Developing your TLEF Budget
TLEF project budgets must be reasonable, aligned with the objectives of the project, and include a clear justification for all costs associated with the project.
- TLEF applicants and co-applicants who are UBC faculty and staff cannot be hired for a position that receives salary from a TLEF project budget. UBC students who are co-applicants on a TLEF proposal may be hired for a position that receives salary from the TLEF budget.
- TLEF funds cannot be used to purchase external consulting or other types of services where expertise and support is available within UBC at a reasonable cost and in a timely manner.
- The TLEF is not an equipment fund. Applicants will not generally receive TLEF funding to buy equipment. If there is a request for equipment it must be justified in relation to the project goals, not exceed 30% of the overall project budget, and also include significant funding from the Faculty or Department.
- TLEF funding cannot be used to cover the cost of faculty or staff travel or conference expenses or other dissemination costs such as journal publication fees. It is possible to use TLEF funding to support a student to attend a conference if the purpose is to share results from the TLEF project.
- Any catering requests should be proportionate and reasonable and clearly show how such support will maximize the benefit of the overall project goals. The TLEF Adjudication Committee will cut or reduce catering costs if they deem them excessive.
You can consult with the CTLT to develop the budget for your project either at TLEF drop-in sessions or by requesting a personal consultation to discuss your project idea. If you are interested in a consultation with CTLT please complete this Consultation Request Form.
An accurate budget is crucial component for your TLEF application. Below is a table of cost estimates for various services that can be included in TLEF proposals. Applicants should work with their department HR and finance contacts to develop personnel estimates based on anticipated hiring needs and actual salary and benefit costs.
| Item | Estimated Rate or Cost |
| Faculty Course Release (only for Large TLEF projects) | $10,000 per course. The cost of faculty course releases is split 50/50 between the Office of the Provost and VP Academic and the Faculty. Applicants will need to ensure that you have your Faculty’s support and commitment for matching funds before you request course release in your proposal. |
| Teaching & Learning Fellow |
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| Student Wages | Students are often hired as part of TLEF project team to assist with roles such as project coordination, evaluation, website development, graphic design, media production, etc. For student roles, you should use the rates below in determining your project budget based upon CUPE 2278 rates (as of Sept. 2024).
The CUPE 2278 rates listed above include vacation pay. When budgeting for student wages, please add 10% to these rates to cover benefit costs (e.g., employer paid portion of CPP and EI) to avoid going over budget when actual costs are deducted from the funding amount. Although the above rates are described in terms TA roles, most TLEF projects hire students as Undergraduate Academic Assistants (UAA) or Graduate Academic Assistants (GAA) as there are not often TA duties involved in TLEF development work. TLEF student roles do not typically include Graduate Research Assistants (GRA) as GRA positions are typically supported through a faculty member’s research grant and the funding is considered a type of scholarship or award for duties that are part of a student’s graduate degree requirements. Please check with your departmental finance/administrative manager to ensure that you are following departmental practice for hiring students. A portion ($8.00/hr) of student rates may be subsidized under the UBC Work Learn Program. You will need to submit a separate application to the UBC Work Learn Program to apply for such funding. |
| UBC Staff salaries in TLEF Projects |
Many TLEF projects include staff support for activities such as:
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| CTLT Support | Subject to available capacity, in-kind support from the CTLT is available to support TLEF projects for Curriculum Development, Learning Design, Pedagogical Support, Evaluation and Learning Technology Support.Applicants must consult with the CTLT before including in-kind support hours from the CTLT in their proposal or budget.
The CTLT cannot guarantee support to TLEF project teams who do not consult about the scope and timing of their project’s support needs in advance of submitting a proposal.
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| Learning Technology Support | If you are applying to the TLEF to develop or adopt a learning technology or GenAI tool, you must consult with Learning Technology Innovation Centre (LTIC) staff to ensure that your development plans align with the UBC learning ecosystem guidelines for Learning Technology adoption or development.The LT Hub’s Learning Technology (LT) Incubator can provide development support to funded UBC learning technology projects by partnering with the LT Incubator team on their software development. Please reach out early in your planning to get input from the LT Incubator team on your proposal and to explore the possibility of collaboration. |
| Website Hosting | Hosting is available free of charge through either UBC Blogs or cms.ubc.ca for TLEF projects. |
| Media Production Equipment | TLEF applicants should consult with the UBC Studios or their local Faculty ISS group to explore options for media equipment to help support media production needs. Several groups on campus, such as the UBC Studios, have low-cost or free DIY Recording studio and light-board studio facilities that can be accessed for media development.l |
| Media Production | UBC provides free consultation support through UBC Studios’ Creative Development and Media Production services to help you develop a plan and budget for media in your project. To arrange for a consultation regarding your project’s media needs, please send an email to ubc.studios@ubc.ca. |