Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Biochemistry (Co-op Optional)

at University of Ottawa Canada

Public Administration
The study of public administration seeks to advance our understanding of how governments work and of their role in contemporary societies. It examines public management principles from various perspectives (administration, financial management, human resources, ethics, administrative reforms, governance, etc.) and the processes involved in designing public policies (policy cycle, roles of various stakeholders, ideologies, contextual factors, etc.). The program offers a high-quality education to students seeking a career in the public or para-public sectors, as well as those who seek to work in the private or non-profit sectors, or in government relations.

Political Science
Politics is omnipresent in our lives. Political science seeks to describe, analyze, understand and assess the principles and power relations that govern social life. It revolves as much around the structures and institutions that define these relations and principles as around the ideas and practices that drive them. It studies everything that influences political life and institutions (ideologies, groups, social movements, etc.) on a local, regional, national and international scale.

Our programs offer in-depth training in political science and encourage critical reflection on pivotal issues like citizenship, identity, political participation, globalization and development, governance and the state, and ethics and democracy. A discipline open to many theoretical and methodological approaches, political science constantly exchanges and shares with other fields. At the University of Ottawa's School of Political Studies, you build your knowledge in four subfields of political science: political thought, Canadian and Quebec politics, comparative politics, and international relations and global politics.

If it moves, a mechanical engineer designed it! Mechanical engineers are responsible for a wide range of mechanical, thermal and biomedical systems and devices, from computer parts to power plants, from manufacturing systems to spacecraft. This is a broad-based area of engineering, and graduates find work in almost every industrial sector, including high tech, aerospace, manufacturing, auto, energy, biomedical and consulting.

Upon completion of a Bachelor of Applied Science in Mechanical engineering, a student who completes the requirements specified below for 30 extra units will be eligible for a BSc in Computing Technology, as a second degree. The remaining 132 units are from their engineering degree; students follow the engineering degree requirements and the computing technology degree requirements in parallel. It is not allowed to obtain the computing technology degree without also completing the corresponding engineering degree.

Why is our world the way it is? How can we understand and explain what we observe around us, from the smallest sub-atomic particles to the largest galaxies? How can we apply this understanding to manipulate our world? Studying physics gives insight into the fundamental laws of nature. 

But an education in physics gives so much more. The rigorous training our students receive in analyzing and understanding complex problems is valuable in many future careers. While many of our graduates have established careers in universities and in the high tech sector as research and development scientists, others have used their physics degrees as a springboard to careers in finance, administration, medicine, management or education. The range of career opportunities is perhaps wider than for any other students with a science education. 

Physicists have revolutionized the way we live our lives, with groundbreaking discoveries and new technologies, transferable to other fields such as biology or finance. Our professors and graduates are an important part of this chain. Many of our professors have also been recognized for their teaching and are seen as world-class researchers in their fields of expertise. 

The research conducted by the professors in the Department of Physics is concentrated in several sub-specialties, including the physics of biological and complex systems, condensed matter physics, photonics and the physics of geomaterials. Depending upon your choice of program, you have the opportunity to take courses and participate in research projects in these specialized areas. 

In addition to the Honours BSc in Physics, we offer three other Honours BSc programs. The first is in physics-mathematics, which provides enriched mathematics training within a physics program. The second is the option in photonics, which gives students a solid training in physics and a more applied and industry-related training in photonics. The third is the option in biological physics, which teaches students to apply a rigorous education in physics to various areas of life sciences. We also offer a Major in Physics that can form the core of an Honours BSc when combined with a major or a minor in another discipline in the Faculty of Science, or in another faculty. Finally, starting in fall 2016, we will offer a five-year integrated program in physics (BSc) and electrical engineering (BASc), jointly with the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (SEECS). This unique program will offer a full education in physics and electrical engineering. Graduates will be sought after by industry and academia, as they will have the capacity to develop technology from a basic physics idea to the final product. 

The Department of Physics also has strong graduate programs, leading to an MSc or PhD. They give students the opportunity to work on cutting edge science in a research group led by one or more department professors.

Anthropology
Anthropology involves studying the diversity of human societies through comparative analyses. Anthropologists develop tools that contribute to identifying and exploring a variety of social, cultural, political, economic, environmental and other important issues. Anthropology is unique among disciplines because of its methodological approach, which involves in-depth qualitative field work. Our specialized programs in social and cultural anthropology enable students to better understand and analyze cultural changes and intercultural relations in the context of globalization, development, migration and new technologies.

Sociology
Sociology involves the study of societies, specifically their institutions, cultures, and transformations. Sociologists seek to uncover the processes, rules, and norms that govern social relations. They seek to understand issues such as the origins and consequences of social inequalities and collective behaviours. In our programs, students have the opportunity to apply theoretical approaches to real-world cases and learn how to use research tools such as interviewing, discourse analysis, surveys, and statistical analyses. The connection between theory and research enables students to understand a range of contemporary social issues, such as poverty, ethnic relations, deviance, gender relations, international development, power, and technology.

Civil engineers design the infrastructure on which their communities depend, such as buildings and their foundations, bridges, canals, dams, transportation facilities, municipal sewer and water networks, and wastewater and solid waste treatment systems. 

Civil engineering students at the University of Ottawa can take advantage of world-class teaching laboratories, multimedia classrooms and outstanding computer facilities. Students develop expertise in computer applications, field and laboratory testing, and project management, and they are well-equipped to serve their communities upon graduation.

Communication
Ours is the communication and information age. Analyzing how information is gathered, produced and distributed today helps us understand the communication processes that drive a variety of settings: social, cultural, political, organizational, economic and legal. In this program, you will develop critical and analytical skills in order to evaluate the nature and impact of technology and media on society, organizations and interpersonal relations. You will have the opportunity to be exposed to the latest developments in the field of communication (communication strategies, digital media, evolution of the media industry, advertising, crisis communications, negotiations, etc.). The Department of Communication offers courses in two main areas: media studies and organizational communication (internal and external communication in public and private organizations, health communication, organizational change, etc.). Combining theory and practice, our programs develop your critical and analytical skills and prepare you either for a professional career or for advanced studies.

Sociology
Sociology involves the study of societies, specifically their institutions, cultures, and transformations. Sociologists seek to uncover the processes, rules, and norms that govern social relations. They seek to understand issues such as the origins and consequences of social inequalities and collective behaviours. In our programs, students have the opportunity to apply theoretical approaches to real-world cases and learn how to use research tools such as interviewing, discourse analysis, surveys, and statistical analyses. The connection between theory and research enables students to understand a range of contemporary social issues, such as poverty, ethnic relations, deviance, gender relations, international development, power, and technology.

The Department of Communication at the Faculty of Arts offers an MA program in Communication with thesis or with research paper, a Master of Communication (MC) by coursework to which a co-op option can be added, and a PhD in Communication.

The Department of Communication, in collaboration with the University of Ottawa’s Co-op office, offers a co-op option to a limited number of students in the MC program. Students must request this option in their admission file. The co-op option provides the opportunity to acquire practical work experience by completing two one-term paid work placements.

The Master of Communication focuses on two fields of research: media studies and organizational communication. The media studies field examines the content and the modes of operation of traditional and emerging media in their social, cultural, economic, political and regulatory contexts.

Organizational communication focuses on interpersonal and group interactions in the workplace; planning for internal and external communication in private, public, and nonprofit organizations; risk/crisis communication, public relations, ICT’s uses within organizations, etc.

The program aims to develop in graduates the following skills:

• Evaluate critically the theories, concepts and assumptions underlying media studies or organizational communication with particular attention to their chosen research interest.
• Demonstrate an ability to identify and work with the varying epistemological traditions developed by French-speaking and English-speaking scholars in communication studies.
• Contribute to the development of skills, theories, approaches, and materials for both academics and professionals.
• Analyze data and communicate research results to diverse audiences, including scholars, policymakers, and professionals in communication studies.

Communication
Ours is the communication and information age. Analyzing how information is gathered, produced and distributed today helps us understand the communication processes that drive a variety of settings: social, cultural, political, organizational, economic and legal. In this program, you will develop critical and analytical skills in order to evaluate the nature and impact of technology and media on society, organizations and interpersonal relations. You will have the opportunity to be exposed to the latest developments in the field of communication (communication strategies, digital media, evolution of the media industry, advertising, crisis communications, negotiations, etc.). The Department of Communication offers courses in two main areas: media studies and organizational communication (internal and external communication in public and private organizations, health communication, organizational change, etc.). Combining theory and practice, our programs develop your critical and analytical skills and prepare you either for a professional career or for advanced studies.

Political Science
Politics is omnipresent in our lives. Political science seeks to describe, analyze, understand and assess the principles and power relations that govern social life. It revolves as much around the structures and institutions that define these relations and principles as around the ideas and practices that drive them. It studies everything that influences political life and institutions (ideologies, groups, social movements, etc.) on a local, regional, national and international scale. 

Our programs offer in-depth training in political science and encourage critical reflection on pivotal issues like citizenship, identity, political participation, globalization and development, governance and the state, and ethics and democracy. A discipline open to many theoretical and methodological approaches, political science constantly exchanges and shares with other fields. At the University of Ottawa's School of Political Studies, you build your knowledge in four subfields of political science: political thought, Canadian and Quebec politics, comparative politics, and international relations and global politics.

Geology is a modern, dynamic and diverse science that involves investigating the composition and evolution of Earth and other planetary bodies.

Geologists and Earth scientists study the Earth, including its chemical, physical and biological evolution. Our programs teach students how to analyze Earth materials, probe the Earth from surface to core and model the processes that produced and shape its oceans and continents. The Ottawa region is a natural laboratory where students investigate resources (water, metals, minerals, petroleum), hazards (earthquakes, tsunamis, eruptions, landslides) and a variety of geological environments.

The Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences offers programs in geology and, along with the Department of Physics, a program in geology-physics. These programs balance field-based learning with theoretical and analytical investigations directly relevant to the needs of society. The final year involves an independent research project or equivalent units (credits) in advanced courses in the discipline.

The honours requirements meet the professional accreditation requirements of the Association of Professional Geoscientists of Ontario and l’Ordre des géologues du Québec.

Students will acquire knowledge and have opportunities to apply what they learn in the various capacities of a kinesiologist. Kinesiology involves the application of principles from biomechanics, physiology, and motor behaviour to improve peoples’ functional movement, motor performance, and to manage and prevent injury and disease. Students will be offered courses oriented towards the core competencies required by the College of Kinesiologists of Ontario to pursue a professional career as a Registered Kinesiologist (R Kin). Students will gain theoretical and practical training, and will acquire skills to critically examine literature in the biophysical sciences of human movement.

Students will acquire knowledge, competencies and techniques for assessing and promoting performance and functional capacity, and for preventing and managing injury and chronic disease. They will obtain practical skills in exercise prescription to enhance performance and health, and for the treatment of individuals with compromised function. Students will have opportunities to gain training in how to use exercise in the management of injury, chronic disease, and in rehabilitation. They will have opportunities to gain training in ergonomics to critically assess and design equipment and workplaces to optimize performance and minimize musculoskeletal injury risk. They will gain applied counselling skills in principles of behaviour change to help individuals become more physically active and to help them enhance their health and well-being. Students will acquire knowledge in class settings and in laboratory-based and field practicum. In these rich practical experiences, they will learn to interact with different populations, from either different age groups (preschoolers, youth, young adults, the aged) or from groups of varying functional levels (e.g., athletes, sedentary people, persons with chronic disease, people in rehabilitation). Our students will gain practical experiences that better prepare them to pursue a career as a kinesiologist.

Our graduates are eligible to challenge the professional licensing examination for the College of Kinesiologists of Ontario, the external regulatory body for the profession of kinesiology and the R Kin designation. Applied Studies in Kinesiology enable graduates to pursue various career-paths in different occupational roles. For example, our graduates can become strength and conditioning coaches in high-performance training facilities and professional sport organizations. They can work among allied health professionals in community health centres and outpatient hospital programs, prescribing exercise treatments to help people manage chronic conditions. Our graduates can also find roles in rehabilitation clinics prescribing exercise and mobility protocol to facilitate injured persons’ return to work. They can work for occupational health and safety companies, conducting ergonomic assessments and re-designing spaces to enhance how people move in the workplace. They can become physical activity counsellors in family health teams or community health centres. Our graduates can initiate start-up enterprises in private kinesiology services. They can also work toward employment as certified ergonomists and pursue post-graduate certification in advanced ergonomics studies. Many of our graduates receive certification as Certified Exercise Physiologists from the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (CSEP-CEP) and others pursue accredited membership with La Fédération des Kinésiologues du Québec. Our graduates can also pursue advanced degrees in allied health and rehabilitation fields (e.g., physiotherapy, occupational therapy).