The Minor in Commerce will expose you to various business disciplines, including accounting, finance, marketing, organizational behaviour, and business strategy.
The minor normally takes two years to complete. Enrolment is limited to 200 students per year. Successful completion of this program will result in the notation “Minor in Commerce” being added to your transcript.
The Commerce minor is not available to Bachelor of International Economics (BIE) students, nor students majoring in Interdisciplinary Studies (IDST). For information on applying COMR courses to an IDST program course plan, please connect with IDST advising.
The Minor in Commerce application for Arts students is available each year between March 1st and May 31st.
The biggest motivator for me to pursue a Minor in Commerce in addition to my Major is for my personal development. Many commerce courses involve group work and collaboration, which is a great way to build connections and hone the art of considering the ideas of others. Some of the courses I find the most interesting are Marketing and Strategic Management courses.
Prerequisites
Prerequisites for admission to the Faculty of Arts Minor in Commerce must be completed by the end of the second term of the winter session in which the application is completed and must include:
- The Writing component of the Writing and Research requirement
- Economics 101 and 102 or Economics 310 and 311
- One of Math 100, 102, 104, 110, 120, 180 or 184
Prerequisites taken the following summer will not be considered because the marks will not be available at the time applications are reviewed.
Courses
- COMR 329 (3) Principles of Organizational Behaviour
- COMR 457 (3) Fundamentals of Financial Accounting
- COMR 465 (3) Marketing Management
- COMR 473 (3) Business Finance
- COMR 493 (3) Strategic Management in Business
- One of the following: Commerce 458 (3) Fundamentals of Managerial Accounting or Commerce 398 (3) Introduction to Business Processes and Operations
How to apply
Application
- The Minor in Commerce application for Arts students is available each year between March 1 and May 31.
- Arts students can graduate with up to 2 programs declared, one of which must either be a major or honours program. If you already have two programs declared (e.g. you are double majoring or have a major/minor combination) and you are admitted to the Commerce Minor, you must drop one of your existing majors or the minor in order to make room for the Commerce Minor. It is not possible to graduate with 2 minors.
- Applicants will be notified via email in early June of admission status.
Eligibility
- At least 50% of the upper-level courses toward the Minor in Commerce must be completed at UBC while registered in the BA program.
- You must be eligible for second-year standing (i.e. have completed a minimum of 27 credits including the Writing component of the Writing and Research Requirement) by the end of the current session.
- It is possible to apply in your second, third, or fourth year, and you may apply more than once if your application is unsuccessful. Applying in your fourth year could extend your degree as it may not be possible to complete the minor requirements in one year due to course scheduling.
- You must have a minimum cumulative average of 60%. Your cumulative average will be calculated based on all work previously attempted towards your BA.
- After meeting the above minimum criteria, acceptance into the program is competitive and usually requires a GPA between 65% and 70%
I highly recommend the program to anyone looking to gain perspectives in business and management, and expand their career options! The combination of my Major and Minor provided me with a well-balanced academic background, where I acquired not only analytical and technical skills but also leadership, teamwork, and other interpersonal skills.
Transfer credits and eligibility
Maximum number of transfer credit
If you have more than 12 transfer credits that are equivalent to the commerce minor requirements you may be ineligible for the minor because you will be unable to obtain a minimum of 9 credits toward the minor (as described in UBC’s requirements for degrees and diplomas, which states that students must complete at least 50% of their program while registered as a BA student at UBC).
Transfer equivalencies
Although you may use the 200 level COMR transfer credits listed below towards the COMR Minor in Arts they will not count towards the overall upper level requirement for the BA. Students may not take lower level COMR credits after being admitted to the BA program or the COMR Minor.
- COMR 192 (formerly COMR 292) = 329
- COMR 293 = 457
- COMR 294 = 458
- COMR 296 = 465
- COMR 298 = 473
- COMR 370 = 473
- COMR 204 = 398
- COMR 491 = 493
Contact
Questions regarding the minor in Commerce should be directed to Arts Academic Advising.