International Student Advising Virtual Line

About the Virtual Line

International Student Advising uses a virtual line to sign in students to meet with an Advising Assistant for in-person assistance in the UBC Life Building during office hours. We also have a zoom room option available for remote advising. See International Student Advising for details.

With our virtual line, you can see how long the current wait time is. You have two options to sign up:

Sign into our virtual line to get into the queue before you’ve arrived the office to save time.
Use the tablet in our office to sign into the virtual line.

Providing a phone number during sign-in allows students to receive updates on wait times and easily manage their spot in the queue. See the FAQ below for details on what personal information is needed in the process.

Advising Assistants

You might not need to see an advisor. General information is available from Advising Assistants.

Get updates in the virtual line

When you're in the virtual line, you can text these letters to receive further information:

Text S to check your status
Text L to leave the line completely
Text H to ask for help
Text M if you need more time
Text N# to be notified the # of minutes before your appointment
Text J to be added back to line in case of accidental removal

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What information do I have to provide to enter the Virtual Line?

To facilitate a smooth sign-in process, we will ask you for the following information:

Preferred name,
Initial of your last name,
Last four (4) digits of your student number,
Your cell phone number, and
The queue you are joining (desired queue).

If you do not want to provide your personal information, we will enter you into the virtual line under a generic name. For more information about privacy and the virtual line, please see our privacy statement.

Why do we need your phone number?

Entering your phone number gives you the ability to check your place in line, push your appointment back, leave the line, or generate an update when you are X minutes away from the front of the line.

What if I don’t want to provide my phone number?

If you don’t want to provide your phone number, you’ll be added to the line using a generic name without any personal information. You will not receive text updates of the approximate waiting time.

What will my collected information be used for?

This information will only be used for service delivery and may also be used by the university in statistical analysis to identify user trends and inform the university's commitment to excellence.

Privacy statement for UBCs Virtual Line

The University of British Columbia uses the queuing system, QLESS, which will collect the following information from you:

Your preferred name
Initial of your last name
Last four digits of your student number
Cell phone number
The queue you are joining

By using this system, you are authorizing UBC to store this information on a QLESS server located in the United States. This information will be used for service delivery and may also be used by the university in statistical analysis to identify user trends and inform the university’s commitment to service excellence. UBC’s legal authority to collect this information is section 26(c) of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA).

For questions about the collection of this information or to inquire about alternatives to using this queuing system, please contact questions@askme.ubc.ca.

International Student Guide

Find everything you need to know about life as an international student at UBC's Vancouver campus.

View the guide

If you have questions

You can connect with International Student Advising for questions related to immigration, health insurance, and life as an international student in Canada.