Professor Michael Devereux, inaugural Director of the new Vancouver School of Economics at UBC

“The Vancouver School of Economics will expand UBC’s place as a global leader in economic policy,” says Professor Michael Devereux, the school’s inaugural Director. “This new centre will educate the next generation of global policy leaders – both those in Canada and other countries – and help to inform policy solutions for our challenging global economy.”

With the expansion, UBC will add roughly 10 top global scholars, 328 economics student spaces and a new and distinct undergraduate degree, a Bachelor of International Economics (BIE).

“This bold initiative will help us offer globally oriented training, build deeper relationships with alumni, provide great new research experiences for faculty and students, and expand UBC’s contribution to policy debates, locally, nationally and internationally,” says Gage Averill, Dean of UBC’s Faculty of Arts.

The four-year BIE degree will prepare students for leadership positions in the field of international economics. UBC’s Sauder School of Business will be a supporting partner for the program in offering commerce courses with specific international foci.

The program, which pairs international and domestic students together in small classes, will meet labour market demand for undergraduate level graduates with an in-depth understanding of global economics and commerce, and applied experience through research projects, exchange programs, internships and co-op placements.

The new faculty and students will join the school’s more than 700 undergraduate and graduate students and more than 50 faculty focused on a wide range of topics, including banking policy, taxation effects, global macroeconomics, labour market and skills development and gender and environmental economics.