• Honours Programs
• General Programs
• Interdepartmental Programs
• Options
• University BA and BSc Regulations

Honours degree programs are a minimum of 20.0 credits (or equivalent). Students normally take 5.0 credits (or 10 0.5-credit courses) each year for four years. Honours programs allow a more specialized study of a particular discipline, and are usually required for advanced study and research. Combination Honours BA programs allow students to combine honours work in two disciplines. An honours program in a discipline may also be combined with a secondary program from available general majors, minors and options in other disciplines. The successful completion of a secondary program will be recognized on the student's transcript at graduation.

General degree programs are normally 15.0 credits (or equivalent). Students usually complete 5.0 credits (or 10 0.5-credit courses) a year for each of three years. General programs focus on one or more major subjects and emphasize a broad understanding of a discipline (history, fine arts, Spanish, etc.). Students combine the study of their major subjects with electives taken from other disciplines.

NOTE: General degrees without a major will be available to students beginning in September 2005. Effective September 2007, general majors will not be offered to any new students entering the university; that is, for new students entering the university in September 2007, general degrees will not have majors, options or minors. (The general BA program at Brantford will retain the name Contemporary Studies.) Minimum progression and graduation requirements for general programs without designations are effective September 2005.

The Faculty of Arts offers interdisciplinary programs in Canadian studies, communication studies, cultural studies, global studies, history and philosophy of science, languages, medieval studies, Mediterranean Studies, near eastern studies, philosophy, political science and economics, and women's studies. An interdisciplinary program combines core courses with courses from other programs. This provides students with an opportunity to explore different disciplines focusing on a particular theme or area of study.

Available options allow students to combine general and honours programs with a secondary concentration in Urban Studies, Contemporary Studies with the Children's Education and Development Option, and honours programs with a secondary concentration in Administration or Co-operative Education. The latter formally integrates a student's academic studies with work experience in co-operative employer organizations (for details, refer to the Co-operative Education in the Faculty of Arts - Departments section).

The Environmental Science Option is available to students registered in the Honours BSc program in geography, as well as other Honours BSc programs available through the Faculty of Science. (Refer to the Faculty of Science chapter for details of the Applied Mathematics Option.)

1. Course Equivalency
   Departments may, with the approval of the dean, recognize a specific course as the equivalent of a required course when a student has obtained satisfactory credit for the course at this or another institution.
2. Prohibition from Registration
   1. A student deemed by the department offering a particular course to have the knowledge or skills taught in that course may be declared ineligible to register for credit in that course.
   2. A student who has failed the equivalent of 2.0 junior credits in a subject, whether the failure occurred in the same course(s) or different course(s), will be barred from registering for credit in further junior courses in that subject, except by permission of the dean and of the department offering the subject.
3. Directed Studies/Irregular Courses
   Directed Studies/Irregular courses dealing with subjects not covered by courses listed in the calendar may be offered to individuals or small groups of students. All outlines for Directed Studies courses together with the completed Directed Studies/Irregular Course Registration Forms must be submitted to the Dean of Arts for approval prior to the last day for adding a course in the term in which the Directed Studies/Irregular courses begin. All outlines must include a schedule of meetings, requirements for at least one graded assignment and a list of readings.
   
4. Honours and General Courses
   Several departments in each faculty offer a limited number of courses which are specifically intended for, and restricted to, honours students in the discipline. For these courses, all other students require special permission from the department concerned to register in the honours-level courses, but may take general-level equivalents where they exist.
   400 level seminars are open only to Year 4 honours students registered in the program in which the 400 level seminar is offered. Other students wishing to take 400 level seminars require permission of the department offering the course and the department in which they are specializing. A 400 level seminar cannot be repeated.
   
5. Interdepartmental Programs
   All requirements for the General BA degree apply and the co-ordinator of an interdepartmental program must authorize the student's major in writing. Permission to take individual courses is granted by the department or the co-ordinating committee offering the courses.
6. Double Counting
   Students are permitted to double-count courses for more than one program in which the same course is a required course or an elective.