The MA interdisciplinary degree in digital arts and humanities draws upon a well-established network of researchers as the foundation for this program. Graduate students have access to the expertise of diverse, nationally and internationally recognized researchers from a variety of faculties and disciplines in a coherent, thematic framework.

Program milestones

• establishing a faculty supervisory committee
• completing coursework
• preparing, presenting and defending a thesis research proposal
• completing thesis research and writing, and defending the work

Coursework requirements

18 credits of coursework are required, including:

• Proseminar in Interdisciplinary Studies (IGS 524)
• Theme Seminar in Digital Arts and Humanities (IGS 502)
• One research methods course, (IGS 501 or IGS 506, or another methods course approved by the supervisory committee)
• Additional coursework, selected in consultation with the student’s supervisor (9 credits)

THESIS REQUIREMENTS

Students are required to submit a Thesis Proposal of 2,500 words with a four-page bibliography to the Graduate Programs and Planning Committee; it is developed in consultation with your supervisor. The thesis requires an oral defense administered by the College of Graduate Studies.

The PhD degree is centered on participating faculty and students convening on a regular basis to share ideas, learn about each other’s work, identify opportunities for collaboration, and broaden their interdisciplinary expertise. Faculty scholars all have experience with digital arts and humanities research, and are committed to the interdisciplinary nature of the program.

Program milestones

• establishing a faculty supervisory committee
• selecting and completing coursework
• preparing, presenting and defending a thesis research proposal
• passing an oral candidacy exam
• completing thesis research and writing, and defending the work.

COURSEWORK REQUIREMENTS

12 credits are required for the PhD degree, including:

• Proseminar in Interdisciplinary Studies (IGS 524)
• Theme Seminar in Digital Arts and Humanities (IGS 502)
• One research methods course, (IGS 501 or IGS 506, or another methods course approved by the supervisory committee)
• Additional coursework, selected in consultation with the student’s supervisor (3 credits)

DISSERTATION REQUIREMENTS

Students must also complete a dissertation after passing an oral candidacy exam. Students are required to submit a Doctoral Planning Report with a four-page bibliography to the Graduate Programs and Planning Committee; it is developed in consultation with your the student’s supervisor.

As a domain of scholarship, creative activity, and teaching, Digital Arts & Humanities is wide-ranging and interdisciplinary in nature. FCCS encourages graduate students to become well-rounded scholars, educators, and public intellectuals. During their degree, students will have the opportunity to conduct original research, learn to become effective educators, and work as Teaching Assistants, as well as acquire knowledge in the professional practices of writing for publication, academic CV development, grant writing, networking, and community-engaged research skills.

Students have participated in initiatives on our campus such as the SSHRC funded Textual Editing and Modernism in Canada Summer Institute and the Summer Indigenous Art Intensive, learning valuable skills and receiving the opportunity to connect with colleagues from around the world.

There are opportunities for experiential graduate courses that move outside the traditional classroom, be it in the local area or be it in remote locations such as the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre on Vancouver Island.

FCCS engages in and supports research and creative activity, ensuring that our students and faculty members are given the necessary support to make significant scholarly contributions to the academy and society as a whole. The Digital Arts and Humanities theme draws upon a robust, interdisciplinary network of faculty experts in research and pedagogy to support, mentor, and train graduate students in the pursuit of research and research-creation.

We have a strong commitment to innovation and interdisciplinarity and to actively seeking opportunities to build interdisciplinary capacity that can connect with the growing tech and cultural industry sector in the Valley.

To examine the work of previous UBC Okanagan graduate students, search on cIRcle, the University’s digital repository for research and teaching materials.

Current Students

Ahlam Bavi

PhD Candidate 

Ahlam Bavi is a conceptual artist, industrial designer, and a digital humanist. She has studied and researched at the University of Lucerne, Switzerland and the University of Calgary, where her digital sculpture work was recognized by an award. She is trained in the Reggio Emilia Educational approach, as well as in VR and AR and digital technologies.

Ahlam’s visual artworks consist of conceptual sonic sculptures, digital remediate artworks, 3D calligraphy, and algorithmic 3D printed sculptures. She also collaborates with museums to improve the experience of low vision visitors and to re-imagine of artworks through digital technology.

Jon Michael Corbett

PhD Candidate

Jon Corbett has a well-established career in technology as a web programmer. He completed his BFA at the University of Alberta, and his MFA at UBCO in 2015, merging his technology skills with his artistic practice. He is currently pursuing his PhD, continuing this exploration. His research proposal focuses on the lack of cultural representation in programming languages, and he is building an Indigenous computer programming language based on the Cree language and syllabary.

Tara Nicholson

PhD Candidate 

Tara Nicholson incorporates photography and installation within her research creation. She has travelled throughout the Arctic to document climatology sometimes with a blurred line between sci-fi and actual science to render new experiences of northern landscape. Nicholson has exhibited across Canada, teaches at the University of Victoria and holds an MFA from Concordia University. Recently she attended ‘Earthed’ a climate-centered residency at the Banff Centre and has received funding from the Canada Council for the Arts and the BC Arts Council. taranicholson.com

Her PhD research will produce a connected body of exploratory landscape studies linking escalating changes within the Anthropocene. Examining rewilding, resurrection biology and extinction studies while witnessing connected waves of Indigenous and setter-allied land activism, Nicholson will explore the role of art within activism and how the interpretation of climate research can affect its outcomes.

Sepideh Saffari

PhD Candidate 

Sepideh Saffari is an award-winning artist and architect currently pursuing her IGS Ph.D. in Digital Arts & Humanities at the University of British Columbia’s Okanagan Campus. She is also a graduate research associate of the AMP lab and a member of the Centre for Culture and Technology. In these affiliated research centers of the university, she has been collaborating on projects such as Aga Khan Garden web app and Water Ways. In 2006, she started her academic education in Architectural Engineering in which she ranked third and first among students in her BA and MA programs respectively. Since then she has held artistic and architectural positions, namely teaching at universities, designing constructed buildings, and working at game and animation companies.

Najam Ul-Assar

PhD Student

Najam Ul Assar (b.1992) is a creative entrepreneur from Lahore, Pakistan. He has also worked with cultural and public organizations including the United Nations, British Council, Alliance Française, and Prince Claus Fund. As the founder of the Lahore Digital Arts Festival (LDF), he is committed to nurturing dialogue around art accessibility, creative exchange, and experimental expression. He holds an Erasmus Mundus Master of Arts in Media Arts Cultures and is interested in archiving, ethics, and historical outlook of digital arts in South Asia. Follow him on X: @najamulassar

Alumni

Kaytlyn Barkved

MA alumni

Kaytlyn Barkved is a queer disabled digital artist building a practice of generative art methods framed by Critical Disability Studies.  Fueled by passions for feminism, social justice, and activist art, she completed her Bachelor of Arts with a major in Gender and Women’s Studies and a minor in Visual Arts.  She has participated in many drawing projects, most recently, completing a 100 day drawing project, exploring the interconnected nature of Autism Spectrum Disorder, mental illness, and queer identity.  Visit her on Instagram to see her entire digital body of work and drawn responses to readings from her graduate coursework: @kaytlynbarkvedart.

Judith Burr

MA alumni

Judith Burr is an interdisciplinary feminist scholar of the challenging socio-ecological entanglements and power-laden histories of environmental management that shape local land relations. She brings public scholarship and plural traditions of feminist philosophy into dialogue with critical environmental history and feminist science and technology studies. Her MA thesis in digital arts and humanities used creative audio storytelling techniques to create a multi-vocal narration of regional fire history, taking the form of the public audio documentary podcast “Listening to Fire Knowledges in and around the Okanagan Valley.”

MASTER OF ARTS (MA) APPLICANTS 

Applicants to the master’s program are expected to hold:

• the academic equivalent of a four-year bachelor’s degree from UBC, with a B+ (76%) average or better in their third- or fourth-year classes, or
• at least 12 credits in third- and fourth-year classes in their intended field of study, with an A (80%) or better average.

Applicant background training must be sufficient for advanced work in their chosen field.

DOCTORAL (PHD) APPLICANTS 

PhD applicants will normally have a master’s degree in a related field, with a B+ (76%) average or better, and clear evidence of research ability or potential. Applicant background training must be sufficient for advanced work in their chosen field.

MORE INFORMATION

Visit the UBC Okanagan Academic Calendar* for full admission and program requirements information. The calendar is a comprehensive guide to all programs, courses, services and academic policies at the University of British Columbia.

* In case of a discrepancy between this webpage and the UBC Calendar, the UBC Calendar entry will be held to be correct. 

MASTER OF ARTS (MA) APPLICANTS 

Applicants to the master’s program are expected to:

• hold the academic equivalent of a four-year bachelor’s degree from UBC
• demonstrate superior academic standing

Applicant background training must be sufficient for advanced work in their chosen field.

Applicants from a university outside Canada at which English is not the primary language of instruction must present evidence of competency to pursue studies in the English language prior to being extended an offer of admission. Acceptable English language proficiency tests for applicants to graduate studies are listed in the Academic Calendar.

DOCTORAL (PHD) APPLICANTS 

PhD applicants are expected to hold the academic equivalent of a two-year master’s degree from UBC in a related field and to demonstrate superior academic standing. Applicant background training must be sufficient for advanced work in their chosen field.

Applicants from a university outside Canada at which English is not the primary language of instruction must present evidence of competency to pursue studies in the English language prior to being extended an offer of admission. Acceptable English language proficiency tests for applicants to graduate studies are listed in the Academic Calendar.

MORE INFORMATION

Visit the UBC Okanagan Academic Calendar* for full admission and program requirements information. The calendar is a comprehensive guide to all programs, courses, services and academic policies at the University of British Columbia.

* In case of a discrepancy between this webpage and the UBC Calendar, the UBC Calendar entry will be held to be correct.

Required Grades and Credential Guide

Grades and degree credentials required by UBC vary by country. Search the Required Grades and Credential Guide—a guide to assist international students in estimating their eligibility.

International Advisors

An international student advisor can answer questions about immigration, medical insurance and the transition to UBC’s Okanagan campus in Kelowna, BC. Visit the Global Engagement Office’s website to meet the team.

DYNAMIC CITY

UBC’s Okanagan campus borders the dynamic city of Kelowna, a hub of economic development with a population of about 150,000 people—the fourth fastest growing population in Canada. In fact, the Okanagan Valley is rated one of the best communities in Canada to grow your business.

More than 160 buses travel daily from campus to key locations such as Kelowna’s cultural district and thriving downtown waterfront. The campus is two minutes from the Kelowna International Airport, one of the top 10 busiest airports in Canada.

UBC Okanagan is situated within the First Nations territory of the Okanagan Nation, whose spirit of stewardship for the land is reflected in the university’s respect for sustainability.

NATURAL BEAUTY

A diverse natural region with sandy beaches, beautiful farms, vineyards and orchards, and snow-capped mountains, the Okanagan Valley features sweeping stretches of lakeside and endless mountain trails for biking and hiking.

Check out this 360-degree video: Kelowna From Above (best viewed using desktop Chrome or Firefox or YouTube’s mobile app).

CAMPUS HOUSING

Full-time UBC Okanagan students can live in residence, which offers modern living with easy access to academic and personal support. Residences are surrounded by hiking and biking trails, plus panoramic views of the campus and valley.

• Student Residence
• Important Housing Dates

OFF-CAMPUS HOUSING

• Living Off Campus Resources
• Kelowna Off Campus Student Housing Facebook group*

* UBC does not verify or endorse information shared on this third-party website, which is offered here as a public resource only.

College of Graduate Studies: CoGS offers orientation events to support you in your first steps as a graduate student at UBC’s Okanagan campus.

Stay active: Take advantage of the many opportunities to get involved and play—from workout space in the new Hangar Fitness and Wellness Centre and our 1,561 square-metre gymnasium, to athletic courts, intramurals, fitness classes, and nationally ranked varsity athletics. Have a ball in Sports and Recreation.

Relax: The Graduate Collegium is a gathering place where grad students can hang out, eat lunch, spend time with their fellow students, and attend or host special events. The lounge-style room is open seven days and week and is outfitted with comfortable furniture, kitchen facilities, and individual and group-work spaces.

College of Graduate Studies: Your hub for administrative support and such things as graduate workshops for professional development and for assisting you from the admissions process through to your graduation.

Centre for Scholarly Communication: Supports graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, staff, and faculty in disseminating their research. The Library’s CSC provides one-on-one consultations and workshops, including writing support for theses, dissertations, journal articles, and grant proposals.

Centre for Teaching and Learning: Provides support related to teaching, TA training, and use of technology in educational programming.