Associate of Arts (Co-op Optional)

at University of the Fraser Valley - Abbotsford Campus Canada

Gain a deeper understanding of our earth by earning a Bachelor of Arts with a major, minor, extended minor, or honours in Geography.

Geography is the study of the earth’s physical features, climate, and various phenomena. As a Bachelor of Arts student in Geography, you get to explore the links between the natural environment and various other disciplines such as politics, history, culture, economics, and science.

Geography major
In your first and second year, you are introduced to various aspects of the earth such as its: climate, evolution, landscapes, or rock formation. You also learn how people interact with their environment and what impact humans are having on the planet.

In your third and fourth year, you choose from a variety of upper-level electives from the geography of food, climate change, soil, and swamps to religion, tourism, and urban planning.

When taking a Geography major in the Bachelor of Arts, you can also choose to specialize in one or more of the following areas: Environmental Science, Global Studies, and Urban Studies and Planning.

The UFV Marketing and Sales certificate is a part-time program suitable for people who wish to launch a career in the field or for those already employed who want to move their career forward.
The UFV Marketing and Sales certificate provides essential grounding in math, business, marketing, professional selling, advertising, retail management, and public speaking to prepare you to make your mark in the workplace or ladder into a Bachelor of Business Administration with a solid foundation of applied knowledge and skills.

In as little as three semesters, you could complete your certificate and be on your way to a rewarding career with excellent potential for growth. Or if you already work full-time, you may take up to seven years to complete your requirements.

UFV’s four-year Bachelor of Environmental Studies (BES) is a full-time program that provides you with the skills to shape business, industry, and government practices using economically and environmentally-sound principles. Developed as an integrated and interdisciplinary program, the BES builds connections between fields such as environmental studies, art, natural sciences, and communications. The program also incorporates a regional focus by addressing the environmental needs of the Fraser Valley, including agriculture and food security, climate change, land use planning/GIS, and environmental communications.

The Bachelor of Environmental Studies is structured around a primary core of courses that engage you on questions related to human-environment relationships, resource scarcity and allocation, innovation and problem solving, environmental research, and communication of ideas and results. Courses are delivered in a face-to-face format using lecture, seminar, field-based, and technology-supported classroom experiences. In addition, you may choose from a practicum or cooperative work placement to satisfy one of the work requirements. If you decide to combine the four-year BES with the Cooperative Education option, you need to allow for three additional semesters for degree completion.

Upon graduation, you are prepared to work as an environmental professional in Canada or abroad. Alternatively, you may also choose to pursue graduate studies or another professional designation.If you plan on working in the environmental science field and seek additional professional accreditation after graduation, you may consider the Bachelor of Environmental Studies (Natural Sciences) — planned for Winter 2020.

This program is designed to provide a sound background for students who intend to pursue careers in businesses with interests overseas, church work in the third world, teaching, journalism, community relations, translation, international development work, the travel industry, diplomacy, government, international trade and commerce, as well as for those wishing to prepare for advanced scholarly work and research. Currently the International and Development Studies option focuses on Latin America.

International and Development Studies field school
Optional field schools and study tours of three to six weeks duration are organized on a regular basis. A typical field school in Latin America of a three-week duration would cost approximately $2,000 plus meals. A field school certificate will be awarded to those students successfully completing this aspect of the program.

UFV’s Early Childhood Education diploma builds on the knowledge and skills obtained through the ECE certificate program. Having established a strong foundation of professional practice with the ECE certificate, you can choose to further your knowledge and competencies to work specifically with infants or children with special needs. These two program options share a common set of three core courses and each requires a different set of three specialty courses, including a 26-hour seminar and a 200-hour practicum.

Get a broad, high-quality foundation in the Arts and add a valuable credential to your résumé by earning an Associate of Arts degree at UFV.

Within the degree, you can choose from the following options:

• General option
• International and Development Studies option
• Media and Communication Studies option
• Theatre option

This program includes a breadth of intellectual and academic experience worthwhile if your educational or career goals lie in the humanities, the creative and performing arts, or the social sciences.

In addition, practicum opportunities and optional paid co-op work placements throughout your studies allow you to gain valuable work experience.

The Associate of Arts degree may serve as a stepping stone if you plan to continue your studies to earn a Bachelor of Arts at UFV or elsewhere.

As the study of human movement, kinesiology explores a broad range of topics that include anatomy, biomechanics, exercise physiology, sociology, education, active health, wellness, and nutrition.

Bachelor of Kinesiology
In the Kinesiology program, you go well beyond the questions of how and why we move, and start to explore how we can optimize the human potential for health, performance, and overall wellness.

In your first and second year, you learn foundational topics such as human anatomy, sport psychology, biomechanics, and human nutrition, as well as physical activity, health, and fitness. You explore a variety of fields that may be of interest before choosing to specialize in exercise science, pedagogy, or active health.

In your third and fourth year, you develop skills for teaching and counselling athletes, and learn about athletic injuries, research methods, applied ethics, physiology, exercise testing, and exercise prescription. You also select a specialty out of the following specializations:

• The Exercise Science specialization prepares you for a career as a kinesiologist or exercise physiologist, graduate school, and/or professional school (such as physiotherapy, medicine or chiropractic).
• The Pedagogy specialization prepares you for continued certification in teacher education, coaching, sport performance advising, and/or graduate school.
• The Active Health specialization prepares you for a career in health and wellness, specifically community health and fitness, athletic therapy, sports psychology, and fitness management and recreation, and those planning to continue onto graduate school.

Gain the essential skills required to enter the field of information technology with a UFV Computer Information Systems (CIS) certificate. The two-semester program provides you with the knowledge and experience to work with single-user systems and meet the needs of small companies who require employees with computer experience. As part of the program's strong emphasis on practical work, you get to apply what you learn in the classroom on hands-on projects in UFV's well-equipped labs. Flexible course options allow you to graduate with a certificate focused on specific skills or a general knowledge base. Depending on your course selection, you may find yourself working in areas such as web support, user technical support, or computer support.

Develop your artistic skill, become a creative problem solver, and learn how to flourish in the creative arts industry by earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA). In your first year, you can explore a range of Fine Arts discipline while you complete the BFA general requirements in writing, logical reasoning, and science.

Before the end of your second year, you focus your degree, based on your career goals and personal interests, by choosing a major or two extended minors from the list below:

• Majors
  • Visual Arts
  • Graphic and Digital Design
• Extended Minors
  • Art History and Visual Studies
  • Creative Writing
  • Graphic and Digital Design
  • Media and Communication Studies
  • Theatre
  • Visual Arts
• Minors
  • Art History
  • Business
  • Creative Writing
  • Graphic and Digital Design
  • Media and Communication Studies
  • Theatre
  • Visual Arts

In your third and fourth years of study you deepen your knowledge by completing the requirements for your major, minor, or extended minors, and by selecting your choice of electives to meet the credential requirements of your degree.

A Geographic Information System (GIS) is a computerized data management system that allows us to visualize, investigate, and interpret information related to our world. GIS has become increasingly prevalent in industry, research and academia within a wide variety of fields. Applications of GIS range from creating maps displaying information of interest to using spatial analyses to detect relationships, patterns, and trends in location-based data. As such, GIS can be an essential tool for mapping, research, and decision making.

The GIS certificate program is designed to provide students with the core concepts underlying the use of location-based GIS data as well as the essential software skills necessary for work in both public and private sectors.

This program combines courses in the Geography, Computer Information Systems and Mathematics departments into a certificate. The program consists of a minimum of 31 credits.