Working with Vantage Faculty & Staff
Current positions within Vantage College are described below. For additional opportunities within UBC, please view the faculty and staff postings on the UBC Careers page.
Sessional Lecturer Position, UBC Vantage College, Academic English Program
Situated on the unceded, ancestral, and traditional territories of the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ speaking Musqueam people, UBC Vantage College invites applications for Sessional Lecturer position(s) with the Academic English Program for the following Academic English Program (AEP) courses:
- LLED 200: Introduction to Writing in Academic and Professional Registers (3 credits) (September-December 2025)
- LLED 201: Critical Reading and Writing in Academic and Professional Registers (3 credits) (January-April 2026)
- VANT140: Content and Language Enrichment Tutorials (6 credits) (September 2025-April 2026)
The application deadline is July 9, 2025.
Qualifications
Applicants should hold a PhD or Master’s degree in Teaching English as a Second/Additional Language, Applied Linguistics, Second Language Writing, English for Academic Purposes, Educational Linguistics or a related discipline.
The academic English courses in Vantage One programs have been designed drawing on genre-based pedagogies following Systemic Functional Linguistics. As such, we're looking for candidates with the following knowledge, skills/abilities, and pedagogical orientations:
- A strong foundation in socio-cultural approaches to research and pedagogy and/or educational linguistics, and familiarity with (ideally also with pedagogical experience informed by) the following genre/register-based approaches: systemic functional linguistics (e.g., Halliday, Martin, and colleagues), ESP (e.g., Swales), and/or associated corpus approaches (e.g., Biber, Hyland, Gardner).
- Substantial experience teaching English for academic purposes to undergraduate students from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds in Canadian contexts.
- A minimum of five years of demonstrable successful, full-time English for Academic Purposes instruction at the tertiary level.
- Experience designing curricula, materials, as well as teaching EAP adjunct courses and academic writing courses, preferably.
- Familiarity with CLIL/CBI (content and language integrated learning/content-based instruction); task-based instruction; multi-literacies and multimodal pedagogies.
- A principled approach to curriculum and materials design guided by UDL principles (in face-to-face as well as in technology-mediated modes); pedagogical approaches grounded in sound research and theory in the field of EAP; familiarity with second language assessment principles and practices.
- Familiarity with Arts (Social Science and Humanities), Engineering, and/or Science discourse, and ability to work with subject specialists in these areas. Previous experiences of collaboration with disciplinary instructors are also highly relevant for the position.
- Familiarity with quantitative and qualitative research methods; ideally with experience in carrying out research that led to peer reviewed publications, conference presentations, and/or other forms of scholarly knowledge mobilization.
- Sustained engagement in relevant professional development and other scholarly activities in the fields of TESL and applied linguistics (and related fields).
- A commitment to social justice through embracing equity, diversity, inclusion and decolonial perspectives in teaching and service.
Additionally, ideal candidates will demonstrate a passion for language education as well as awareness of strategies to fully engage students in their (language) learning trajectories.
Commitment to equity, diversity, inclusion, and decolonization
UBC and Vantage College are committed to creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive academic community. Preference will be given to applicants with a strong commitment to fostering diversity and inclusivity as demonstrated through their interest and expertise in decolonizing, reconciliation, anti-racist, and social justice approaches in their teaching and service.
About UBC Vantage College
UBC Vantage College offers a first-year credit-bearing enriched curriculum for international students who need to improve their academic English proficiency. Upon successful completion of their first year in the program, Vantage One students are able to register in the second year of a B.A., B.Sc., or B.ASc. at UBC. The Vantage One program in Arts, Engineering, and Science integrate new educational technologies, subject-area courses, and English for Academic Purposes courses. For more information on UBC Vantage College, please see www.vantagecollege.ubc.ca.
The Academic English Program (AEP) courses include two foundational credit-bearing academic reading and writing courses (LLED 200 and LLED 201) and, in the case of Vantage One Science and Vantage One Applied Science, it also includes credit-bearing adjunct courses (VANT 140) linked to disciplines represented in the required courses across those programs. AEP lecturers design curricula and custom-made lessons and materials, as well as collaborate with disciplinary instructors and academic advisors to better scaffold the student experience.
Vantage College provides a highly dynamic, stimulating as well as demanding teaching and learning environment, and has established itself as a place for pedagogical innovation in first year undergraduate programming embedding English for academic purposes instruction. We are seeking individuals with experience in and passion for EAP teaching and curriculum and materials development, as well as a keen interest in sustained professional growth and collaboration.
Application instructions
Current sessional lecturers on the AEP team as well as members on our recent teaching recall list may apply via e-mail indicating their interest in the position and teaching availability.
For all other applicants, the following information and supporting documentation should be submitted electronically:
(a) a detailed cover letter addressing how the applicant meets specific criteria for the position.
(b) a detailed CV (i.e., including information helpful to understand the courses taught as well as the institutional/teaching contexts);
(c) a statement about the linguistic and language learning theoretical approaches underlying their EAP pedagogy;
(d) evidence or record of teaching effectiveness.
Teaching effectiveness can be demonstrated via the inclusion of sample copies of institutional student evaluations of teaching as well as an overall summary (e.g., compilation of results and inclusion of sample comments) of student evaluations from the different teaching contexts; official/institutional teaching observation reports completed by either a supervisor or qualified colleague).
(e) The name and contact information of two referees that can speak to the applicants’ previous teaching experience. Referees will only be contacted by Vantage for shortlisted applicants.
Complete application packages should be sent electronically as PDF or Word documents to employment@vantagecollege.ubc.ca. Please indicate in the subject line: UBC Vantage College AEP Sessional Lecturer Position. Enquiries about the position should also be sent to the same e-mail address, with attention to Dr. Sandra Zappa-Hollman, AEP Director.
The salary for these Sessional Lecturer positions will be commensurate with qualifications and experience. The positions are subject to final budgetary approval.
Review of applications will begin after July 9, 2025. Applications will continue to be accepted until the position(s) are filled.
Equity and diversity are essential to academic excellence. An open and diverse community fosters the inclusion of voices that have been underrepresented or discouraged. We encourage applications from members of groups that have been marginalized on any grounds enumerated under the British Columbia Human Rights Cide, including sex, sexual orientation gender identity or expression, racialization, disability, political belief, religion, martial or family status, age, and/or status as First Nations, Metis, Inuit, or Indigenous person. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents of Canada will be given priority.
Lecturer Position, UBC Vantage College, Academic English Program
Situated on the unceded, ancestral, and traditional territories of the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓-speaking Musqueam people, UBC Vantage College invites applications for one Lecturer position with the Academic English Program. The application deadline is July 25, 2025.
Position details
The lecturer position is a non-tenure track teaching appointment for up to five years, with the possibility of renewal. The renewal is subject to availability of funds, satisfactory performance and University policies. Successful applicants are expected to carry a full workload (teaching plus administrative/service duties) of 24 credits plus service contributions.
Selected applicants will be expected to teach undergraduate credit-bearing courses offered through the Academic English Program at UBC Vantage College; contribute to curriculum, syllabus, and materials development; collaborate with instructors from the partner faculties; participate in UBC Vantage College academic preparation activities; attend course planning and program-related meetings; contribute to the program through service on committees; and provide academic support to students (e.g., through regular tutorials and workshops), as needed. Teaching unless otherwise specified is in person. Specific workload assignments vary year to year depending on teaching needs.
Successful applicants will work closely with the Academic English Program Director and other members of the instructional team at UBC Vantage College, which includes academic English and disciplinary-area faculty members across the faculties of Applied Sciences, Arts, and Science.
The anticipated start date is early August 2025.
Salary is commensurate with qualifications and experience. All positions are subject to final budgetary approval.
Qualifications and expected applicant profile
Applicants should hold a PhD or Master’s degree in Teaching English as a Second/Additional Language, Applied Linguistics, Second Language Writing, English for Academic Purposes, Educational Linguistics or a related discipline.
The academic English courses in Vantage One programs have been designed drawing on genre-based pedagogies following Systemic Functional Linguistics. As such, we're looking for candidates with the following knowledge, skills/abilities, and pedagogical orientations:
- A strong foundation in socio-cultural approaches to research and pedagogy and/or educational linguistics, and familiarity with (ideally also with pedagogical experience informed by) the following genre/register-based approaches: systemic functional linguistics (e.g., Halliday, Martin, and colleagues), ESP (e.g., Swales), and/or associated corpus approaches (e.g., Biber, Hyland, Gardner).
- Substantial experience teaching English for academic purposes to undergraduate students from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds in Canadian contexts.
- A minimum of five years of demonstrable successful, full-time English for Academic Purposes instruction at the tertiary level.
- Experience designing curricula, materials, as well as teaching EAP adjunct courses and academic writing courses, preferably.
- Familiarity with CLIL/CBI (content and language integrated learning/content-based instruction); task-based instruction; multi-literacies and multimodal pedagogies.
- A principled approach to curriculum and materials design guided by UDL principles (in face-to-face as well as in technology-mediated modes); pedagogical approaches grounded in sound research and theory in the field of EAP; familiarity with second language assessment principles and practices.
- Familiarity with Science, Applied Science, and Social Sciences discourse, and ability to work with subject specialists in these areas. Previous experiences of collaboration with disciplinary instructors are also highly relevant for the position.
- Familiarity with quantitative and qualitative research methods; ideally with experience in carrying out research that led to peer reviewed publications, conference presentations, and/or other forms of scholarly knowledge mobilization.
- Sustained engagement in relevant professional development and other scholarly activities in the fields of TESL and applied linguistics (and related fields).
- A commitment to social justice through embracing equity, diversity, inclusion and decolonial perspectives in teaching and service.
Additionally, ideal candidates will demonstrate a passion for language education as well as awareness of strategies to fully engage students in their (language) learning trajectories.
Commitment to equity, diversity, inclusion, and decolonization
UBC and Vantage College are committed to creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive academic community. Preference will be given to applicants with a strong commitment to fostering diversity and inclusivity as demonstrated through their interest and expertise in decolonizing, reconciliation, anti-racist, and social justice approaches in their teaching and service.
About UBC Vantage College
UBC Vantage College offers a first-year credit-bearing enriched curriculum for international students who need to improve their academic English proficiency. Upon successful completion of their first year in the program, Vantage One students register in the second year of a B.A., B.Sc., or B.ASc. at UBC. The Vantage One program streams in Arts, Engineering, and Science integrate new educational technologies, subject-area courses, and English for Academic Purposes courses. For more information on UBC Vantage College, please see www.vantagecollege.ubc.ca.
The Academic English Program (AEP) courses include two foundational credit-bearing academic reading and writing courses (LLED 200 and LLED 201) and, in the case of Vantage One Science and Vantage One Applied Science, it also includes credit-bearing adjunct courses (VANT 140) linked to disciplines represented in the required courses across those programs. AEP lecturers design curricula and custom-made lessons and materials, as well as collaborate with disciplinary instructors and academic advisors to better scaffold the student experience.
Vantage College provides a highly dynamic, stimulating as well as demanding teaching and learning environment, and has established itself as a place for pedagogical innovation in first year undergraduate programming embedding English for academic purposes instruction. We are seeking individuals with experience in and passion for EAP teaching and curriculum and materials development, as well as a keen interest in sustained professional growth and collaboration.
Application instructions
Applicants should submit the following information and supporting documentation:
(a) a detailed cover letter addressing how the applicant meets specific criteria for the position.
(b) a detailed CV (i.e., including information helpful to understand the courses taught as well as the institutional/teaching contexts);
(c) a statement about the linguistic and language learning theoretical approaches underlying their EAP pedagogy;
(d) evidence or record of teaching effectiveness.
Teaching effectiveness can be demonstrated via the inclusion of sample copies of institutional student evaluations of teaching as well as an overall summary (e.g., compilation of results and inclusion of sample comments) of student evaluations from the different teaching contexts; official/institutional teaching observation reports completed by either a supervisor or qualified colleague).
(e) The name and contact information of three referees that can speak to the applicants’ previous teaching experience. Referees will only be contacted by Vantage for shortlisted applicants.
Complete application packages should be sent electronically as PDF or Word documents to employment@vantagecollege.ubc.ca. Please indicate in the subject line: UBC Vantage College AEP Lecturer Position. Enquiries should also be sent to the same e-mail address.
The application deadline is July 25, 2025, or until the position is filled.
Equity and diversity are essential to academic excellence. An open and diverse community fosters the inclusion of voices that have been underrepresented or discouraged. We encourage applications from members of groups that have been marginalized on any grounds enumerated under the British Columbia Human Rights Cide, including sex, sexual orientation gender identity or expression, racialization, disability, political belief, religion, martial or family status, age, and/or status as First Nations, Metis, Inuit, or Indigenous person. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents of Canada will be given priority.
Graduate Teaching Assistant, English for Academic Purposes, VANT 140, Vantage One Science
UBC Vantage College invites applications for multiple Graduate Teaching Assistant positions in the 2025/2026 academic year to assist with academic English courses in Vantage One Science Program.
UBC Vantage College offers first-year curriculum in a cohort program to academically strong international multilingual students whose English language proficiency does not yet meet the English language requirements for direct admission into UBC degrees. Students take courses in one of the Vantage One programs (Science, Engineering or Arts) before transferring into second year in their degree program. The primary goals of the Vantage One curriculum are: (1) to encourage students’ cultural, linguistic, and academic engagement in disciplinary communities and (2) to maximize students’ successful transition to Year Two in the Faculties of Science, Applied Science or Arts. For more information about the Vantage One programs, please see https://vantagecollege.ubc.ca/
UBC Vantage College is hiring multiple Graduate Teaching Assistants for VANT 140 (Content and Language Enrichment Tutorials) in the Vantage One Science Program, which focuses on academic English specific to the Science courses taught in that program (i.e. CHEM 121, MATH 100, MATH 101, EOSC 110, PHYS 117, PHYS 119, CPSC 103, and SCIE 113). A complete description of the Vantage One Science program can be found here: https://vantagecollege.ubc.ca/science.
The Teaching Assistant positions may involve up to 192 hours per term, for each of Winter Term 1 and Term 2 of the 2025-2026 academic year, and are subject to final budgetary approval. Each course section is allocated 24 hours of GTA support. Therefore, a full GTAship would involve assisting in multiple course sections.
Duties
The Graduate Teaching Assistant supports the academic English instructors with teaching, assessment and feedback, as well as coordination, with an emphasis on qualitative feedback, tutoring and marking. Duties may include attending regular program/course meetings/classes, holding office hours, providing student feedback where applicable, conducting research to support materials design, attending mandatory training sessions and marking/collaborating in assignment and exam design, as well as potentially designing and facilitating study skills workshops with students.
Qualifications
Graduate Teaching Assistants must be registered as full-time graduate students at UBC and must have experience teaching and/or tutoring English language learners for academic purposes. Formal training and teaching in TESOL or Applied Linguistics is an asset. The academic English courses at Vantage College are informed by Systemic Functional Linguistics and genre-based pedagogies; therefore, while prior knowledge in these areas is not required, depending on the assigned duties, applicants may be expected to have an interest in familiarizing themselves with the theoretical and pedagogical approaches used in the courses they support.
In addition, as some aspects of VANT 140 are closely linked to the language and literacy practices of first year Science courses offered in the program, familiarity and prior experience with any or a combination of the following science curriculum topics is also an asset for applicants interested in serving as GTA for the VANT 140 courses:
- Term 1: Chemistry, Physics, Math
- Term 2: Computer Science, Earth and Oceans Sciences, Scientific Communication, Math
Application instructions
The following application materials must be sent to the following e-mail: employment@vantagecollege.ubc.ca. Please send as separate Word or .pdf files, using this file-naming convention: LASTNAME, Firstname_Application Form; LASTNAME, Firstname_CV; etc. Use the subject heading “Graduate Teaching Assistant – VANT 140, Vantage One Science”. Review of applications will begin on May 1st. Applications will continue to be accepted until the positions have been filled.
All Applicants are required to include the following in their application package:
(1) a completed Vantage College VANT 140 SCIE GTA Application Form
(2) curriculum vitae, including a list of all teaching related activities,
(3) evidence of teaching effectiveness (e.g. teaching evaluations), if available
For questions about this position, please contact the Director of our Academic English Program, Dr. Sandra Zappa-Hollman: sandra.zappa@ubc.ca.
Equity and diversity are essential to academic excellence. An open and diverse community fosters the inclusion of voices that have been underrepresented or discouraged. We encourage applications from members of groups that have been marginalized on any grounds enumerated under the B.C. Human Rights Code, including sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, racialization, disability, political belief, religion, marital or family status, age, and/or status as a First Nation, Métis, Inuit, or Indigenous person. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadian citizens and permanent residents will be given priority.
Graduate Teaching Assistant, English for Academic Purposes, VANT 140, Vantage One Engineering
UBC Vantage College invites applications for multiple Graduate Teaching Assistant positions in the 2025/2026 academic year to assist with academic English courses in the Vantage One Engineering Program.
UBC Vantage College offers first-year curriculum in a cohort program to academically strong international multilingual students whose English language proficiency does not yet meet the English language requirements for direct admission into UBC degrees. Students take courses in one of the Vantage One programs (Science, Engineering or Arts) before transferring into second year in their degree program. The primary goals of the Vantage One curriculum are: (1) to encourage students’ cultural, linguistic, and academic engagement in disciplinary communities and (2) to maximize students’ successful transition to Year Two in the Faculties of Science, Applied Science or Arts. For more information about the Vantage One programs, please see https://vantagecollege.ubc.ca/
The Vantage College is hiring for multiple anticipated Graduate Teaching Assistants for VANT 140 (Content and Language Enrichment Tutorials), which focuses on academic English specific to the Engineering courses taught in that program (i.e. APSC 160, APSC 172, APSC 182, APSC 173, APSC 178, and APSC 183). A complete description of the Vantage One Engineering program can be found here: https://vantagecollege.ubc.ca/engineering
The Teaching Assistant positions may involve up to 192 hours per term. The advertised positions are available for Winter Term 1 and Term 2 of the 2025-2026 academic year, and are subject to final budgetary approval. Each course section is allocated 24 hours of GTA support.
Duties
The Graduate Teaching Assistant supports the academic English instructors with teaching, assessment and feedback, as well as coordination, with an emphasis on qualitative feedback, tutoring and marking. Duties may include attending regular program/course meetings/classes, holding office hours, providing student feedback where applicable, conducting research to support materials design, attending mandatory training sessions and marking/collaborating in assignment and exam design, as well as potentially designing and facilitating study skills workshops with students.
Qualifications
Graduate Teaching Assistants must be registered as full-time graduate students at UBC and must have experience teaching and/or tutoring English language learners for academic purposes. Formal training and teaching in TESOL or Applied Linguistics is an asset. The academic English courses at Vantage College are informed by Systemic Functional Linguistics and genre-based pedagogies; therefore, while prior knowledge in these areas is not required, depending on the assigned duties, applicants may be expected to have an interest in familiarizing themselves with the theoretical and pedagogical approaches used in the courses they support.
In addition, given the focus on specific disciplinary written and/or oral practices linked to engineering content, familiarity and prior experience with any or a combination of the following engineering curriculum topics is also an asset for applicants interested in serving as GTA for VANT 140:
Term 1:
- APSC 160 – Introduction to Computation in Engineering Design
- APSC 182 – Matter and Energy I
- VANT 150 – Sustainability & Engineering Design
Term 2:
- APSC 178 – Electricity, Magnetism, and Waves
- APSC 183 – Matter and Energy II
- VANT 150 – Sustainability & Engineering Design
Application instructions
The following application materials must be sent to the following e-mail: employment@vantagecollege.ubc.ca. Please send as separate Word or .pdf files, using this file-naming convention: LASTNAME, Firstname_Application Form; LASTNAME, Firstname_CV; etc. Use the subject heading “Graduate Teaching Assistant – VANT 140, Vantage One Engineering”. Review of applications will begin on May 1st. Applications will continue to be accepted until the positions have been filled.
All Applicants are required to include the following in their application package:
(1) a completed Vantage College VANT 140 ENG GTA Application Form
(2) curriculum vitae, including a list of all teaching related activities,
(3) evidence of teaching effectiveness (e.g. teaching evaluations), if available
For questions about this position, please contact the Director of our Academic English Program, Dr. Sandra Zappa-Hollman: sandra.zappa@ubc.ca
Equity and diversity are essential to academic excellence. An open and diverse community fosters the inclusion of voices that have been underrepresented or discouraged. We encourage applications from members of groups that have been marginalized on any grounds enumerated under the B.C. Human Rights Code, including sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, racialization, disability, political belief, religion, marital or family status, age, and/or status as a First Nation, Métis, Inuit, or Indigenous person. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadian citizens and permanent residents will be given priority.
Graduate Teaching Assistant, English for Academic Purposes, LLED 200 & 201
UBC Vantage College invites applications for multiple Graduate Teaching Assistant positions in the 2025/2026 academic year to assist with academic English courses in the Vantage One Science, Vantage One Engineering, and Vantage One Arts Programs.
UBC Vantage College offers first-year curriculum in a cohort program to academically strong international multilingual students whose English language proficiency does not yet meet the English language requirements for direct admission into UBC degrees. Students take courses in one of the Vantage One programs (Science, Engineering, or Arts) before transferring into second year in their degree program. The primary goals of the Vantage One curriculum are: (1) to encourage students’ cultural, linguistic, and academic engagement in disciplinary communities and (2) to maximize students’ successful transition to Year Two in the Faculties of Science, Applied Science or Arts. For more information about the Vantage One programs, please see https://vantagecollege.ubc.ca/
The Vantage College is hiring for multiple anticipated Graduate Teaching Assistants positions for LLED 200 (Introduction to Writing in Academic and Professional Registers) and LLED 201 (Critical Reading and Writing in Academic and Professional Registers). These courses are developed and taught in close coordination with the other courses in the program.
The Teaching Assistant positions may involve up to 192 hours per term. The advertised positions are available for Winter Term 1 and Winter Term 2 of the 2025-2026 academic year, and are subject to final budgetary approval. Each course section is allocated 24 hours of GTA support.
Duties
The Graduate Teaching Assistant supports the academic English instructors with teaching, assessment and feedback, as well as coordination, with an emphasis on qualitative feedback, tutoring and marking. Duties may include attending regular program/course meetings/classes, holding office hours, providing student feedback where applicable, assisting with the collection of relevant information to support materials design, attending mandatory training sessions and marking/collaborating in assignment and exam design, as well as potentially designing and facilitating study skills workshops with students
Qualifications
Graduate Teaching Assistants must be registered as full-time graduate students at UBC and must have experience teaching and/or tutoring English language learners for academic purposes. Formal training and teaching in TESOL or Applied Linguistics is an asset. The academic English courses at Vantage College are informed by Systemic Functional Linguistics and genre-based pedagogies; therefore, while prior knowledge in these areas is not required, depending on the assigned duties, applicants may be expected to have an interest in familiarizing themselves with the theoretical and pedagogical approaches used in the courses they support in order to be able to successfully complete certain duties (e.g., providing feedback to students aligned with a systemic functional perspective on language).
Application instructions
The following application materials must be sent to the following e-mail: employment@vantagecollege.ubc.ca. Please send as separate Word or .pdf files, using this file-naming convention: LASTNAME, Firstname_Application Form; LASTNAME, Firstname_CV; etc. Use the subject heading “Graduate Teaching Assistant – English for Academic Purposes, LLED 200 & 201”.
Review of applications will begin on May 1st. Applications will continue to be accepted until the positions have been filled.
All Applicants are required to include the following in their application package:
(1) a completed Vantage College LLED GTA Application Form
(2) curriculum vitae, including a list of all teaching related activities,
(3) evidence of teaching effectiveness (e.g. teaching evaluations), if available
For questions about this position, please contact the Director of our Academic English Program, Dr. Sandra Zappa-Hollman: sandra.zappa@ubc.ca
Equity and diversity are essential to academic excellence. An open and diverse community fosters the inclusion of voices that have been underrepresented or discouraged. We encourage applications from members of groups that have been marginalized on any grounds enumerated under the B.C. Human Rights Code, including sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, racialization, disability, political belief, religion, marital or family status, age, and/or status as a First Nation, Métis, Inuit, or Indigenous person. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadian citizens and permanent residents will be given priority.