Access academic support for many first-year courses through the Peer-Assisted Study Session Program offered by the Faculty of Forestry.
What is PASS?
Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS) are free, drop-in, structured group study sessions designed to help students understand key concepts and practice the skills necessary for success in traditionally challenging courses. PASS sessions complement what you learn while attending lectures, but are not a replacement, and are a great way to meet other Forestry or Land and Food Systems students in your classes.
Our sessions are welcoming, supportive and engaging, and help students understand course concepts and develop study strategies for the specific subject matter. They are facilitated by upper-year Forestry and Land and Food Systems students who have been successful in the course in previous years.
In 2024-25, PASS Leaders will be offering small group sessions to support students taking:
Term 1: MATH 180, CHEM 121, BIOL 121
Term 2: APBI 200, BIOL 112, BIOL 121
Sessions are designed to help students:
- Gain a more in-depth understanding of the course content
- Meet students from their class in a small group setting
- Test their knowledge about their course prior to tests and exams
- Develop transferable study skills
Research has shown that the more PASS sessions students attend, the greater likelihood they are of improving their overall understanding of key concepts, which results in achieving higher grades. In 2019, data showed that students who attended over 4 Peer-Assisted Study Sessions in a term had (on average) a 6.8% higher grade than students who never attended a session. We hope that we see you at one or more of our sessions each week!
Who facilitates PASS sessions?
Sessions are run by senior undergraduate students in Forestry and Land and Food Systems who have been trained to incorporate a variety of different activities, games, practice questions, mock quizzes and techniques to help you progress each week throughout the semester. PASS sessions are not like lectures or tutorials; they are not structured as a passive review session or a FAQ.
2024-25 Term 2 (January-April 2025)
Sessions will begin on Monday, January 13th, and regularly scheduled sessions will conclude on the last day of classes (April 8th).
Sessions will not run on statutory holidays or during Midterm Break (February 17-21). Sessions will always be cancelled if classes are cancelled on a particular day (inclement weather, etc.).
Any session cancellations will be posted in this space.
Final Exam Prep Sessions
The PASS Program will be offering special Final Exam Prep Sessions for courses on the following dates:
- BIOL 121: Thursday, April 10th, 10:00am-12:00pm FSC 1611
- APBI 200: Wednesday, April 16th, 12:00-2:00pm FSC 1611
- BIOL 112: Thursday, April 17th, 1:00-2:30pm FSC 1615
Midterm Prep Sessions
The PASS Program will be offering special Midterm Exam Prep Sessions for courses on the following dates:
BIOL 121:
- Tuesday, February 4th 2:00-3:00pm in FSC 1402 (cancelled due to weather)
- Thursday, February 6th 10:00-11:00am in FSC 1615
- Monday, March 10th 3:00-4:00pm FSC 1222
- Thursday, March 13th 10:00-11:00am FSC 1615
BIOL 112:
- Monday, March 3rd 11:00am-12:00pm in FSC 1402
- Tuesday, March 4th 1:00-2:00pm in FSC 1402
APBI 200:
- Monday, February 25th 4:00-6:00pm in FSC 1611
Term 2 PASS Schedule
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday |
| BIOL 112 11:00am-12:00pm FSC 1402 Leader: Sai | BIOL 121 10:00-11:00am FSC 1615 Leader: Jack | ||
| BIOL 112 1:00-2:00pm FSC 1402 Leader: Sai | |||
| APBI 200 4:00-5:00pm FSC 1615 Leader: Thomas | BIOL 121 2:00-3:00pm FSC 1402 Leader: Jack | APBI 200 3:30-4:30pm FSC 1220 Leader: Thomas |
No registration is required; drop in for whichever sessions work best for your schedule.
2024-25 Term 1 (September-December)
Sessions will begin on Monday, September 16th, 2024, and regularly scheduled sessions will conclude on the last day of classes (December 6th).
Sessions will not run on statutory holidays or during Midterm Break (November 11-13). Sessions will always be cancelled if classes are cancelled on a particular day (inclement weather, etc.).
Any session cancellations will be posted in this space.
Final Exam Prep Sessions
The PASS Program will be offering special Final Exam Prep Sessions for courses on the following dates:
BIOL 121:
- Monday, December 9th, 12:00-2:00pm FSC 1611
MATH 180:
- Friday, December 13th, 2:00-4:00pm FSC 1611
CHEM 121:
- Thursday, December 12th, 1:00-2:30pm FSC 1611
Term 1 PASS Schedule
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday |
| BIOL 121 11:00am-12:00pm FSC 1220 Leader: Thomas | MATH 180 10:00-11:00am FSC 1615 Leader: Jack | ||
| CHEM 121 12:30-1:30pm FSC 1615 Leader: Sai | CHEM 121 12:30-1:30pm FSC 1615 Leader: Sai | MATH 180 1:00-2:00pm FSC 1617 Leader: Jack | |
| BIOL 121 4:00-5:00pm FSC 1617 Leader: Thomas |
No registration is required; drop in for whichever sessions work best for your schedule.
What students are saying about PASS:
“I really liked PASS, especially the one before midterms/final exams. My PASS Leader prepared practice questions that were very similar to the actual exam format.” – 2023-24 participant
“I just wanted to say that the PASS Leader was great! They always came prepared with activities that were super helpful, and helped me better understand the course material.” – 2022-23 participant
“SUPER helpful and would 100% recommend. [The PASS Leader] was amazing at leading sessions and made it so much fun to attend!” – 2021-22 participant
“[The PASS Leader] was really really helpful this term. She was super approachable and explained things in a very easy to understand way. Thank you!!” – 2021-22 participant
“Going over how to solve example problems and breaking them down during PASS sessions was the most helpful for me because we didn’t always go over specific things in lectures.” – 2020-21 participant
“I loved attending PASS sessions since they really helped me to find out which areas I needed to focus on while studying and helped to increase my overall knowledge of the course content.” – 2020-21 participant
Hoping to attend PASS but the times listed don’t work for you? Send us an email to let us know – we may be able to change session times if there is enough student interest!
Questions? Contact Lydia Braam at lydia.braam@ubc.ca