Master of Rehabilitation Science (MRSc)

The online Master of Rehabilitation Science (MRSc) at UBC is designed for working health professionals who wish to gain advanced competencies in leadership, program development, applied research and evaluation, program development, as well as knowledge translation. 

The MRSc degree will position you for career advancement opportunities such as expert practitioner, clinical educator, practice lead, healthcare manager, or consultant in program evaluation.

The MRSc:

• Is a course-based program, but learners may choose to complete a practice-based research project 
• Allows you to obtain a master’s degree while working full-time if desired, preventing loss of income while pursuing graduate studies
• Can be completed in one year if you study full-time, or within five years of part-time study

Learning Outcomes

You will learn how to:

• Critically appraise, synthesize, and integrate knowledge from various sources and evaluate practice impact and clinical application towards improving rehabilitation health outcomes.
• Design and execute knowledge translation plans to change outdated practices.
• Develop and deliver education programs for patients, families, and colleagues. 
• Facilitate interprofessional clinical reasoning for improved decision making.
• Plan and lead change management initiatives to quicken improvements and decrease costs.
• Design and evaluate effective rehabilitation programs.

Is the MRSc the Right Fit?

Choosing a graduate program takes time and careful thought. Reflect using this questionnaire to help you assess if this program fits your needs, or why not try out a course first? If you are hesitant about your ability to manage graduate studies or want to find out if online learning is for you, consider enrolling in our Graduate Certificate in Rehabilitation (GCR) and trying one or two courses. The GCR can be completed in less than two years while working full-time, or after starting the GCR you can apply to the MRSc, and have your GCR coursework transfer over.

Please note: The MRSc is not an entry-level credential to practice rehabilitation in Canada or other countries; that is, completing the program does not make you eligible to practice as a health professional (e.g., Occupational Therapist or Physical Therapist). The MRSc is an advanced degree for rehabilitation professionals who have a minimum of three (3) years of current or past work experience practicing in their health profession. This experience needs to include having your own caseload and assessing and treating patients independently.

There are two application periods for the MRSc program:

Your application can only be reviewed once the Online Application Form is complete and all documents are received by the program. If you are not sure that all your documents can be received by the application deadline, we recommend you plan to apply for the next deadline to avoid paying the online application fee twice.

If you miss the application deadline for the MRSc program but the application deadline for the Graduate Certificate (GCR) program for the next term has not passed, you can apply to the GCR and, if accepted, begin to take courses through the GCR. Later, if you are accepted into the MRSc program, the courses you took can be applied to your MRSc degree.

If the Master of Rehabilitation Science (MRSc) is right for you, prepare with our application guidance and gather all the information you need in advance. We recommend you keep this page open as you complete your online application.

The application process takes approximately 45 minutes if you have all your materials ready ahead of time.

Before starting the application, make sure:

• You have a degree in a health profession
• You are practicing in a health profession and have at least 3 years of experience
• You believe you meet the Graduate Studies GPA requirement of 76% or higher
• You have current English language test results, if required
• You have identified 3 referees who can provide an objective assessment of your academic ability to complete a master’s program