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About About

Get to know VIU. As a teaching university and a research university, we offer a unique experience to students.

About VIU Why VIU

About VIU

Why VIU?

Explore where VIU is going

The Strategic Plan builds on our commitment to diverse learners and draws on our connection to the community.

Programs Programs

Explore a wide range of program offerings and learning services. Choose from degrees, vocational training, certificates and more.

Find your program Learning Services

Programs

Learning Services

Start in January

September is not the only time to start a VIU program. Many have January intakes.

See January intake

Admissions & Aid Admissions & Aid

Discover how to apply to VIU and get more information about tuition and financial aid.

Admissions Tuition and Aid

Admissions

Tuition and Aid

How to become a student

Make your VIU application successful by following these steps to becoming a student.

Steps to become a student

Student Life Student Life

Make the best of your time at VIU. Get involved in campus events and enjoy island adventures.

Student Life Student Services

Student Life

Student Services and Support

Get ready for the new student orientation

Attend in-person and online events, explore campus and connect with your professors and soon-to-be classmates!

Support VIU Support VIU

Connect with other VIU alumni and learn about the impact of donor generosity at VIU.

Give

VIU Alumni

VIU Donors

Your support means so much to VIU students

Our donors fund over 2000 scholarships, awards, and bursaries each year.

Research Research

Discover how VIU's interdisciplinary research is making a real-world impact.

Research

Research and Creative Activity

Explore the research highlights. Includes recent publications, ground-breaking studies and more.

Research Reports

Search VIU

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News

VIU in the News

Latest Stories

Danielle with Dave and Jamie

Alumni Spotlight on Danielle Hyde

August 22, 2025 - 09:30am

Dr. Amanda Wager, wearing a green shirt and black blazer, stands in front of a white wall.

Indigenous Youth Exploring Issues through VIU Art-based Literacy Project

June 23, 2021 - 02:00pm

Samantha Good sits in her excavation square during the dig she attended in the Drimolen Palaeocave system.

VIU Grad Discovers Two-Million-Year-Old Skull while Attending Field School in South Africa

June 14, 2021 - 01:30pm

Genevieve van der Voort examines insect samples with a microscope.

VIU Undergraduate Student Publishes Research Paper in Peer-Reviewed Journal

June 9, 2021 - 10:30am

Portrait shot of Shawn O'Keefe

Alum of the Month: Shawn O’Keefe

June 4, 2021 - 09:30am

Dr. Lindsay McCunn smiles at the viewer while wearing a grey blazer and shirt.

VIU Researcher Investigates Hospital Design Elements to Improve Employee Well-being

May 20, 2021 - 10:15am

Dr. Deb Saucier: Reflections on a Pandemic

April 30, 2021 - 12:15am

VIU Blog

Find out what's going on at VIU!

Students hanging out in a room at one of the VIU residence buildings

Welcome to campus – the Student Housing edition

August 20, 2025 By By Jenna Gill, VIU Recruitment Officer

What to know about orientation, Community Leaders and upcoming events

man and woman smiling while sitting across from one another at a table by a window. textbooks are on the desk in front of them

Become a volunteer tutor at Vancouver Island University

December 12, 2022 By Eric Zimmer

Tutors are needed at both the Nanaimo and Cowichan campuses.

How do songs develop character and progress plot in musical theatre?

December 8, 2022

Eliza Gardiner shares the inspiration behind her ballads

VIU's three totems outside Shq'apthut on the Nanaimo campus

VIU Light Up, exam support and holiday fun 🌲⛄

December 7, 2022

VIU Student Pulse News: December 7, 2022

Room for rent sign in a door

Keeping your room while away - and saving the rent

November 30, 2022 By Michael Witcomb, Off-Campus Housing Coordinator

A guide to subletting and assigning your housing

Angelina Jaeger stands in front of a vine covered wall.

Gaining a global research perspective

November 30, 2022 By Rachel Stern

Angelina Jaeger snags spot in prestigious summer research internship program

A wooden cutout of a house with four stacks of coins behind it.

How do government policies affect housing affordability?

November 30, 2022

Katarina Litva examines housing issues in Louisville, Kentucky

Statements & Announcements

Ozoz Sokoh, wearing a bright yellow shirt, stands in a garden area.

VIU Symposium Examines Intertwined Histories of Gender, Food and Sovereignty

June 10, 2021 - 09:15am

Portrait shot of Nathan Priest and Amber Lease

VIU Students Aim to Ignite Change with Leadership Conference

June 7, 2021 - 04:45pm

Man holding camera

VIU Media Highlights: June 7, 2021

June 7, 2021 - 11:15am

Recognizing the Indigenous children who were killed at the Kamloops residential school

May 31, 2021 - 01:30pm

Group shot of the VIU counselling team

VIU Counselling Team’s Mental Health and Wellness Training Program Adapted into Open Education Resource

May 27, 2021 - 05:15pm

Bill Boyte VIU General Counsel and Secretary

VIU Welcomes New General Counsel and University Secretary

May 27, 2021 - 12:00pm

VIU in the News

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Events and Info Sessions

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