• first year,  psychology

    Pssst, David

    January 12, 2011

    Hi Aska, is there information on the U of T site about a first-year student’s course load and their options? I couldn’t find any on the site, so I’ve turned to you for help. I’m in grade 12 and U of T St. George is my first choice university for the next academic year. I’ve already applied and I’m planning on studying psychology. I am aware that Life Science students generally take the same compulsory courses. However I know that the prerequisites vary for each program under this admission category. I have all the necessary high school prerequisites for psychology as well as the recommended biology course. Do I have to take the compulsory courses (biology, chemistry, calculus) as a Life Science student in first-year? Do I need any of them? Because I’m pretty sure I don’t. I might be okay with taking biology/calculus. My plan however is to take some courses in the Humanities and Social Sciences such as sociology, philosophy, a Vic Pathway course or more, possibly a 199 Seminar course, and possibly an anthropology course, all along with psychology in first-year. Would this be possible? Also, how many Vic Pathway courses may be taken? Your help is greatly appreciated!

    David

    P.S. – I truly appreciate your nuances in the responses to peoples’ questions. 😛

    ———————————————

    yo yo David!

    I’m sure you already know this, but I just want to confirm some information. There was a lot of bio, chem talk and I want to make sure you have the requirements.
    Highschool requirements: english and calculus and biology is recommanded

    I would even suggest highschool chemistry and physics to allow you the opportunity to switch around programs in the Life Science field.

    Know that scene at the end of Mr.Deeds were Deeds is trying to save his uncles company. Que the emotional music and the inspiring speech. He asks people what the greedy people wanted to be when they were younger, the man who owns the slaughter house once wanted to be a vet and so on.

    What I’m getting at here is that you might want to consider keeping your various life science options open. Obbbbviously I’m not telling you what courses to take, but not one of my 3 U of T roommates are in the same program as first year.

    Ok dude, here’s the first year low down.
    After you have completed 4.0 credits (ie after first year) you apply for your subject post. This is when you officially declare your program. So will choose either

    – 1 specialist

    – 2 majors

    – 1 major and 2 minors.

    So, in your first year U of T kind of wants you to check out different courses and see what you like. So your game plan looks good. I recommend first year seminars. They fill up quick … BECAUSE THEY’RE AWESOME, so make them one of the first courses you register for.

    Link Time

    Vic Pathway Seminars – unfortunately you can only take one

    Course Calendar for psychology and a page for first year psychology students.

    It looks like for first year you are only required to take: PSY100H1. I would take the first year to enjoy the courses outside of your program as it looks like you are restricted in your later years.

    Love Always,
    Aska

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  • economics,  psychology

    When I grow up I want to be a Human Resource Manager

    November 1, 2010

    Hey! Please I need your opinion about subject post selections. Do you think that a double major in Psychology and Economics is a good combination at university? I would like to do a masters degree in HRM after that. Also what do you think about repeating a course in university? Does it have any negative effect when applying for graduate school? I had some problems in my first year and I didn’t get up to the cut off mark in a course that I need so I’m thinking of taking the course again.

    ———————————————

    yoyo,

    I see what you’re doing … Psych for the Human and Eco for the Resource Management, clever. Looking at a couple of the Master’s in HRM in Canada it doesn’t appear that there are specific courses you need to take for entry requirements. As you know that you want to continue on to a masters in HRM, I would suggest looking at the graduate schools you want to attend and review their entry requirements as that should probably be your deciding factor.

    Saying that people at U of T have taken this combination of majors before … yippie

    Well actually, I know of one other person (check the aska archives). It’s cool because you get to choose if you want to graduate with a BSc or BA. I’m not entirely sure why you would choose a BA over a prestigious Bsc, but to each their own.

    On to the next part …

    If you didn’t meet the cut off mark, doesn’t that mean the course is a degree requirement and you need it in order to graduate … so, uh … yah you should take it again.

    Here’s what the course calendar says on the matter (and that book is almost as good of a resource as I am):
    “All students (both degree and non-degree-seeking) may repeat up to 1.0 full-course equivalent for which they have received credit (i.e., achieved a grade of 50% or higher or CR) for reasons other than to gain a required mark above passing to qualify for entry into a Subject POSt or a course required for a prerequisite. The repeated course will be designated an “Extra” course: it will appear on the academic record, but will be marked “Extra” and will not be included in GPA calculations or in the degree credit count.”

    Yah, i know it’s all jibberish, but simply you can take it as a requirement filler. BUT … big BUTT (teehee) it doesn’t count in your 20 credit requirement for graduation or towards your GPA. Also depending on the University and the program, they might put it into consideration. For example, if you’re tied with another student for the last spot in the program, they might choose the one who got the needed grade on the first attempt.

    Also it states that you must request repeating a course at your college’s registrar, so if you’re are going to have to go in there anyways you might as well make an appointment and make sure you’re heading in the right HRM path.

    Phew, a little long winded. Hopefully that clarified things for you, rather making your head explode (like when you drop a pumpkin off the roof of your building)
    Peace Lova,
    Aska

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  • psychology,  subject POST

    see you suckers!

    September 23, 2010

    Hi there,
    I am in my first year and I was accepted into psychology at UTM. I am currently hating psychology and I’m wondering if since first year is a general year, can I drop it? If so, what would I have to do? Just go on ROSI and drop it?
    Thank you in advance!
    -Alicia

    ———————————————

    Hi Alicia,

    You’ll be happy to know that if you haven’t officially selected a subject PoST on ROSI yet (which you can do at the end of your first year), then you’re not enrolled in any major at all! The program that you applied to on OUAC is just a designation for enrollment categories, but it doesn’t restrict you for taking other courses or choosing another major. What will restrict you is not fulfilling the requirements for the your new desired subject PosT. Instead of psych, do you have any idea of what other program you would like to do instead? Please look at the calendar’s requirement to apply for a subject PoST and consider things like first year courses and grade point averages. Your registrar will able to suggest new programs of interest and help you meet the requirements.

    xoxo, Askastudent

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  • courses,  keeners,  psychology

    more advice for amanda the keener!

    August 4, 2010

    hey guys! remember amanda the keener? well the psychology students association got back to me with advice for the courses she is selecting next year. exciting, right? here is their tips:

    Hi,

    We don’t have the syllabi for these classes, but personal opinions on the
    workload of those courses will be:

    High – PSY240H1: Abnormal Psychology
    Low – PSY220H1: Intro to Social Psychology
    Medium – PSY260H1: Learning and Plasticity
    Medium – PSY270H1: Intro to Cognitive Psychology
    Medium – PSY201H1: Statistics I
    Medium – PSY202H1: Statistics II

    amanda, show us some love.

    xoxo, askastudent

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  • courses,  psychology

    am i screwed for PSYCH 200 courses?

    July 30, 2010

    Hey,
    I’m taking PSY100 during the summer session, so as of now I’ve only been able to request to major in psychology. As you know, one can’t enroll in upper level psych courses unless one has been accepted to the program, so I’m stuck with a bit of an issue… Do you know if PSY 200-level courses will be full by the time I get accepted (after Sept. 15, providing I get at least a 70)?

    Thanks.

    ———————————————

    Perhaps not, my psychologically damaged friend. August 6th is the magic day wherein priority controls get lifted off courses, so it’s entirely possible that you might be able to register in a PSY 200-level course, without getting accepted into the program first!

    Of course, some classes might even be full by August 6th, but that’s a little more promising than waiting until after September 15th. This applies to all sorts of programs that you don’t have prereqs for. Look it up in the calendar, if there’s a “P” listed, it means that you can try to register in the class starting August 6th. Hooray!

    xoxo, Askastudent

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  • keeners,  profs,  psychology

    help amanda the keener!

    July 26, 2010

    Hey, Aska Readers! Remember Amanda The Keener? Well she needs your help. She is in search of previous syllabi for the following PSYCH courses:


    – PSY240H1: Abnormal Psychology
    – PSY220H1: Intro to Social Psychology
    – PSY260H1: Learning and Plasticity
    – PSY270H1: Intro to Cognitive Psychology
    – PSY201H1: Statistics I
    – PSY202H1: Statistics II

    Have you taken these classes? Know anything about their degree of hard/easiness? Comment below or email askastudent.innis@utoronto.ca to dish the dirt.

    xoxo, Askastudent

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  • psychology,  UTSC

    dear psyched out psych student,

    April 6, 2010

    Hi I’m a last year High school student and I recently got accepted into UTSC’s psych program. I’ve heard that this program is insanely hard and I was wondering if this was true. Also, I’ve heard that psy100 is the most difficult course for first year. Could you shed some light on that? How is the campus life at U of T? is there a lot to do? because I’m one of those guys that like to get involved in clubs and extra curricular stuff.

    That’s all thank you!

    ————————————————

    I myself took PSY100 downtown, so I can indeed shed some light on the course. PSY100 is a knowledge-based course, as opposed to an application-based course. So in order to do well, you have to know the material, and know it well. And let me warn you that there’s a LOT of material. We covered around 13 chapters of the textbook, and each chapter was around 40-50 pages long. As you might imagine, a great deal of memorizing was involved – so if you’re a naturally forgetful creature, heads up. Because the lectures were three hours long, I sometimes found it hard to absorb all the material, so I read the chapter and made study notes before each lecture – this definitely helped me to learn more effectively. Other than that, it was a pretty standard course. It wasn’t easy, but it definitely wasn’t the most difficult course I took in first year.

    PSY100 has a score of around 4.5 for “difficulty” and “workload” on the anticalendar (in case you didn’t know, it’s a collection of students’ evaluations of courses). So it seems that most people find PSY100 a little harder than the average University course, but not TOO difficult.

    I’d definitely advise you to try it out though. You seem like you have a genuine interest in psychology, so I think the course will be really rewarding for you, despite the difficulty. Heck, I’m not even a psychology major, and I found the course really interesting. Another thing – first year psychology professors are known to be very fluent and humorous lecturers. Besides, if you find after first year that psychology is not for you, you can always switch majors.

    I don’t know much about the student life at UTSC, but from what I’ve gathered, it has a smaller and more tight-knit community than the downtown campus. However, I’m almost certain that UTSC will at least have more extra-curricular activities than your high school, so I don’t think you’ll have any problem finding clubs to join! There’s definitely a lot to do at UofT. To give you some perspective, I hold a job, volunteer, and sing in a choir on campus – so don’t worry! I’m sure there’re some unique opportunities for you too.

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  • admissions,  international students,  psychology

    Munch munch

    November 10, 2009

    Hey, so I have a few questions about admission.

    Right now I’m a Canadian citizen living in Minneapolis. I’m not sure how Minneapolis is relevant to my question, but I’m just throwing it out there.

    Anyway, I really REALLY want to be accepted into UofT. It seems pretty sweet and my cousin went to Innis and reccommends it to me. Last year I had a GPA of about 3.3 (not sure though. I never paid enough attention). Right now I have no idea what my GPA is but I bet it’s bad. My current grades are C- (AP Literature), B (Advanced Pottery), A (Human Geography) and a C- in French 4.

    I know you probably don’t want to calculate that GPA but yeah. I’m in the fall semester of my grade 12 year, and I plan on improving my grades a ton, but I think I’m sending my transcripts in a few months to the school. I took the SAT and did well on that though, and two SAT subject tests, which I haven’t gotten the scores back for yet. My

    Ermm, uhh. Hey again . I just realized that it might help you to know that I’m planning on a psych major? Yeah. Life sciences I guess would be the program I’m trying for.

    …also looking back at my original message, I cut off after my. Sorry about that.

    I’ll continue it here.

    ..My ACT score was a 30, and I also took the AP Psychology and AP Composition tests, getting a 5 on both of them. I think a 5 is a perfect score too right? I’m somewhat hoping that my ACT and AP test scores will redeem me for having terrible grades this fall..also, my term ends on Nov 12 (there’s 2 terms in a semester.) and I’m planning on sending my grades and teacher recommendation letters sometime before December.

    So yeah. I was just wondering if I completely screwed myself by not caring about my classes this fall, or if there’s still a chance that I could be admitted into the University of Toronto?

    ———————————————

    Heads up. In University, you’ll have to teach yourself how to research effectively in order to expect to do well. Guess they don’t teach you that in Pottery class. But since you haven’t been disenchanted by the harsh reality of University yet (ah, I remember the days when ‘doing homework’ meant going on MSN), I’ll begrudgingly do the research for you and direct you to the admissions site.

    If you click around a bit, the site will tell you that you need a high GPA and SAT Reasoning exams and three SAT Subject Tests. Now, I’ll admit that this does sound a little ambiguous. Blame the admissions people. But just to give you a comparison, students from Ontario need low to mid 80s to be admitted into the Life Sciences stream. That’s an A-. The marks that you have now seem a bit low by comparison. But there’s definitely a possibility that your SAT and ACT scores will help your case. The admissions people said, “Successful applicants have presented scores of at least 600 in each SAT component and 26 in the ACT,” and your ACT score is obviously higher than that. As for whether or not you’d actually be accepted, no one knows except the admissions people, but there’s really no harm in just applying. Just remember to keep your options open, just in case.

    I’m guessing a large part of the decision is probably based on the SAT though.

    One thing. If you’re seriously planning on coming here, you really oughta change your attitude. U of T is not for the people who don’t care about their classes. As friend of aska puts it, if you’re one of those people, UofT will eat you alive.

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  • commerce,  psychology,  subject POST,  UTSC

    To market, to market, to buy a fat irritation.

    May 28, 2009

    Just wondering, can i double major in commerce (marketing) and? psychology in 4 years? Or would it take longer? If it works, would I be attending UofT or UofT Scarborough ? Because it says nothing about double majors on the UofT website, but it does on the UofTS one. Last but not least, if I do double major, am I getting 2 degrees or just one?

    ———————————————

    I won’t lie, it took me a while to decipher this query my friend. And I still haven’t really figured it out.

    First, what is the Major in “Commerce (Marketing)” that you are referring to?

    Scarborough offers a Specialist in Management & Marketing. St. George offers a Major in Commerce.

    I guess I’ll just answer your question for both scenarios… (sigh).

     

    Scenario 1: Specialist in Management & Marketing, UTSC

    A 13.0-credit program that leads to a B.B.A. degree.

    If you were enrolled in this program, you would strictly be a UTSC student. Sadly, you CANNOT enrol in 2 programs on 2 different campuses at the same time. The best you could do is to take all of your remaining electives (and no more than 10.0) as St. George Psychology courses – but those would never manifest as a Program on your transcript.

    Of course, you could just take the Management & Marketing Specialist at Scarborough, and pair it with a Major or Minor in Psychology from Scarborough as well. This would be much cleaner, and you would receive recognition for both Programs. Since the Major requires 7.0 credits, it would be a tight squeeze to finish those alongside the 13.0 Marketing credits in 20.0 credits over 4 years. I’m not saying it can’t be done, and you can always take more than 20.0 courses doing summer school and whatnot. The Minor is much more reasonable.

     

    Scenario 2: Major in Commerce, St. George

    A 7.5-credit program that leads to a Hon.B.A. degree. It must be paired with at least 1 more major or 2 minors. If the other Major is a science program (e.g. Psych), you will by default get an Hon.B.Sc. degree.

    In this case, you CAN complete both a Major in Rotman Commerce and a Major in Psychology, as a St. George student. Commerce requires 7.5 credits. Psych requires 6.5 credits. You need 20.0 credits to graduate. This still leaves you with 6.0 credits to blow on whatever tickles your fancy. (…did someone say “The Sun and its Neighbours??”)??

    But listen up! The Commerce Major does not have an explicit concentration in Marketing. You may elect to take a bunch of marketing courses (e.g. RSM250, 350, 452, 458), but in the end it will still be the more general Major in Commerce.

    Sound decent? Here’s the kicker. Rotman Commerce courses are hella expensive. Whether you are in the Major or one of the Specialists, beginning in your 2nd year you will pay a yearly “program fee” ($10,481 right now). This flat fee will cover all of the courses you take between 3.0-6.0 credits.

    Compare that to the brand new Arts & Science flat fee, which covers 4.0-6.0 credit courseloads, of $5300-ish. And for all of this moola you would spend for Commerce, the Major still only entitles you to a B.A. degree not the B.Com that the Specialist will yield.

     

     

    Scenario 3: Rotman Commerce Specialist (Accounting, Finance & Economics, or Management), St. George

    I’ve added an additional scenario for your consideration. It is my suggested alternative to Scenario 2. You will still pay the high Commerce flat fees, but you will get a B.Com degree (wooooo). You can pair this with a Major or Minor in Psychology downtown. Which Commerce Specialist is best for you? Well, none of them really. You’ll notice that there isn’t a Marketing option per se.

    I’m thinking that the Major or Minor programs in Semiotics offered through Victoria College, downtown, may have relevance to the field of Marketing. Maybe some Sociology courses as well?? I’m reaching now.

     

    Okay finally. In response to your last question (and it should be obvious by now), you do not get 2 degrees for having a double major. You get one degree that will say something more generic like Hon.BA., Hon.BSc, B.Com, or B.B.A. To achieve that degree you must complete a minimum combination of Programs: 1 Specialist, 2 Majors, and 1 Major + 2 Minors. ?

     

    Ps. The U of T Arts & Science website explains double Majors, and the like, in the 2009-10 Calendar, see “Program Requirements.” But I can’t blame you for not finding it. U of T websites are notoriously bloated with text and they navigate like a labyrinth, but without the prospect of discovering David Bowie’s bulge.

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  • failing,  hard,  probation,  psychology,  subject POST

    Can you hear me Major Tom?

    August 11, 2008

    Hi Askastudent

    I am sorry to tell you that my Sessional GPA was 1.20 and CGPA was 0.32 in my 2nd year in UT, I just suspended for 1 year and i would like to strive for the specialist programme of Psychology. I know it is hard to get into the programme, So I may consider Specialist of Behavioral Science as my 2nd major (PSY100 only got 62…)
    Sigh, may you provide some advices to me? Thx

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  • math,  psychology,  subject POST

    blame your highschool math teacher for being the chupacabra

    July 31, 2007

    Hi Aska! This site has saved me from many, many anxiety attacks. I am going into
    second year and recently re-read my offer of admission. It says Congrats! You
    are in Humanities and Social Science! Only I just realised that Psychology, my
    specialist of choice, is considered Science. Yet I have 80% in PSY100H.

    The real issue: I do not have any high school math after grade 10 college math.
    Apparently calculus is required as of 2006 for admission into any minor, major
    or specialist PoST in Psychology.

    Questions:

    1) Do I have to go back to high school to get calculus (I don’t mind, I’ll just
    go to a semestered night school and bribe a tutor with ridiculous amounts of
    money)?

    2) If not, does U of T have a foundations course that I can take to satisfy the
    MCB4U high school pre-req? If it’s a review course I can’t take it, I’d fail.

    3) Is begging to waive the high school pre-req an option? I feel confident I
    can take statistics (a pre-req for psych) with no math background because I
    have access to many tutors and a lot more motivation now than I did in grade
    10. I just want the specialist in Psych, not admission into med schooL!

    Thanks a million!

    ~Cursed by Calculus

    jumphoop

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  • distribution,  psychology

    psychological deathtraps

    July 26, 2007

    I need to choose what courses I want to fulfill the science requirement of my
    degree. Thus, I ask; just how MATHY is Introductory Psychology? My sister has
    informed me that it is like sixth dimension geometry, and another source has
    informed me that there is NO MATH AT ALL, and I believe he said this because he
    was in university years ago. Grade 12 Calculus is not a prerequisite, but I did
    happen to take it. More importantly, psychology is something I am actually
    interested in. I have made it a life goal to learn why people are stupid.
    Advanced math, on the other hand,the elderly get it on. Should I go with first
    year psychology? [youtube]http://youtube.com/watch?v=XC_45v-mWv0&mode=related&search=[/youtube]

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