Does University of British Columbia accept Economics HL?

Hack Your Course Expert's Take (UBC)

"A 6-CREDIT HEAD START — BUT WATCH THE 'ECON 101/102' AND 'ECON MAJOR' TRAPS"

The Good News:
If you score 5 or higher in IB Economics HL, UBC awards you 6 credits of first-year economics as ECON_V 1st-year level (6). This is listed on UBC's official first-year credit table: UBC First-year credit (IB).

Important Reality Check: "ECON_V 1st-year level" is General Credit
This credit is typically unassigned/general credit, meaning it's not automatically the same as being granted specific UBC courses like ECON 101 or ECON 102. UBC explains the difference between General vs Specific credit here: UBC Transfer credit terms.

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Trap #1 (Sauder BCom): You STILL must take ECON 101 + 102
If you're in the UBC Sauder BCom, Sauder explicitly states that ECON_V 1st credits cannot be used to satisfy ECON_V 101 and ECON_V 102. You must take both courses in first year: Sauder: Registering for courses (First-year transfer credit).

What the credit still does for Sauder:
It can still help as overall degree credit / elective credit (program rules vary), but it does not replace the core ECON sequence.

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Trap #2 (BA Economics / VSE): ECON "1st" may not count toward the ECON major requirements
For the BA in Economics, UBC's Calendar warns that economics courses granted unassigned first-year transfer credit (e.g., ECON 1st) may not be included in the 42 credits required for the program. See the program page here: UBC Calendar: BA Economics.

Translation:
Even with 6 transfer credits, Economics majors often still need to take UBC's required economics courses (commonly including the 100-level sequence), because the program may not accept "ECON 1st" inside the Economics-credit quota.

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Strategic Advice (based on official policy):

• Sauder BCom: Take the IB credit, but plan to take ECON 101 + ECON 102 at UBC anyway (Sauder requires it).
• BA Economics / VSE: Take the IB credit, but expect that you may still need to take the required UBC ECON courses for the major.
• Non-Econ majors (Arts/Science/Other): Take the credit as a useful elective/degree-progress booster, unless your program specifically requires ECON 101/102 as named courses.

Can you refuse the credit?
Yes — UBC states you may choose to refuse first-year credit and take the course anyway: UBC First-year credit. This can make sense if you want the structured foundation, or if your program/advising recommends taking the UBC versions.

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Student "Street Data" (Anecdotal — useful, not rules):
Some students discuss how IB transfer credit shows up and how it affects planning on r/UBC. Examples include: IB transfer credit planning thread and Older "first-year credit help" thread. Use these as context, but always follow the Calendar + advising.

Tuition note:
UBC tuition is commonly assessed per credit (domestic and international rates differ), but program/faculty fees can vary. Check the official page for current rates: UBC Undergraduate tuition fees.