Hi Aska!
I am trying to pick out my first year courses and am in need of a bit of assistance.
I noticed that the courses you can take have breadth requirements attached to them. Let’s say you are taking a course which covers a Creative and Cultural Representations Breadth Requirement but you are also taking this course as a requirement for your program. Does this course still cover the Breadth Requirement even though it’s going towards your program?
Also, I was accepted to U of T in the Humanities and let’s just say, I’m not that “gifted” in the science and math category. Can you recommend any First Year Seminars or even courses for individuals who aren’t that strong in the sciences and mathematics?
Thanks so much! 🙂
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hey there,
oooh, a first year! do you feel excited? do you feel like you have all the potential in the world? does your heart flutter as you page through the course calendar? good. be excited. it’s an exciting time.
a typical first year around course enrolment time
yep, courses can count towards breadth and program requirements simultaneously.
if you’re worried about filling your category 4 and 5 breadth requirements, then i would say: don’t be afraid! there are many, many more courses available at the university than there are at the high school level. you may stumble upon some science/math courses that you’ve never even heard of, but that might just be right up your alley, “gifted” or not.
also keep in mind that you don’t need to fulfil all (or even most) of your breadth requirements in first year. if you’re feeling uncomfortable with taking a category 4 or 5 breadth course going into your first year, that’s a-okay. you have three more years in which to fill them. first year is a transitional period, and it’s not a crime to try and make that transition easier.
since you did ask, however, here is my PERSONAL list of interesting-looking breadth 4/5 courses, divided into 1st year/upper year and by breadth category:
BREADTH CATEGORY (4)
1st Year Courses
- GGR101H1: Ancient Civilizations and their Environments – learn about our rapidly deteriorating environment and imagine the bygone days of paradisaical pastures that now only exist in your mind! fun fun fun.
- ANT100Y1: Introduction to Anthropopology – tired of navel-gazing? study other people and get a credit for it!
Upper Year Courses
- NEW335H1: Meditation and the Body – this course has no prerequisites, and you get to learn about the effects of meditation on the body! i’ve never meditated in my life – i’ve been in a constant state of hyperventilation since birth – but this still seems cool.
- ENV200H1: Assessing Global Change: Science and the Environment and ENV221H1: Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Environment are becoming more and more pertinent, as our planet deteriorates into a giant, rotating sphere of melting trash. fortunately, you can learn about it all in these introductory, multidisciplinary Environment courses!
BREADTH CATEGORY (5)
1st Year Courses
- CHM101H1: The Chemistry and Biology of Organic Molecules: Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll! – yes, i’ll admit that the title for this course is perhaps a little patronizing, but the description is promising. it’s an applied look at how chemicals impact our lives culturally, which seems like it would be pretty relevant to humanities kids.
- AST101H1: The Sun and Its Neighbours and AST201H1: Stars and Galaxies – both of these courses are very popular breadth 5 fillers for humanities and social sciences students, so i guess they must be good? in any case, i couldn’t NOT list them in one of these lists, since they’re the super-stars (har har har) of breadth 5 courses for non-science kids.
- ESS103H1: Geology in Public Issues, ESS104H1: Controversies in Earth Science, and ESS105H1: Our Home Planet are Earth and Space Science courses geared towards humanities and social science students. that ROCKS!
Upper Year Courses
- JUM202H1: Mathematics as an Interdisciplinary Pursuit, JUM203H1: Mathematics as a Recreation, JUM204H1: Mathematics and Poetry, and JUM205H1: Mathematical Personalities are all mathematics courses geared towards humanities and social science students, and they all look super cool. i would’ve killed to take the math and poetry course in my undergrad, but it was never offered at a time convenient to me. this year, JUM203H1 is being offered. luckyyyyy you.
i hope that’s helpful! best of luck with course enrolment on the 28th. may the odds be ever in your favour.
aska