The Faculty of Medicine’s Vancouver Summer Program (VSP) is a four-week academic program, offering international students a unique opportunity to experience Canadian health and life sciences at its best.
What you might expect/course format
The program consists of a package of two courses, each course comprising approximately 39 hours of class time. Students will learn from experienced faculty, clinicians, investigators and scientists. Classes are highly interactive and may include group discussions, guest lecturers, workshops, research projects, laboratory experiments, and field trips.
As the Faculty of Medicine takes a distributed approach to education, some students can expect to travel to different hospitals or clinical sites for classes or experiential learning, such as an ultrasound biopsy simulation workshop. Students may be responsible for the cost of public transit when attending classes off-UBC campus and participating in field trips.
Eligibility
- Medicine VSP course packages are for international students studying medicine or related sciences (typically in their first 2-3 years of undergraduate studies).
- Students must be at least 19 years of age on the starting date of the program (June 6, 2025).
- Some course packages have prerequisites, please click on each course package below to view this information. If a student does not meet the pre-requisites but is interested in the course package, they can email med.international@ubc.ca to confirm their eligibility to participate.
June 2025 Course Packages
Introduction to Scientific Research in the Hospital Setting
This course will help students review the scientific basis for conducting research in biology, pharmacology and disciplines of medicine, and help them explore advanced methods of clinical (hospital and clinic based) study designs.
Learn from senior doctors, investigators and scientists how to discover better treatments for severely ill patients and acute emergencies, discuss ethical conduct of studies in adults, children and neonates, how to recruit patients and what can be done to improve patient care through scientific research studies.
This course provides students with solid foundation to appraise scientific literature in clinical disciplines including medicine, public health, and pharmacology.
This course offers you exposure to senior and experienced doctors and scientists who do such research in a large hospital and University.
Learn to read English medical literature and have an opportunity to discuss research that will promote care in acute cases such as those in emergency, or chronic diseases such as the research of cancer. With other students and an academic-mentor in a small group you will develop a group-based research proposal for a new study, present it to the entire course and participate in a fun competition to determine the best scientific research proposal. Receive advice and mentorship to implement your scientific research in the future.
Introduction to Clinical Medicine in the Hospital Setting
In this popular offering, VSP Medicine students will visit a large hospital and hear from physicians in several specialties on the active medical life as they diagnose and treat patients.
Explore a unique hands-on experience and visit the Emergency Room of a large hospital. The course will include an intensive course in life-saving emergency procedures, such as inserting intravenous line, resuscitation skills, reading ECG and interpreting x-rays.
Learn how to take history and conduct a physical exam – and work with physician- and surgeon- educators to acquire skills that focus on cardiac, respiratory, and neurological systems. In small group learning style, discuss common emergency complaints such as fever, abdominal pain and rash to learn the foundations of medicine.
Discuss hospital cases in a wide spectrum of diseases, present patient cases of acutely ill and injured patients such as those seen in an emergency department with a heart attach or after car accidents, as well as chronically ill patients such as those with rheumatoid arthritis.
This course includes advanced use of medical simulators to do intubation, defibrillation, managing airways, and more. All with experienced physicians and educators who are passionate about teaching.
Prerequisites: No prerequisites
Minors (students aged under 19 at the start of the program): Not Accepted
For more information
Learn about Lucas Ng’s and Miscah Katawera’s VSP experience here.
Please note that the Course Package content is subject to change.
For VSP Medicine-specific questions, please email the Faculty of Medicine Vancouver Summer Program Team at med.international@ubc.ca.
Student testimonials
– Luis Felipe Sanz, VSP Medicine Student, 2019
Meet Luis and learn about his VSP experience here