The Nanaimo Campus Master Plan presents a vision that raises the profile of VIU and encourages the transformation from a university-college to a comprehensive university. The plan proposes investment in buildings, landscapes and infrastructure to enhance existing natural features, promote environmental stewardship and bring the campus to its full potential.

The key moves are: to establish a central academic quad which unites the academic and trades built environment; to bring transit to the core of the campus, associated with a new University Centre building; to protect and enhance the existing forest and wetland; to maximize sustainability; and to provide edge conditions which bring visibility to the university functions. In so doing, the campus integrates more fully with the larger community.