Science @ Surrey

It means that you have a designation on your student account that indicates Surrey as your main campus. Being a Surrey Science student gives you priority enrollment status, during the first week of enrollment, for Faculty of Science courses that are offered at the Surrey campus. And, depending on your unit and course load, you might also be eligible for an SFU Surrey Parks & Recreation Membership.

When you apply online at ApplyBC, after you choose “Science” as your Faculty there will be a list of program options to choose from ending in “Surrey” (for example, choose a specific program like BSC Data Science – Surrey or pick BSC Undeclared – Surrey if you’re not sure about your major yet). Selecting any program ending with “Surrey” will designate you to the Surrey campus for your first year.

If you've been admitted to SFU and want to switch to the Surrey campus, email your full name and student number to Surrey Science Advisor Nadia Williams.

Yes, all students are eligible to take classes at any of SFU's three campuses.

Class sizes tend to be significantly smaller in Surrey courses as opposed to those offered in Burnaby. This can facilitate greater access to professors and TAs (teaching assistants), and allow you to build a close-knit community faster. Then, when you transfer to the Burnaby campus, you’ll already have a group of friends with whom you can potentially take classes, study, and hang out!

At the Burnaby campus, class sizes for introductory (e.g. 100-level) courses can be around 500 students, but at the Surrey campus they're typically between 50 and 200 students. For Science, they average about 80 students. You might also have a class in our new, award-winning lecture theatre, SFU Surrey on University Drive (SRYE), which seats up to 400 – but your class won’t be that big!

SFU Science has a variety of academic programs, certificates and diplomas to choose from in a tremendously diverse number of subject areas. 

The list of science courses currently offered at the Surrey campus can be found here.

Check out our recommended first year courses. They’re different depending on your approved or intended program, or if you’re undecided/exploratory. Prior to enrolling in your first Fall term, book a meeting with the Surrey Science Advisor to discuss your goals and course requirements.

Most Surrey Science students can complete at least two terms (e.g. all of first year, and maybe one or more terms) exclusively at Surrey—depending on your program, your course load, and if you complete some of your elective courses at Surrey. Because a number of second and third-year Math courses are offered at Surrey, some programs like Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, Mathematics and Computing Science (MACM), and Operations Research, can complete most of their second year at SFU Surrey, too.

If you choose to, you can take first year courses at the Burnaby campus as well as at Surrey - whatever works for your schedule and preferences! Don’t forget to plan for one hour travel time between all campuses! And, once you've completed all the courses you want at Surrey, you can simply start enrolling in courses on the Burnaby campus. You don't have to formally transfer to the Burnaby campus.