MET Award for Indigenous Students
In 2020, the UBC Indigenous Strategic Plan was launched, which is the University’s response to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls’ Calls for Justice. It is also UBC Vancouver’s response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action.
In support of the Strategic Plan and the continued commitment to Indigenizing the MET program, the MET Award for Indigenous Students has been developed to help create pathways for Indigenous students to earn graduate-level credentials.
The Master of Educational Technology (MET) program offers an annual award valued at the cost of tuition* (up to 30 credits for the master’s degree or 15 for the certificate) for Indigenous students.
Applicants should demonstrate:
- good academic standing
- engagement with educational technology and leadership
- community service or volunteerism
Preference will be given to students who demonstrate contributions to or a connection with an Indigenous community.
Current MET students as well as those applying to the program are welcome to also apply for the Award.
The award is conditional on the recipient’s continued satisfactory academic progress.
*Tuition does not include students fees or the cost of materials (e.g., books) that are required for coursework.
Eligibility
- Indigenous applicants to the MET program (i.e. either the Master of Educational Technology or the Graduate Certificate in Educational Technology), as well as Indigenous students currently in the MET program are eligible to apply for the Award; however, priority is given to Indigenous students whose traditional territory falls, at least in part, within Canada. This includes First Nations, Métis or Inuit students and may also include students from the United States of America.
- Award applicants must indicate on the application form whether they identify as an Indigenous student whose traditional territory falls, at least in part, within Canada.
- Self-identification data is collected solely for the purpose of adjudication to be considered for Award funding.
- Applicants are not required to provide proof of their Indigeneity as part of their application; however, please note, the University may request further information to confirm Indigenous eligibility.
- Further resources on Indigenous self-identification at UBC (Vancouver campus) can be found below:
- If an applicant, you must have also completed an application to the MET program itself and have an accepted offer of admission in order to be eligible.
Evaluation Criteria
Applicants will be evaluated for inclusive excellence based on the below noted criteria:
- Academic excellence (e.g. academic record, scholarships/awards held)
- Engagement with educational technology
- Leadership abilities and/or professional and relevant extracurricular interactions and collaborations. For example, this could include:
- Mentoring
- Teaching
- Supervisory experience
- Project management
- Chairing committees
- Organizing conferences/meetings
- Elected positions held
- Training, certification, professional development
- Language revitalization work (e.g. curriculum or resource creation)
How to Apply
Applicants must complete an online application form. The below documents and information should be prepared prior to beginning the application.
Documents Required
- CV*
- Academic Transcript(s)*
- Personal Statement
- Contribution and/or Connection to Indigenous Communities Statement
- Letters of Reference (2)*
*Applicants may grant access to transcripts, CV and letters of references submitted with their MET application. The option to submit an updated CV or letters of reference specific to the award will be available on the application.
Personal Statement
Please provide a personal statement outlining your eligibility for this award, based on the evaluation criteria. A strong personal statement will clearly illustrate the connections between your interest in pursuing the Master of Educational Technology and how you have (in the past) or intend to (in the future) apply your knowledge and skills with leadership and educational technology. Your personal statement may be written or oral (i.e. video or audio recording). If written, should be no more than 500 words. If oral, should be no more than 3 minutes.
Contribution and/or Connection to Indigenous Communities
As noted above, preference will be given to applicants who demonstrate contributions and/or connection to Indigenous communities. Relative to this criteria, and as set out in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Article 9, “Indigenous peoples and individuals have the right to belong to an Indigenous community or nation, in accordance with the traditions and customs of the community or nation concerned. No discrimination of any kind may arise from the exercise of such a right.”
To this end, please describe contributions you have made or connections you have to an Indigenous community(ies). Statement may be written or oral (i.e. video or audio recording). If written, should be no more than 2,500 words. If oral, should be no more than 5 minutes.
Adjudication Procedures
The Master of Educational Technology program will convene an adjudication committee made up of UBC faculty members and select non-faculty members. The committee will review the applications and select the successful recipient.
Further Information
Please contact met.support@ubc.ca for additional support regarding this award.