Guide to Program & Course Descriptions

Terminology used in the Program of Study Listings​

• A forward slash (“/”) means “or” and distinguishes multiple options to fulfill a specific requirement
• A comma (",") and a semi-colon (";") both mean “and” inicating items in a list.  If not specified, assume the list indicates that a student must take all options
• The plus sign (+) means “and” but may be used as a strong “and” to indicate courses that are paired to be a single option or requirement.
• Parentheses ( ) or brackets [ ] identify courses that are grouped together to form a specific option or requirement.
• "Credit" or "Credits" = Full Course Equivalents/FCE
• 200-series or 200-level = courses numbered in the 200’s ONLY;
• 200+series or 200+level = courses in the 200’s or 300’s or 400’s
• 300+series or 300+level = courses numbered in the 300’s or 400’s
• Group = a group of related courses; groups are at the end of the relevant program listings
• The code Y1/Y0 or H1/H0 in a course code in this Calendar indicates the credit value:
  • Y1/Y0 = a full course, for which one credit is given, e.g., VIS431Y1 (Y1 designates a full-credit course on the St. George campus, Y0 designates a full-credit course offered off-campus, for example through the Summer Abroad course).
  • H1/H0 = a half course, for which one-half credit is given, e.g., ARC180H1 (H1 designates a half-credit course on the St. George campus, H0 designates a half-credit course offered off-campus).

 

Courses

A course is an academic activity which is recorded with a result on the academic history. A passed course normally gives academic credit towards completing a degree and may help complete a program of study. There are “full” (Y) and “half” (H) courses each with a different credit weight.

NOTE: While the Daniels Faculty Office of the Registrar and Student Services and departmental counsellors in the Faculty of Arts & Science are always available to give advice, THE ULTIMATE RESPONSIBILITY RESTS WITH THE STUDENT for completeness and correctness of course selection, for compliance with exclusions, prerequisite and co-requisite requirements, for completion of program details, for proper completion of the Breadth Requirement, and for observance of regulations, deadlines, etc. Students are responsible for seeking guidance from a responsible officer if they are in any doubt; misunderstanding, misapprehension, or advice received from another student will not be accepted as cause for dispensation from any regulation, deadline, program, or degree requirement.

Please Note:

1. The Daniels Faculty reserves the right to change the content of, or to withdraw, any course. In such cases every effort is made to provide equivalent alternative instruction, but this cannot be guaranteed.
2. The Faculty reserves the right to limit the number of students in any course or any section of a course if the number wishing to take the course should exceed the resources available. Notwithstanding this, every effort is made to accommodate students in 100-series courses according to admission category.

 

Key to Course Descriptions

Course descriptions are listed in the "Architectural Studies" and "Visual Studies" sections of this calendar. The description will state anything special about the course, from special aspects of the class experience (for example, language of study or field work), to the intended audience of the course (for example, a science course intended for non-science students as an elective), to any special ancillary fees (for example, lab material). For an explanation of terms and abbreviations used in these descriptions, including prerequisites, co-requisites, exclusions, etc., see below. Students may choose from among these courses, subject to the following rules:

1. Students must satisfy the degree and program requirements and other regulations set out in the Calendar and its supplements.
2. Students must meet all prerequisite, co-requisite, and exclusion requirements.
3. Students must complete a minimum of 13.0 credits at the 200-level or higher, including a minimum of 6.0 credits at the 300+ level

 

Course Title

Indicates the topic and theme of the course. Some courses may have a general title of a “special topics course” in the Academic Calendar but the actual course content varies year by year; in such a case, seek out the department or program’s website, or the Timetable offerings, to learn more about what will be offered. On the transcript, course titles are abbreviated.

Types of Instruction (Lecture/Tutorial/Practical/Seminar Hours (L/T/P/S))

All courses comprise a certain number of hours dedicated to instruction. There are four types. Often courses may have more than one.

• Lectures are standard in almost every course as the fundamental type of instruction, where the instructor will present course content to students. All instructors have individual styles and approaches to lectures. For example, some instructors may take questions differently or present slides/visual aids differently.
• Tutorials are smaller group meetings where students can discuss and ask questions about lecture material with either the instructor or (more often) a TA (tutorial assistant). Tutorials may also be used for some kinds of evaluation, like small quizzes or to be assessed on a student’s participation in the course. Like practicals, tutorials always are part of a course that has either lectures or seminars (see below).
• Practicals involve students being able to learn and apply their learning hands-on, for example, laboratories (“labs”) for science courses. If a course has practicals, then it always has either lectures or seminars (see below).
• Seminars are a small-class experience, common for very advanced courses, where the in-class process is a combination of some lecturing mixed with structured class discussion and often student presentations.

In brackets after the title, the number of hours that students will spend in lecture (L), in tutorial (T), in practical sessions (P), or seminar (S) for the course are listed. These are most often a multiple of 12, as the term is 12 weeks in length.

Number of Courses Taken (“Course Load”)

Students may proceed towards the degree at a rate of their own choosing, except as provided below:

1. The recommended course load for full-time students in good standing in each of the Fall and Winter term is no more than 2.5 credits.  The maximum course load in each term is 3.0 credits. During the priority period of enrolment students’ maximum course load, included waitlisted courses, is 2.5 credits; once the priority period has ended, students may enrol in/waitlist for an additional 0.5 credit to the maximum of 3.0 credits.  Special consideration will not be granted on the basis of enrolment in more than the recommended maximum. 
2. The maximum course load during the Summer Session is 1.0 credits per term.
3. Daniels students are limited to a term load of 3.0 credits in each of the Fall and Winter terms, and are advised to take a maximum of 1.0 credits in each term in the Summer session. Students who exceed the Fall/Winter term load limit will be removed from excess courses at any time unless given prior approval from the Office of the Registrar and Student Services.
4. Students “On Academic Probation” may take no more than 2.5 credits in each of the Fall and Winter Sessions except as provided under “students restricted to a reduced course load” (see 5. below).
5. Students restricted to a reduced course load on admission may take no more than 1.5 credits in a Fall or Winter term and no more than 2.5 credits overall during the Fall/Winter session. They may take no more than 1.5 credits in a Fall or Winter term unless approved by the Office of the Registrar and Student Services. They may take a maximum of 1.0 credits in the Summer Session. Students restricted to part-time studies who wish to transfer to full-time studies should consult with Office of the Registrar and Student Services.
6. Students should attempt to balance their course load between the Fall and Winter terms.
7. To calculate course loads, students should consult this Calendar together with the Timetable. The codes “Y1” or “H1” in a course code in the Calendar indicate the credit value:
   • Y1 = a full course (1.0 credit), for which one credit is given, e.g., ARCY361Y1
   • H1 = a half-course (0.5 credit), for which one-half credit is given, e.g.,VIS203H1
8. In the Timetable a section code is associated with a course code to indicate when the course is offered:
   • F = first half of the Fall/Winter Session (September-December), or first half of the Summer Session (May-June), e.g., JAV120H1F
   • S = second half of the Fall/Winter Session (January-April), or second half of the Summer Session (July-August), e.g., JAV130H1S
   • Y = Fall and Winter terms, or First and Second subsessions of the Summer Session, e.g., VIS431Y1Y
9. Students should note that courses designated as “...Y1F” or “...Y1S” in the Timetable are particularly demanding.
10. In the Fall/Winter session, full-time students (except those in 4. above) may select up to 6.0 credits after the priority period expires during the course enrolment cycle (see registration information, and the Timetable for details).
11. Students are advised to use discretion in adding any more courses than the recommended maximum of 5.0 credits in the Fall/Winter session. Students will not receive special consideration of any kind on account of enroling in more than the recommended maximum. Examination schedules may be affected by this course load.
12. In each of the Fall and Winter terms students who are in good standing may request to add additional courses beyond 6.0 credits through the Office of the Registrar and Student Services. In the Summer Session, students who are in good standing may request to add additional courses beyond 2.0 credits through the Office of the Registrar and Student Services. The Registrar, following Faculty guidelines, has the discretion to approve or deny such requests. Students will not receive special consideration of any kind on account of a course overload. Examination schedules may be affected by a course overload.
13. Students are not allowed course overload in any session until they have completed 4.0 credits in the Faculty (first-year students and transfer students).

 

Year of Study

At Daniels, a student who has:

 

Full-/Part-Time Status

Full-time status

• A student enroled in 3.0 credits or more for the Fall-Winter sessions is considered to be full-time.
• A student enroled in 1.5 credits or more for the Summer session is considered to be full-time.

Part-time status

• A student enroled in 2.5 credits or fewer for the Fall/Winter Session is considered to be part-time.
• A student enroled in 1.0 credits or fewer for the Summer session is considered to be part-time.

 

Codes Used in the Course Descriptions

Course Designators

Course designators are the three-letter codes that appear at the beginning of each course code (i.e., ARC is the designator for Architectural Studies courses; VIS is the designator for Visual Studies courses), and JAV is the designator for Joint Architectural and Visual Studies courses.

Course Number

The course number generally indicates the level of difficulty, e.g., a 100-series course normally indicates an introductory course, a 400-series course is an intensive course at the senior level.

"Y1/YO" and "H1/H0" Course Suffixes

The codes “Y1/Y0” or “H1/H0” in a course code in the Calendar indicate the credit value:

• Y1/Y0 = full course, for which one credit is given, e.g., ARC361Y1
• H1/H0 = a half-course, for which one half-credit is given, e.g., VIS300H0

Types and Duration of Instruction

L= Lectures

S= Seminars

P= Practical work in laboratories or studios

T= Tutorials

In the Fall/Winter Session the normal period of instruction is 24 weeks; the Fall term lasts 12 weeks, and the Winter term lasts 12 weeks. The number preceding the instruction codes opposite the course number and title indicates the total number of hours of instruction given in the course. The number of hours listed is approximate only; the actual contact hours of a course, or of different sections of a course, may vary from the number indicated in the Calendar due to the size of the class or section and the use being made of the tutorial or practical components of the class. This variation is at the discretion of the Daniels Faculty.

Prerequisites, Co-requisites, etc.

Students are responsible for fulfilling prerequisites and co-requisites; students enroled in courses for which they do not have the published prerequisite or co-requisites may have their registration in those courses cancelled at any time without warning. Students must also observe exclusions. Failure to meet these requirements may result in academic difficulties. If students withdraw from a course they must also withdraw from any course for which it is a co-requisite unless they have been given prior permission to remain enrolled and the Department or unit giving the latter course agrees to waive the co-requisite.

Explanation of Symbols

The comma (,) the semi-colon(;) the ampersand (&) and the plus sign (+) all mean “AND”. The slash (/) means “OR”.

Exclusions

Students may not enrol in a course if that course lists as an exclusion a course they are currently taking or a course they have already passed or a course they were assigned as an equivalent transfer credit; students may also not enrol in a course if they were assigned a generic transfer credit that lists that course as an exclusion.  If allowed by special permission to enrol in an excluded course, the second course taken will be listed as an “Extra” course. Students will be required to withdraw from the course if discovered during the session of enrolment and will be refused degree credit in the excluded course if discovered at any time in a subsequent session.

Prerequisite

A prerequisite is a course or courses (or other qualification) required as preparation for entry to another course. If students consider that they have equivalent preparation, they may ask the Daniels Faculty or the Department concerned to waive the stated prerequisite.

Co-requisite

A co-requisite is a requirement to be undertaken concurrently with another course. The co-requisite will be waived if a student has previously obtained standing in it, or if the Daniels Faculty or the Department consents.

Recommended Preparation

Recommended preparation is background material or courses that may enhance a student’s understanding of a course, but that is not required in order to enrol in the course.

Breadth Requirement

Almost all courses are categorized in terms of one of the five breadth requirement categories:

• 1 (Creative and Cultural Representations)
• 2 (Thought, Belief, Behaviour)
• 3 (Society and Its Institutions)
• 4 (Living Things and Their Environment)
• 5 (Physical and Mathematical Universes)

Half-courses offer 0.5 credits towards only one of the categories; full-courses offer either 0.5 credits in two different categories, or 1.0 credit in one.

Distribution Requirements (old)

Courses still list what is called the “distribution requirement” which normally categorizes a course as either Science, Social Science, Humanities, or a combination thereof. (In rare cases, there may be no category assigned.) This is only of interest to students who started their degree before September 2010.

Section Code

Section codes do not appear in the Calendar. In the Timetable, a section code is listed with a course code to indicate when the course is offered:

• F = first half of the Fall/Winter Session (September-December), or first half of the Summer Session (May-June), e.g., JAV120H1F
• S = second half of the Fall/Winter Session (January-April), or second half of the Summer Session (July-August), e.g., JAV130H1F
• Y = the entire Fall/Winter session, or first and second sub-sessions of the Summer Session, e.g., VIS431Y1Y

 

About Programs of Study

All Daniels students are required to complete programs as a part of their degree requirements.   These programs identify the subject area(s) the student has pursued and completed.  A program of study is a sequence of courses in certain areas, normally with some choice of options within the sequence.

• Description (optional) – A small bit of text to indicate what is notable about this program and why a student might select it as part of their academic or professional plans.
• Enrolment requirements – This describes what requirements, if any, a student must meet to enter the program. Daniels students are automatically enrolled in either the Comprehensive Specialist for Architectural Studies students OR Major in visual studies for visual studies students.  Students may add an additional program only if a student has obtained 4.0 credits or is on track to doing so before the start of the next September.
• Completion requirements – This lays out – often year by year – the courses a student must complete to complete the program itself. This information is translated for use in Degree Explorer tool to help a student track their progress and plan future courses.
• Notes (optional) – If either the enrolment requirements or the completion requirements need some clarification, there may be special notes inserted in either area.
• Course Groups (program dependent) – Many programs, especially programs that can recognize a selection from a number of courses from many other departments to fulfil program requirements, will list courses grouped by category.

 

Specialist, Major, and Minor Programs of Study 

Programs offered by Daniels or the Faculty of Arts & Science that may be used to complete a degree can have the status of a Specialist, Major, or Minor.

• Specialist programs (from 10.0 to 14.0 credits to complete) offer the deepest and most extensive study of the subject matter in question, and almost always represents the key area of degree studies.
• Major programs (from 6.0 to 8.0 credits to complete) offer a comprehensive study of the subject matter, and may be the primary area of degree studies, complemented with another Major or some Minor programs.
• Minor programs (4.0 credits to complete) offer a fundamental study of the subject matter and complement degree studies where a Major or a Specialist is also being pursued.

For more information on what combination of programs of study ensure completion of a degree, and the allowable combinations of programs of study, refer to the Degree Requirements (HBA) page in this calendar.

Certificates

The University has three categories of Certificates, but the Daniels Academic Calendar only includes those that must be completed using undergraduate courses while pursuing a degree. Certificates are composed of a sequence of 2.0-3.0 credits relating to an identified topic or theme that may complement a degree program. Pursuit of a Certificate may offer structure to elective course choices; these certificates do not offer any kind of professional certification. A completed Certificate will show on a student's transcript. Note that a Certificate is not a program, and will not contribute toward the program(s) required to complete the degree.