or iss_office@sfu.ca. Here are some of their resources:

• Applying for a study permit
• Welcome Guides
• Travelling to Canada

Faculty of Science programs are based at the Burnaby campus, so that's where the vast majority of our classes are. However, it is also an option to take first-year courses at the Surrey campus as we offer quite a few of them out there as well. If you would like to take your courses at the Surrey campus and you didn’t list it on your application, contact Nadia Williams at science_advisor@sfu.ca

There are some entrance awards and bursaries with a March 31 application deadline. Award and Bursary recipients will be contacted by email between April and June.

The deadline to apply for entrance scholarships has passed. Students who receive an entrance scholarship will be contacted from mid-March to May.

You can see the types of awards, bursaries, and scholarships students can apply for once they are studying at SFU here.

For housing, I recommend applying as soon as possible. SFU Residence offers spots in dorms based on when a student completed their housing application, and since that opened in the Fall the sooner you apply the better. You can learn more about residence and apply here. You can apply to Residence even if you haven't accepted your offer of admission yet.