• breadth requirements,  courses,  seminars

    BIG courses and seminars

    July 28, 2014

    Thank you for answering my last question but I still have just one more 🙂 Are you able to take a BIG idea course (for example, BIG 102Y1) in second year? I would need it in order to fufill my breadth requirements because I have already chosen my 5 courses for this year. Also, would you have less of a chance of getting into the course if you are in second year as oppose to first? Thanks in advance!

    Are you able to take 199’s in second year? I am soooo worried about completing my breadth requirements but I don’t have room for any seminar’s in my timetable

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    unfortunately, BIG and 199 seminars are restricted to first year students. however, i’m not really sure what you’re worried about, because breadth requirements don’t have to be seminar courses??

    the breadth requirements are just 5 categories of content – throughout your degree, you need to take a certain number of credits in each of the categories. every class in the Faculty of Arts & Science fulfils at least one category. for example, PHY131H1, Intro. to Physics I, fulfils the 5th breadth category, “The Physical and Mathematical Universes.”

    you know, because it’s about the physical and mathematical universes.

    i hope that made sense, friend.

    good luck with your enrolment!

    aska

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  • breadth requirements

    extra, extra

    July 23, 2014

    I know that if you ake over 6 100 level courses, the 7th and so on will not count towards your GPA. Bbut will they count towards completing breadth requirements and will they count as a part of your 20 credits?

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    if you take over 6.0 100-level courses, they’ll be designated as extra. that means they:

    1) don’t count towards your GPA

    2) don’t count towards your 20.0 degree credits

    3) do count for program requirements

    and 4) do count for breadth requirements

    you can read about all this AND MORE (wow!) on the university’s very exhaustive rules & regulations document.

    best,

    aska

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  • breadth requirements

    nope

    July 22, 2014

    can u plzzzz help me find the easiest possible breadth 4th and 5th category course to take (both 0.5 credits)

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    unfortunately, aska doesn’t do easy. we’re about as hardcore as it gets here, and in my opinion, if you’re going to be paying nearly $8k a year for an education, you may as well go whole hog and get the real deal. you can find “easy” somewhere else for cheaper.

    that said, if you’re not in the life/physical/mathematical sciences, you can’t just wander into a proofs class and expect to blossom. generally speaking, you’ll want to take the most basic level of a course possible, where you won’t be missing any recommended preparation from high school that you may not have.

    look into 100-level, intro. classes offered by EEB (e.g. BIO120H1), Astronomy/Astrophysics (e.g. AST101H1), Earth Sciences (e.g. ESS205H1), or basically any other science department in the faculty. try not to be intimidated by the fact that it’s A SCIENCE, and ask yourself what you’re genuinely interested in.

    also, don’t feel like you have to fulfil all the breadth requirements right away – this is an opportunity to learn about something wildly different from what you’re used to, and that’s exciting! (really.) don’t settle for taking a course you don’t really care about so you can get it ‘out of the way.’ if there’s a 200- or 300-level class you’d rather take, take that.

    forget about all this “easiness” nonsense and focus on finding something COOL.

    xoxo,

    aska

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  • breadth requirements,  one programs,  seminars

    i love the people who say it like ‘breath requirements’

    July 21, 2014

    Hi Aska,
    Can first year seminars (199 courses) be taken while in a Ones program? I want to try and fulfil most, if not all, of the breadth requirements in first years. Any suggestions for doing so? Thanks.

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    you can take both 199 seminars and One courses unless you’re a Vic One student (sorry, Vic peeps).

    as for breadth requirements, it’s hard to make specific suggestions if i don’t know what program you’re interested in or what you like.

    if you’re in a humanities program, the 1-3 breadth req’s will be pretty easy to pick up. if you’re in life/physical/mathematical sciences, then the 4-5 req’s will be easier.

    if you want to complete those breadth req’s that are unrelated to your program early, then a lot of people like taking introductory versions of classes in other streams. for example, a course like AST101H1 fulfils the 5th breadth req. category, but doesn’t require a physics background.

    if you’re on the other side of the fence, then something like FAH101H1, for instance, would give you a pain- and artistes-free introduction to art history, and fulfil breadth category #1.

    but please remember, these are just examples and guidelines. the most important thing is to enrol in courses you’re genuinely interested in* – filling breadth requirements is not hard, and usually happens without you noticing it. don’t feel like you have to stretch yourself or your schedule to meet all the breadth req’s in first year; it’s really not necessary, and you won’t be “ahead” of people who didn’t do them all in first year.

    hope that helps! and whatever your stream, don’t be afraid of taking something that’s a little outside your comfort zone. the whole point of breadth requirements is that students become well-rounded and aren’t just automatons who only know how to think about their tiny area of expertise.

    cheers,

    aska

    * bolding words means this is?serious and i’m not messing around.

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  • breadth requirements,  subject POST

    Extra, extra, read all about extra courses!

    November 15, 2013

    Hi there,

    I’ve a question about the “no more than six 100series courses” policy at UofT. I already took 7 of 100level courses, and the last one was PSY100H1. I know that the grade for it won’t be calculated in my GPA and I’m fine with it, but I need this half course for my science distribution requirement(1FCE). I’ll be taking another “science” DR course next term (ast201H, 0.5 FCE), but I was wondering if the PSY100 will be counted towars DR as well.
    That’s what they show in the degree explorer
    Req7) Distribution requirement of 1.0 Credit from “Science Courses”
    Courses used: AST201H1(IPR), PSY100H1(Extra)
    Credits 1.00/1.00 (including 0.50 in progress)
    The requirement is marked as “pending”
    Does it mean it will be counted towards DR? If not, can you kindly let me know my options (for e.g. if I can request to “cancel” one of those six 100-series courses and exchange it for PSY100H)? Thanks a lot!

    ?????????

    hey there!

    alright, the super confusing rules page?was probably the culprit here for confuddling the bejesus out of you. basically, there’s usually no way to fiddle around with which courses are made extra – it’s pretty much always a chronological thing and the registrar’s fairly inflexible about that except in very specific cases.

    HOWEVAH. if a course is extra, it still counts towards your subject post and or/breadth requirements. so both PSY100H1 and AST201H1 will count, they just won’t be included in your overall GPA because they’re considered extra.

    comprende? cool.

    aska

     

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  • breadth requirements,  math

    Breadth requirements *shivers*

    October 25, 2013

    Hello!

    First of all, love the Game of Thrones reference on your ask page!

    Now to my question. I’ve heard from a U of T alumnus that any student must take a math or science course in first year even if he or she is 120% sure his/her major and future career will have nothing to do with either. Is that true?

    THANKS!

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    thanks, man! Just for you, I’m gonna make this post GoT themed. Catering to your personal tastes and stuff, yeah. Aska’s like that.

    Now, as to your question, the idea of forcibly making everyone take a math/science course seems like some kind of dystopian fantasy, and is fortunately not true. If you’re coming in to the faculty of arts and science, which you almost certainly are, you need to fulfil breadth requirements, which are basically a certain number (no more than one or two) of courses that you need to complete in each of five categories to get your degree. One of these categories is called “the Physical and Mathematical Universes.” HOWEVER if you take 1.0 (that is, two semester’s worth – so one full-year or two half-year courses) courses in each of the other four categories, then you don’t have to take any in that fifth math one.

    Also keep in mind that you don’t have to fulfil the breadth requirements in first year! So there is time to figure all this stuff out.

    So don’t worry yourself friend – you can avoid math for now.

    aska

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  • breadth requirements

    Y so confusing, breadth requirements :/

    July 26, 2013

    Hi,

    So in a major I am applying to, it states that I need 3.0 FCE’s in Breadth Requirement 2/3.

    So if I have a 1.0 full year course which is Breadth Requirement 1 and 2, would this count as 1.0 FCE towards this major or only 0.5 because it is half 1 and half 2?

    Thanks!

    ?????????

    Hey hey

    When a Y course says it contributes to two different breadth categories, that means you get 0.5 FCE in each one.

    So because that Y course you had said 1 and 2, you have 0.5 FCE for categories 1 and 2.

    Breadth requirements can be pretty damn annoying and confusing, but I watched this super helpful video on degree requirements by FASt Answers that explains how breadth requirements work in this super helpful visual way including BUBBLES. 🙂

    Cheers!

    aska

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  • art,  book and media studies,  breadth requirements,  transfer credits

    transferring terrors

    July 11, 2013

    Hi,

    I am coming from a CEGEP in Quebec for my first semester this upcoming fall. Meaning I transferred 5 credits. I am double majoring in Book and Media studies and Art History. I have no clue what I’m supposed to sign up for. What i’ve heard is 3 book and media studies and 2 other courses. But does that mean I take no art History courses???

    What should I take, how do I make my schedule, what is a breadth course?! HELP

    Sincerely,
    SOS

    ———————————————

    SOS,

    Don’t freak out. You’re fine. Sometimes it can be hard to manage all the freedom you’re allowed to have and the discipline you’re expected to have.

    Sooooooooooooooooo:

    Question 1: “What should I take?”

    Things related to your program, of course!

    The Art History major is quite lenient in letting you take whatever courses you’d like here and there, and they all sound pretty interesting. Now if you don’t have some sort of “Intro to Art History” transfer credit coming over, you should definitely take FAH102H The Practice of Art History. But aside from that… just heed the major’s requirements and go crazy!

    Now I consulted another student who took a good chunk of Art History courses for what he thought would be super interesting for you and got:

    FAH246H Art Since 1900 – “Because you have such a short span of time to go over, memorizing all the dates is a lot easier. Also, it’s pretty fun to see the art’s influence on pop culture today. And lastly, if you ever want to sound like a pretentious art snob, this course will definitely set you up for it.”

    FAH230H Renaissance Art and Architecture – “It gives a whole new meaning to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. But it’s just a little bit church-y.”

    FAH252H Intro to the History of Photography – “This one is new, but it sounds soooo interesting!”

    And his last comment: “Minimize the number of medieval courses you take.”

    As for your major in Book and Media Studies, I have a feeling you won’t have gotten any transfer credits for that one, so you’ll just have to take a good look at the requirements list.

    You’re going to have to take SMC219Y Mass Media in Culture and Society, SMC228H and SMC229H, so I’d recommend getting those out of the way.

    Question 2: “How do I make my schedule?”

    Step 1: Make a chart going hours of day by days of week.

    Step 2: Consult timetable.

    Step 3: Make sure nothing overlaps!

    Step 4: Enrol on ROSI and pray you get your courses.

    Question 3: “What is a breadth course?”

    So a breadth requirement is the university’s way of making sure you’re like cultured and stuff and that you’ve taken courses in a variety of topics. There are five “groups” that you need to work with. You need to either get 1.0 FCE in four of the five groups, or you need to 1.0 FCE in three of the five groups and then 0.5 FCE in the other two groups.

    Since you’re double majoring in two humanities, I’m going to assume your difficulty will be fulfilling groups 4 and 5, so take a look at this post for some ideas on how to conquer them.

    Annnnnd I guess that’s that.

    Cheers!

    aska

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  • bird courses,  breadth requirements,  easy

    intro to ornithology

    July 4, 2013

    What are these bird courses I hear of? Are they like a two in one breadth requirement fulfiller? And if sooo, what’s an easy class to fulfill 4 and 5 considering I hate math, love history and don’t mind a little science?

    Thanks.

    ———————————————

    Yo.

    Bird courses are basically super easy courses. They’re courses people take because they have a free slot in their timetable and want something that isn’t really going to bust their CGPA.

    They certainly can fulfil two breadth categories, so long as the bird course in question is worth 1.0 FCE. So for example, if you take RLG100Y (which, according to some, is a bird course), you can satisfy 0.5 of credit requirement for both group 2 and group 3.

    Just note that it’s a bit hard to identify something as a “bird course.” It all really depends on whether or not you can consider World Religions to be a bird course, right?

    Bird courseiness is based on the content, your learning style, yada yada yada.

    But if your interest in bird courses has to do with getting groups 4 and 5 out of the way since I’m going to assume you’re a humanities or social sciences student, here are a few suggestions from myself and another aska incarnation who I nagged for their picks!

    Admittedly, a few of these aren’t quite “bird courses” so much as they are “more approachable sciencey ones” that can be conquered by the clueless humanities/social science student.

    So:

    AST101H The Sun and its Neighbours (Group 5)
    aska: “Why did you find this course easy? What did you learn?”
    Potentially high on oregano oil student: “I learned that we are all made of stardust.”
    aska: Well okay then!
    ?

    AST201H Stars and Galaxies (Group 5)
    aska: “And this course?”
    PHOOOS: “Basically a regurgitation of The Sun of its Neighbours […] Also, in the lecture, you look at these beautiful slides of the stars and the skies! It’s totally like…Big Bang Theory comes to Con Hall! OMG QUOTE ME.”

    ANT100Y Intro to Anthropology (Group 3 + Group 4)
    aska: “Amazing course. I loved it. AMAAAAAZING.”
    PHOOoS: “Linguistic and socio-cultural parts were so easy, but the bio was a biiiit tough.”

    EEB202H Plants and Society (Group 4)
    Nameless Student Who Seemed to Really Like the Course: “It was like the prof liked plants more than people!”
    2011-12 Anti-Calender: General words of praise and an 81% retake rate.

    And then some other things I’ve been told were great:

    • PCL102H The Art of Drug Discovery (Group 4)
    • EEB204H Diversity of Living Organisms (Group 4)
    • EEB214H Evolution and Adaptation (Group 4)
    • JUM205H Mathematical Personalities (Group 5)
    • CSB202H Further Exploration in Biotechnology (Group 4)
    • CHM101H The Chemistry and Biology of Organic Molecules: Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll (Group 5)

    Enjoy!

    aska

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  • breadth requirements

    MGT+ME 5EVAR <2

    March 19, 2013

    Hi,

    I am a student in third year management program specializing accounting, and I have a question about “history, philosophy,cultural studies” category in breadth requirements.

    Is it possible if this category can be fulfilled by a course inside MGT? (For example: MGTC59H3, which breadth requirement is “history, philosophy,cultural studies” )

    ———————————————

    Ummmm

    Are you asking me if there are courses to fulfill the “History, Philosophy and Cultural Studies” category within MGT aside from MGTC59H? Because if you just want to know if that group can be fulfilled within MGT, I think you already have the answer to that…

    But yeah, aside from MGTC59H, you can also take MGTD01H. They’re both along the lines of business ethics, but luckily they’re not exclusions of each other. 🙂 However, if you have some electives already taken, take another look at them and see if they can fulfill the HPCS category for you.

    Cheers!

    aska

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  • breadth requirements

    holy humanities batman

    March 6, 2013

    Hey Aska,

    I still have to fulfill my breadth requirement of either a full credit in category 1/2 or a 0.5 credit in both.

    Are there relatively simple, but interesting courses that I can take to fulfill them? I’m currently a second year life sciences student and I think my third year courses are going to be fairly time consuming.

    Thanks!

    ?????????

    Hey there!

    Oh man that’s hard for me to answer… I think almost all the classes in those categories are interesting, granted I’m in humanities soooo. Well, I’ll suggest a few that someone in your position might enjoy:

    1. Any Cinema Studies course in Group B that lacks a prerequisite. It’ll be a commitment in terms of time, but you get to watch tons of cool films!

    2. ENG235H1 The Graphic Novel – Enough said.

    3. NEW258H1 African Expressive Culture: African Drumming and Dancing – I know a girl who took this and loved it. Apparently you just do a lot of drumming.

    You can also make use of UofT’s all new Course Finder. Just set things up so that only Group 1s or 2s appear and there ya go!

    xoxo,
    aska

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  • breadth requirements

    the classic question about classics

    January 8, 2013

    Hi there,

    I’m a life science student, taking cla160 as an elective. What do you think of the course? Is there a great amount of work load?

    Thanks!

    ———————————————

    Hey hey!

    Everything really depends on the prof teaching the course, but when I took it, I thought it was super interesting, granted it was quite reading-heavy. For my full review on CLA160, check out this post. But it’s actually such a great elective because it really fosters your note-taking skills, reading abilities, and forces you to think critically, while also being really fun to read about.

    I totally recommend it.

    Cheers!

    aska

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  • breadth requirements

    breadth requirement 4: fuzzy animals and their environments

    October 1, 2012

    Hello,

    Can you suggest any half-year courses that fulfill breadth requirement 4, that are 200 level series?

    Thank you.

    ?????????

    Hey there,

    I apologize for the delayed response. But I hope you managed to refer to the Faculty of Arts and Science Calendar and find some second-year courses to fulfill Breadth Requirement 4: Living Things and Their Environment. Since enrollment for F courses is now closed, I?ll give you some potential ones that you can possibly take in the second semester that lack prerequisites.

    1. ENV200H1 Assessing Global Change: Science and the Environment
    2. FOR201H1 Conservation of Tropical and Subtropical Forests
    3. GLG205H1 Confronting Global Change

    If you?ve miraculously taken BIO120H1, that opens up a whole bunch of 200-level classes in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, but I assume that since you?re asking about courses from this group, you?re an Arts student.

    happy course selection,

    aska

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