Bachelor of Science in Biodiversity

at University of Guelph Canada

This program is designed for students wishing to concentrate on Geography. It introduces the basic concepts in human, physical and environmental geography and requires everyone to master the important computer, cartographic, writing, GIS, and statistical skills required of a professional geographer. Within this program, it is possible to include a balanced mix of Geography courses or to specialize in techniques, human, physical or environmental topics. Careful selection of electives from complementary programs can enhance specializations within this program.

Students in the Department of Geography can participate in the student led Geography Society. Which organizes special events throughout the year, including trips, parties, and career nights. The Geography Society has its own room in the Hutt Building, which provides a place for members to meet, to study, and to plan events.

Program Highlights
Learning takes place in a variety of settings in the program. In addition to classroom settings, students learn through hands-on research in labs and in the field. Labs are part of numerous courses, from first year to fourth year, and allow students to design and conduct experiments, and solve problems using state-of-the-art computing and analytical tools. Field research is also an important component of geographic research. Research, writing, critical thinking, and problem solving are emphasized throughout the program.

The Theatre Studies program at Guelph is a degree option within the B.A. Program and is dedicated to the integrated study of both academic and practical applications of performance and theatre. 

Our curriculum is based on the philosophy that the study of performance at the university level engages various disciplinary practices, both practical and academic, and therefore we attempt to provide both practical theatre experience and classroom study.  We offer a wide range of courses in dramatic literature, theatre history, performance research, theory and criticism, together with directing, acting, dramaturgy, performance creation, scenography, production and technical theatre, playwriting and screenwriting, as well as media studies.  The program has a special interest in the drama and theatre of Canada, and course offerings reflect this concentration where appropriate.

The Theatre Studies Bachelor of Arts program will provide student who graduate with the following program learning outcomes:

• To develop artists who thrive on intellectual curiosity, openness to ideas and take measured risk through creative experiences.
• To develop informed and creative citizens, empowered to contribute to the world through writing and performance.
• To apply critical sensibilities through a familiarity and understanding of a range of significant performance and media work past and present.
• To develop well-rounded performance artists, who possess the research tools and disciplinary skills to model their own productive performance practices.
• To develop meaningful ways to integrate theory, technology and practice where critical thinking and creativity are equally embraced.
• To learn techniques for communication and collaboration, build relationships and to listen and respect different thought processes. 

By combining the conceptual and quantitative elements of accounting while promoting the integration of theory and practice, the accounting major provides graduates with the academic requirements for the postgraduate pursuit of a Professional Accounting designation. Students will develop the technical, analytical, evaluative and communication skills needed for a successful career in accounting and related management areas.

The program provides a strong foundation of accounting and general business knowledge while allowing significant opportunity to develop breadth and depth of knowledge in related areas of study.

Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental academic discipline that allows students to Pursue questions that have stimulated thinkers across eras and cultures. How should we live? What is it to be a person? Explore these and other questions through modern issues in artificial intelligence, politics, sexuality, and the environment in small seminars and field courses. You will acquire skills in reasoning, communication, critical thinking, intellectual independence, and the ability to understand others’ viewpoints and assumptions. 

Political Science at the University of Guelph offers a wide-range of undergraduate courses in five major areas: Political Thought; Canadian Politics; Public Policy; Governance and Law; Comparative Politics; and International Relations and Global Studies. Courses provide students with an understanding of important concepts and processes in political science including the role of institutions in parliamentary and presidential systems of government, the role of law and courts in relation to politics and governance, comparative electoral systems, and the role of the political parties, interest groups and social movements. Students are introduced to many debates and issues offering relevant and engaging course content from how governments balance individual and group rights while protecting society, to the use of social networking by political parties and the best ways to promote democracy.

Course offerings help students develop skills in researching and writing that enhances their ability to study and communicate about politics and prepare them for careers in areas such as: political staffers, policy analysts, business-government relations, law, journalism, foreign affairs, regulatory affairs, advocacy and planning for nongovernmental organizations and other careers where analytical and communication skills are required.

WHY CO-OP?
As a co-op student, you will gain relevant work experience, build professional networks and develop essential interpersonal skills needed to succeed in the workplace, all while getting paid and earning your university degree. University of Guelph’s co-op program is unique due to the exceptional level of support provided, including an inclass preparatory course, a personal connection with a Co-op Coordinator to assist you during the employment process, and access to senior student mentors.

The BA Music at the University of Guelph is geared to students who have a significant interest in music and music studies within a wider liberal arts education. It is a comprehensive and flexible program that offers instruction in music history, theory and criticism and and examines the significance of classical, world, and popular musics. Students develop a high degree of musicianship through skills training, music lessons (for those interested in advanced instrumental and vocal training), and participation in a variety of ensembles. With new facilities in digital technology, we support the increasing importance of technology in musical production, distribution, and listening. Our students go on to further studies and careers in music education (institutional and private), graduate music research, arts administration, performance, and production.

CTS offers a unique and flexible path to explore the role of culture and creativity in an increasingly digital world, using various technologies as part of the process. It emerges from the understanding that technology is inextricably linked to human experience, culture, and society. CTS courses tackle the complex relationships among power, knowledge, digital cultures, the representation of data, and the ethical questions surrounding the development, application, and accessibility of technologies. CTS students learn to intervene in and contribute to the contemporary world as agile creators, curators, communicators, and citizens.

In addition to completing the Bachelor of Arts with a Major in CTS, you can add an optional Areas of Emphasis in: Performance, Making & Design | Storytelling & Public Humanities |  Power, Identities, & Equity.  Each emphasis curates a unique set of courses that will allow you to apply and explore digital methods in a way that is meaningful to you. These may inspire interest in a specific career path, further research, or allow you to combine your studies in CTS with another subject (Minor or Double-Major).

Performance, Making & Design
Students in this area of emphasis learn to integrate their knowledge from core CTS classes into a variety of methods of making, creating, and performance.
Using digital technologies, students explore everything from printmaking to 3D design, from podcasting to the production of digital music. Students in this area develop skills in critique and creation: they learn to develop digital projects in a range of contexts while also developing a critical vocabulary by which to articulate the goals and achievements of the things they make.

Storytelling & Public Humanities
Students in this area of emphasis focus on the relationship between digital culture, data, public discourse, and narrative.
Analyze digital forms of storytelling from a variety of perspectives while also thinking critically about how narrative can be used to publicly disseminate knowledge. Investigate a range of digital forms of storytelling including podcasts, video games, and electronic literature. Seize opportunities to develop projects using emerging, digital technology to tell stories. In addition to thinking about how technology transforms ideas of narrative—what is a digital text and how can we read one—students also engage with the public on projects related to history, public discourse, and community work.

Power, Identities & Equity
Students in this area of emphasis focus on the intersection of identities such as gender, sexuality, race, class, (dis)ability and Indigeneity as they are reimagined in digital culture and by digital technology.
Both investigations of the past and analyses of power and difference in the present provide an important framework for understanding the role and potential of technologies. Students in this area of emphasis learn how to frame analysis of digital artifacts, digital production of knowledge, and exploration of modes of civic engagement to bring considerations of equity and diversity to the fore.

Computer Engineering is a field of engineering that focuses on the design and organization of computer systems. Graduates in Computer Engineering are able to apply mathematical, scientific and engineering principles to design and integrate computer systems suitable for applications in a wide range of fields. The program provides students with a common base of knowledge essential to computer engineering and then allows them to select from a menu of electives to attain a degree of specialization in one of four areas or to choose electives to broaden their knowledge base. Elective concentrations are available in areas of Electronic Design automation, Software Design, Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, and Microsystems.

In Psychology, human behaviour and cognition are studied to explore the ways people act as individuals and in groups. You will participate in core areas of research methodology, development, social psychology, learning, perception, cognition, neuropsychology, physiological psychology, personality, psychopathology and organizational behaviour. Throughout your degree, you will gain strong analytical, statistical and research skills. Many undergraduates combine Psychology with studies in another academic area such as Child, Youth & Family, Business, Economics, Consumer Studies, English or Computer Science to gain additional practical and theoretical skills throughout their degree. Guelph’s Psychology major will allow you to gain insights and skills that will serve you well in any career or prepare you for graduate studies. 

WHY CO-OP?
As a co-op student, you will gain relevant work experience, build professional networks and develop essential interpersonal skills needed to succeed in the workplace; all while getting paid and earning your university degree. Guelph’s co-op program is unique due to the exceptional level of support provided, including an inclass preparatory course, a personal connection with a Co-op Coordinator to assist you during the employment process, and access to senior student mentors.

Students will study elements of physics including the exotic aspects of the universe, such as black holes and subatomic particles, or be involved in the development of exciting modern devices such as particle accelerators and gamma-ray spectrometers.

With an emphasis on hands-on lab work, the physics major covers the fundamentals of mechanics, electromagnetism, and quantum physics, grounding students in foundational physics while preparing them for more specialized study in upper years. The strong analytical, computational, and lab skills developed during the degree provide the flexibility to pursue a broad range of careers upon graduation.

The major builds upon nationally recognized expertise in teaching and research with many of our faculty members having received both national and international awards. Students take an integrated MATH and PHYS course in first year along with the chemistry and biology taken by other science students. Second through fourth year, students will focus on physics specialty courses with an emphasis on hands-on, laboratory learning. Unique to the University of Guelph, students will also take a Science Communications course where they develop activities to help people understand the concepts of physics.

Learning Outcomes
You can expect to learn how to:

• Demonstrate mastery in advanced Electricity and Magnetism, Mechanics, Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics, Optics, and Quantum Mechanics
• Apply Intermediate level Mathematics techniques to enhance understanding in the aforementioned major subject areas
• Demonstrate advanced laboratory skills in order to practically realize concepts in Electricity & Magnetism, Mechanics, Thermodynamics, Quantum Physics, Optics, Nuclear Physics, Spectroscopy, and Electronics and apply these skills in self-directed learning
• Apply modern computational techniques to investigate various physical phenomena and demonstrate proficiency in mathematical software such as Maple, MatLab, and/or Mathematica