Coast Mountain College (CMTN) leads the way in a provincial initiative to promote a more inclusive application process for students who identify as LGBTQIA2S+.

To accurately capture a student’s gender identity, The Ministry of Advanced Education, Education Planner BC and the BC Registrar’s Association recently come to agree on the ways in which gender can be captured and reported for applicants and students at BC’s public post-secondary institutions.

CMTN was the first institution in BC to adopt the new gender data standard. Students who have applied to the College during the 2021-22 academic year have the option to select their gender by indicating if they identify as female, male, non-binary or prefer to not to answer. Applicants also specify if they are cisgender, transgender or prefer not to answer.

“This initiative is the first step in changing our approach to collecting student personal information and truly protecting their privacy,” says Patricia Nuyten, Director of Institutional Research and Registrar at Coast Mountain College.

The collected data from the student’s application is then used to provide faculty and other staff at Coast Mountain College with preferred names and pronouns as it will be indicated on class rosters.

“I am confident that the move to this data standard ensures that all applicants will feel seen and supported in the BC public post-secondary sector,” said Karen McCredie, Executive Director of Education Planner BC.

While Coast Mountain College is acknowledged as the first institution in the province to implement this change, all post-secondary students in BC can expect to see these changes reflected in their application process by the fall of 2022.

Media contact 

Jessica Hogg
Interim Director Communications
Coast Mountain College
250.975.0768 
jhogg@coastmountaincollege.ca