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The University of British Columbia
- a place of mind
- The University of British Columbia
- Centre for Sustainable Food Systems at UBC Farm
UBC Farm Practicum students gain a rich complement of hands-on learning and classroom-based theory.
The UBC Farm Practicum in Sustainable Agriculture is an eight-month experiential learning program designed for aspiring farmers, urban gardeners, environmental educators, and students with an interest in applying their learning about sustainable agriculture and food systems. Students bring a diversity of backgrounds and life experience to the practicum. Our program graduates share a vision of livelihoods and lifestyles grounded in sustainable and community-based food systems.
For full program details, please refer to the UBC Farm Practicum Overview.
Seed saving workshop
The practicum program is hosted at the UBC Farm, a living laboratory of the Faculty of Land and Food Systems. The UBC Farm is the site of the majority of farming activities, guest speaker presentations, and classroom sessions. Practicum students also have the opportunity to travel to a number of local farm operations, produce distributors, and farmers’ markets to provide a regionally grounded food system context, and to make personal connections with experienced food growers.
The 2012 practicum program runs from March 10th through November 3rd.
The scheduled program hours are:
An additional 5 hours per week outside of program hours may be needed to establish and care for students’ personal and shared research plots.
Practicum students gain a diverse range of production and marketing skills through direct involvement in farm operations
The 2012 practicum tuition is $3,200. The cost to the UBC Farm for facilities, supplies, instruction, and travel to regional farms is roughly $8,000 per student. The farming and marketing tasks contributed by each student as part of their hands-on learning offset these additional costs. As of the 2011 season, a $400 reimbursement was made available to UBC students concurrently enrolled in practicum-focused, for-credit Directed Study courses. The UBC Farm is in the process of applying for course accreditation as a restricted elective for undergraduates with third-year standing and, when approved, the financial reimbursement per credit hour would be similar. Please contact the UBC Farm for the most current details regarding course accreditation and fee structures.
2009 practicum students on a field trip to Salt Spring Island
Prospective students are strongly encouraged to visit the farm and meet UBC Farm staff prior to applying to the practicum. This gives applicants a better understanding of the hands-on nature of the program, along with a better sense of the UBC Farm community. Interested participants are invited to join in a volunteer session and participate in the vibrant learning community we foster.
The 2012 application deadline has passed. If you would like to be added to the Practicum Program waiting list, please contact ubcfarm.practicum@ubc.ca.
If you have further questions, please contact ubcfarm.practicum@ubc.ca.
