Bachelor of Computer Science, with Specialization in Computer Game Technology

at Algoma University - Sault Ste. Marie Campus Canada

The study of history builds a foundation for active, informed citizenship. By exploring the past, students can make decisions in the present-day world, based on an understanding of the institutions, ideas, and relationships that have developed over the past decades and centuries.

As students learn about the lived experience of the past, they discover that it is full of fascinating stories and compelling personalities. They learn that sometimes, truth really is stranger than fiction. And as many of our senior-level students have testified, the research process can be exhilarating. They discover the excitement of sifting through the archives, making original discoveries, and then sharing their findings with others. History can be a source of immense delight – both the stuff of history and the process of discovering it.

Our faculty bring their wide-ranging interests and specializations into the classroom, and provide a great selection of courses that meet our students interests. From the ancient history of the Americas and Europe, through to the history of Canada in the late twentieth century, and all areas and time in between, the program tries to match its offerings to popular areas of interest and to the latest developments in historical study. Some courses include the history of the Anishinaabe people, ancient Greece and Rome, medieval Europe, women’s and gender history in Canada, the witch-hunts in Europe, as well as survey courses on American, Canadian, and western civilization history.

Our history students equip themselves for potential future careers in a variety of fields, including, but not limited to, the following: law, education, civil service (including the foreign service), journalism, museum studies, public history, publishing, information technology, and research consulting.

It’s nearly impossible to think of any aspect of modern business that does not rely on Information and Communication Technology (ICT). ICT capability is an essential element of business success and jobs with these high-demand skills are continuing to expand rapidly. Designed for students with a bachelor’s degree or college diploma outside of the field, our graduate Graduate Certificate in Information Technology will provide you with the specialist skills you need to ignite your career in ICT. You will gain essential skills in programming, software development, object-oriented analysis and design, web technologies and databases, e-business strategy, and project management, which will complement your existing critical thinking and communication abilities. Information and Communication Technology skills can improve job prospects as well as productivity for those already involved in the field.

Our psychology program continues to be one of the University’s most popular programs. Our small classes ultimately provide students with individual attention and a more personal student-professor relationship

Our psychology program offers two different degrees, tailored to the students’ strengths and interests. The Bachelor of Science (BSc four-year) degree requires students to complete a greater number of biological-based courses compared to the Bachelor of Arts (BA four-year) degree.

In addition to the standard courses on methodology that are required for a psychology degree, we offer courses on a wide range of topics in psychology. The majority of courses that we offer fall under one of two broadly-based categories: those that focus on the social bases of behaviour, and those that focus on the biological bases of behaviour. While it is widely known that psychology can involve the identification of, and counselling for, abnormal thoughts and behaviours, there are many other areas of psychology that you can explore with us.

A psychology degree is really a stepping stone to the next phase of a student’s life. We teach you how to be dedicated, motivated, and to think critically about scientific data, human and non-human behaviour, and science in general. These are skills that are in demand by many prospective employers. Many of our former students have continued with higher education at the graduate level, earning Master’s and PhD degrees. We also have former students with law and education degrees, and others who are now speech and language pathologists, audiologists, forensic psychologists, and neuroscientists.

As part of the School of Computer Science & Technology, our Computer Science program delivers an innovative and cutting-edge education.

Students studying Computer Science will gain a strong theoretical and practical foundation in the study of algorithms, programming languages, hardware architecture, systems software, application software, and tools. They will also develop a solid foundation in data structure, programming, assembly language programming, computer organization, operating systems, theory, software engineering, and computer networking. Students also have the opportunity to explore their individual interests and take courses in artificial intelligence, human-computer interactions, and web data management, among others!

Above all, our computer science program values and encourages creativity and innovation. Students are given the opportunity to create new designs and explore their creative and unique ideas with faculty who are excited and equipped to guide students in the process of exploration.

Our students explore how Computer Science reaches far beyond theory and practice, driving innovation in the sciences, with examples such as the Human Genome Project and AIDs vaccine research, and leading developments in engineering, business, entertainment, and education. Wherever your passions and creativity lead, studies in Computer Science will take you there!

What is particularly unique about studies in Computer Science is that experiments can be carried out in a simulated virtual laboratory. Your creativity needs no limits because even ideas that, for now, exist outside of the realm of physical possibility, can be carried out in a computer lab. Computer scientists can simulate outcomes before they happen, including mapping out natural disasters and population growth under a variety of different circumstances.

Our Bachelor of Arts in English program offers courses in all genres – drama, fiction, poetry, and prose – including writers and thinkers from around the world and from the medieval period to the present. Our faculty have expertise across a range of Canadian, British, American, and postcolonial literatures, and a long-standing commitment to the study of the writers who reflect and shape the cultural histories of the people of the English-speaking world.

Our program is highly personalized, since students are given the opportunity to pursue topics of interest on assignments, presentations, and various writings. We invite and expect students to participate in seminar discussions and lectures by asking questions and sharing ideas. Students discover modes of thought and methods of investigation that not only enrich the reading and understanding of language and literature, but are applicable to various disciplines. They become critical in their reading and thinking and clear in their writing and speaking. They develop a passion for reading, writing, and reflecting on the use of language wherever it is written or spoken.

An undergraduate degree in English will provide you with a solid basis for a wide range of careers. While many majors in English become teachers after they graduate, many others become artists, actors, songwriters, broadcasters, journalists, technical writers, essayists, novelists, playwrights, screenwriters, directors, editors, publishers, librarians, archivists, entertainers, public relations specialists, advertising copywriters, marketing experts, researchers, lawyers, doctors, social workers, politicians, and top and mid-level managers, executives, and administrators.

Our faculty and students live and work in an animated, spirited, and humorous culture in which art making is acknowledged as a process of constant and perpetual transformation and aspiration toward higher degrees of insight.

Passion, enthusiasm, a questioning mind, and an ability to do things differently are part and parcel of a creative life and are some of the characteristics it takes to be a visual art student. Pursuing a four-year Bachelor of Fine Arts allows students the opportunity to channel and express their creativity and imagination, but also to hone and perfect their skills by learning about past and present techniques.

The program strikes a fine balance between traditional and experimental practices and between refined object making and personal development. Ultimately, regardless of the value of the art objects, the final product of creative endeavour is the artist/creator and her/his role within the larger community.

After completing a degree in fine arts, students are opened up to an array of career paths and opportunities. Achievements made by our graduates includes the founding of several creative businesses, set design with the Ontario film industry, graduation from a leading Master of Fine Arts program, subsequent university teaching work, inclusion in significant exhibitions, art director for an international cruise ship company, employment in the field of computer gaming and design, founder of a regional Aboriginal art gallery, crossover work in graphic design, and many more.

Political science is the study and analysis of possibilities for states and their citizens; the possibility of peace in a war ravaged country; the possibility of democracy in an authoritarian state; the possibility of economic equity in a capitalist system; and the possibility of harmony in a system of sovereign states.

The study of politics has always been at the centre of an education geared toward sustaining and improving community life. The ancient Chinese, Greeks, and Romans regarded politics as one of the highest forms of human expression. Indigenous peoples all over the world have practiced unique and effective forms of politics for millennia. Whether you know it or not, we all participate in politics.

Algoma U’s four-year Bachelor of Arts in Political Science degree focuses on three areas of study: Canadian politics, public policy and government; comparative politics and international relations; and political theory, philosophy, and economy.

Our program works to incorporate Indigenous content, ideas, and methodology in its approach. It will help students to understand and identify important institutions, forces, and ideas that shape society, and permit change to occur or not occur. It will teach students how to systematically, rigorously, and analytically evaluate competing explanations of the same event or phenomenon, and gain an understanding of who or what exerts power.

Within the program, students will develop a wide range of skills that are in high demand in the public and private workforce. Some of the career paths our graduates have chosen include education, research, financial/economic analyst, foreign services, legislative analyst, diplomat, immigration and border services, museum and/or curatorial work, Indigenous research, civil service, lawyer, politics and policy, public relations, entrepreneur, journalist and many more.

Currently, Anishinaabemowin faces many of the dangers other languages around the world face – extinction. The language was originally passed on by elders to younger generations through oral storytelling; however, this tradition has changed in recent years. The language relies upon a newer and younger generation to become versed in the language and to pass their teachings on to future generations. Thus, by studying Anishinaabemowin, you have the power to revive and maintain the language of one of the earliest peoples in Canada.

Our program offers basic- to advanced-level instruction in the Ojibwe language and culture. Within the program, students gain a functional level of fluency in the language and thoroughly investigate the challenges posed by the written word. They will individually and collectively examine social structures and values within Anishinaabe society, and will also study the Anishinaabe worldview and philosophy. By examining the Anishinaabe’s oral and written history, students will come to understand the grammar and sound of Anishinaabemowin through various written exercises. Our students will also be exposed to Anishinaabe music and social activism, as well as the regional differences that exist in the Anishinaabe culture across Canada.

What makes our program even more unique is the rich cultural history in which Algoma U is founded on. Over 12 per cent of our student body is Anishinaabe (First Nations, Métis, or Inuit), and that number continues to grow. With a special mission and commitment to cross-cultural learning, our Anishinaabemowin program looks to bring Chief Shingwauk’s vision of “sharing, healing, and learning” to fruition. Our campus is located on the site of the former Shingwauk Indian Residential School, and is committed to researching, collecting, preserving, and displaying the history of the residential schools system; developing and delivering projects in relation to Chief Shingwauk’s mission; and bringing about individual and community cultural restoration under the name of The Shingwauk Project. Thus, the educational experience students receive here is unlike any other and is deeply rooted in Anishinaabe culture and history.

The Graduate Certificate in Health Science is a multidisciplinary program, that provides students with a wide variety of course options related to the field of Health Sciences. The certificate approaches the topic of Health Sciences from the viewpoint of multiple disciplines (Biology, Psychology, Philosophy, Sociology) and allows students to customize the certificate to their particular career goals and interests.

As part of the School of Computer Science & Technology, our Computer Science program delivers an innovative and cutting-edge education.

Students studying Computer Science will gain a strong theoretical and practical foundation in the study of algorithms, programming languages, hardware architecture, systems software, application software, and tools. They will also develop a solid foundation in data structure, programming, assembly language programming, computer organization, operating systems, theory, software engineering, and computer networking. Students also have the opportunity to explore their individual interests and take courses in artificial intelligence, human-computer interactions, and web data management, among others!

Above all, our computer science program values and encourages creativity and innovation. Students are given the opportunity to create new designs and explore their creative and unique ideas with faculty who are excited and equipped to guide students in the process of exploration.

Our students explore how Computer Science reaches far beyond theory and practice, driving innovation in the sciences, with examples such as the Human Genome Project and AIDs vaccine research, and leading developments in engineering, business, entertainment, and education. Wherever your passions and creativity lead, studies in Computer Science will take you there!

What is particularly unique about studies in Computer Science is that experiments can be carried out in a simulated virtual laboratory. Your creativity needs no limits because even ideas that, for now, exist outside of the realm of physical possibility, can be carried out in a computer lab. Computer scientists can simulate outcomes before they happen, including mapping out natural disasters and population growth under a variety of different circumstances.

MOBILE SOFTWARE ENGINEERING - SPECIALIZATION
The Mobile Software Engineering specialization enables the student to apply the foundation skills of Computer Science to the development of applications and systems that implement the use of mobile devices in modern computer systems. This allows them to develop expertise in what is becoming a predominant part of the application of computer technology. The students will study the range of applications of mobile devices and will learn to develop applications on a variety of mobile platforms. The graduate will be able to apply the use of mobile devices in business, industry, social media and gaming. The specialization requires the student to do at least one major project that can form the basis for a portfolio of skills as they seek employment in the industry.