• courses,  enrollment,  UTM

    it is now open season on uoft courses

    August 15, 2014

    if i am on the missigua campus can i take all my classes at the st. george one or at least some?

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    you can definitely take courses at either UTSC or st. george if you’re a utm student.

    i’m doubtful that you can take all your courses on another campus. there are no rules specifically stopping you from doing so (that i can find), but if you’re a utm student, you do need to meet the requirements for a utm subject POSt, and that’s pretty much impossible to do without taking at least some classes at utm. there are three different campuses for a reason, after all.

    just a note: today happens to be the first day uoft students can enrol in courses at uoft campuses other than their own (thank you for the beautifully timed question, btw), and as you may have noticed, quite a bit of time has passed since course enrolment opened for students on their own campuses.

    so if you ever want to take a course at a different uoft campus, you will always run the risk of not being able to get into the course because it’s already full.

    but you have the schools’ blessing to try.

    cheers,

    aska

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  • PUMP

    PUMP the bank

    August 15, 2014

    Hi! I sat in the PUMP lectures/tutorials for the summer but I didn’t pay the fee, so I won’t be given a certificate to show proof that I know high school level math. I want to take first-years maths, but they have pre-reqs. Does the math dept actively check to see if you have the pre-reqs? Thanks.

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    the math department (like every department at uoft) definitely checks up on prerequisites. it depends a little bit from department to department how quickly they make these checks, but it can be done any time between course enrolment and the start of school (“students enroled in courses for which they do not have the published prerequisites may have their registration in those courses cancelled at any time without warning“).

    basically, there’s no way to sneak into a class.

    and since we live in a capitalist society where services are exchanged for monetary compensation, you do have to pay for a course to receive credit for it, just like any other student.

    before you join up with zombie Marx and Engels to protest the unfairness of it all, i would contact the people behind PUMP to see about making a late payment.

    cheers,

    aska

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  • graduation,  non degree,  subject POST

    your degree UPGRADED!

    August 15, 2014

    Hi Aska,

    OK I am graduating this November. I did a polisci major and a hist and anthro minor. But as I was looking through all my course to insure that I
    didn’t miss a breath requirement etc I came to a realization that made me realize what a space-case I am. I only need a 0.5 400 -level history course to do a double major and a minor. Is there any way I can take one course in fall and still graduate by November? Or will UOFT let me take the course after I graduate and let me upgrade to a double major? Thanks.

    Space Case.

    ———————————————

    hey there space case,

    well, be grateful that you didn’t have a more serious realization than that. people discover some nasty things on degree explorer (“wait, what are breadth requirements?…OH NO.”)

    there’s no way to take a course now (like, for the Fall 2014 session) and graduate by november. however, you can graduate in november and take the course as a non-degree student. the course and mark will appear on your uoft transcript once you complete it.

    you can talk to your college registrar about the possibility of updating your transcript to include that extra major after you complete the history course, but the subject POSts you graduate with will be the ones on your degree.

    cheers,

    aska

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  • dean's list

    why people care about the dean’s list: a brief psychoanalysis

    August 14, 2014

    I’ve been seeing all these posts about the Dean’s list, but what is it for exactly? I mean, there’s no monetary compensation, I don’t get anything cool out of it except for a piece of (useless) paper, and I can’t really do anything with it.

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    well now, the dean’s list is not completely useless. it can be used as scrap paper. it can be used to make a paper airplane. if you get a lot of them, you could make a whole fleet.

    for some people, it also has less physically practical uses like improving their self-worth, making them feel proud of their (often very difficult to achieve) accomplishments, and motivating them to continue working hard on their academics. after all, not everyone gets on the dean’s list, and it’s nice to feel that the university appreciates your hard work. plus, it’s great to put on your resume.

    but, you know, what’s that compared to a real-life, well-constructed paper airplane made from sturdy card paper fresh from the university? not much, without monetary compensation. not much.

    aska

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  • admissions

    the perforated arts

    August 14, 2014

    Hi aska I attend a performing arts school. I am applying to social sciences/humanities at st George and was wondering if our arts area (music course) is included in our top 6 marks?

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    hmm. you didn’t state this explicitly, but i’m going to assume you’re an ontario high school student, because i’m pretty sure you wouldn’t know about the top 6 thing if you weren’t.*

    if the course you’re taking is a 4U or 4M course (that is, a university or mixed grade 12 course), and the mark you get in that course is one of your top 6 marks out of all the 4U or 4M class you take, then yes, it would be included.

    basically what i’m saying is that if a course is in your top 6 4U/M marks then it is in your top 6 4U/M marks. so. did i misunderstand the question?

    if the school you’re at doesn’t classify courses as either O (open), C (college), M (mixed) or U (university), then you’ll need to look up what the requirements are in your own school system’s language.

    cheers,

    aska

    *i will continue to post pics of famous english men as reactions on here until you’re all convinced i’m an attractive, 40-year-old white guy. convinced, but still with the tiniest hint of self-doubt that aska just might be something much, much greater…

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  • courses

    level up!

    August 13, 2014

    how do you know the level of the course?

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    wow, i wish the campuses all synchronized the way that they marked course levels, but noPE. one of ’em had to go another way.

    st. george/UTM

    1**: first year

    2**: second year

    3**: third year

    4**: fourth year

    UTSC

    A**: first year

    B**: second year

    C**: third year

    D**: fourth year

    note that the “level” of a course does not necessarily correspond with the year in which you have to take it. as long as you meet all prerequisites for any given course and you’re not breaking any rules (for example UTSG’s rule on how many 100-series credits you can put towards your degree, you are allowed to take the courses in any year you like).

    best,

    aska

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  • courses

    tutorials and lectures are a university’s PB&J

    August 13, 2014

    Hi, I’m a first year student and I’m just wondering if I would be able to attend lectures for a course at one campus and the tut at another.

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    nah. a tutorial on one campus will be completely different from a tutorial on another, so you’ll need to sign up for the tutorial that’s associated with the specific lecture section you’re enrolled in, on your campus.

    honestly, it’s probably a good thing. not doing that commute will save you valuable time and money (not to mention a large chunk of your sanity)- so there’s your silver lining.

    cheers,

    aska

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  • admissions

    peeing yourself

    August 12, 2014

    Hi aska I am already an anxious person as it is and waiting makes me pee myself. I was wondering when exactly students find out that they are accepted into u of t? I’ve heard different from everyone

    ???????????????

    hey there,

    well, first – uoft is not worth peeing yourself for. like. maybe you should see a doctor about that or something.

    as for when you get accepted, you’ve heard different things from everyone because – get this – everyone gets accepted at different times. wow.

    ok, but i’m not just being smart here:?people really are accepted to the university at?vastly different times. you could be accepted anywhere between december and june, depending on your situation and when you apply.

    if you’re an OUAC 101 student (i.e. fresh outta high school), and you apply on time, you can expect to hear from the university between late february and late may. admissions just can’t give a more exact timeline than that – it’s too variable.

    i’d recommend going outside, hanging out with friends, and applying to other universities you’re excited about to lessen your anxiety. also, use the washroom frequently and whenever it is needed. you will (probably) be a lot less tense.

    cheers,

    aska

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  • admissions

    it begins

    August 12, 2014

    Hi aska my average for grade 11 was 85 and so far I have a 96 in one of my courses for grade 12. My average should be 83-85 for grade 12 and I’m freaking out about whether or not this is good enough for humanities/social science at the st george campus!?

    ???????????????

    hey there,

    i love waking up to the smell of fresh, high school panic in the morning. do you know what you’re doing to your liver, my friend? or your heart, for that matter? this stress is not good for you.

    anyway, an 83-85% average?fits nicely into this year’s anticipated grade range?for students entering uoft in 2014. now, keep in mind, these anticipated grade ranges?may change a little when 2015 rolls around.

    additionally,?there’s no way to tell exactly how you stack up against all the rest of the applicants to any given university in any given year. everyone could be a cybernetic robot genius by next year, and you could’ve missed the robot surgery through a freak accident (or by sleeping in too late. that’s probably what’ll happen to me).

    however, that anticipated grade range can give you a rough idea of your chances?- robot revolution exempted.

    cheers,

    aska

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  • IB,  transfer credits

    an IB mystery

    August 11, 2014

    Hi aska,
    I’m going to be a first year student in September and I have 3 transfer credits from IB. So I was trying to enroll into a 6th course, and I realized that some of the courses have *percentage score as part of the prerequisites*.
    Say for CHM249H1, the prerequisite is:
    CHM151Y1/CHM138H1, CHM139H1 with a minimum grade of 63%…since for CHM222H1, the prerequisite is (CHM138H1, CHM139H1/CHM151Y1 with a minimum grade of 63%, MAT135H1, MAT136H1/MAT135Y1/MAT137Y1/
    MAT157Y1, PHY138Y1/PHY140Y1/(PHY131H1,PHY132H1)/(PHY151H1, PHY152H1). Noticing the existence of the square brackets in CHM222H1 and the lack thereof in CHM249H1, *I’m assuming the “with a minimum grade of…” for CHM249H1 is only for CHM138/139H1(so it’s either CHM151Y1 or 63% in both CHM138H1 and CHM139H1)*. Since I have chemistry HL, it seems that, from the IB transfer credit page, I should have: CHM1**Y(unspecified first year credit).
    *The only 1**Y course in the CHM course list is CHM151Y1, so it should be what I got.* However, the degree explorer says *I have a CHM1**Y (CHM139H) credit out of 1.0.* For math and physics, I got the appropriate 135+136/131+132 half-credits, all of which are shown as* CR* on degree explorer which suggests that *I don’t have a percentage mark for them.*
    So this is the problem:
    *I don’t know if I have CHM151 or CHM138+139.*
    *CHM151 excludes with CHM138+139, so I can’t take CHM151Y1 if I have CHM139H1, so if the chemistry credit I got is CHM139H1 AND is CR’d, it seems that I won’t be able to take CHM249H1 as I can’t take one of the prerequisite options and don’t have percentage marks for the other.*
    tl;dr:
    1. For CHM249H1, does the percentage requirement apply to both the options (perhaps because of the lack of a uniform rule on the matter) or only the latter?
    2. I have the transfer credits but they are shown as CRs, so is that still possible to enroll into such courses that require specific marks as prerequisites?
    3. Which chemistry transfer credit am I getting?
    Thanks,
    confused IB student
    (Sorry for the long email, hope it helps that I bolded the key points)

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    yeahh, i really appreciate you bolding the key points, but unfortunately, that formatting was wiped out by my e-mail inbox. darn this technological age. hopefully i can address the important things anyway.

    1. hmm, CHM249H1‘s prereqs are kinda confusing, aren’t they? i think your comparison to CHM222H1 might not be entirely accurate, because that course requires some math courses as well, so i think what they’re trying to say is that you need a 63% in 151 or 138+9, plus math/physics. if you take a look at CHM223H1, however, you’ll see that one prerequisite course clearly requires a certain mark, while the other one doesn’t.

    based on that, i would say that CHM249H1 requires a 63% in EITHER CHM151Y1 OR CHM138H1+9H1.

    2. it depends on the department, and the course you want to get into. you’ll have to contact chemistry with that one.

    3. if degree explorer says you have a 1** credit, that means that you have an unspecified, first-year credit. so if you have CHM1**Y1, then you have 1.0 general, first-year chem credits. you do not have CHM151Y1 or CHM138+9, and if you need any of those courses for a program or as a prerequisite for other courses you want to take, then you’ll probably need to take them.

    i say “probably” because of one line in this document on interpreting your transfer credit assessment which states: “Unspecified credits may be used to meet prerequisite, program or breadth requirements as long as permission is obtained from the relevant Program Advisor or College Registrar.”

    just a tip – if you’re going to talk to anyone about trying to use your unspecified credit as a – well, specific – credit, make it the chem. undergraduate advisor rather than your college registrar. i can tell you right now they’ll know more about their own credits than any college will.

    hope that helps!

    aska

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  • keeners,  UTSC

    a tangled, tangled web of degree requirements

    August 11, 2014

    Hey,
    how long do you think it would take to complete a Philosophy/History double major at UTSC if you took courses every summer? Just wondering 🙂
    Thanks!

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    i know y’all think this is like a super easy question to answer, but there are so many variables involved that it’s actually almost impossible. so, let’s unpack this and find out, together, just how complicated this is.

    1. both the history and philosophy majors require 7.0 FCEs – 14.0 FCEs total; simple enough, right?

    WRONG. history and philosophy are close/flexible enough disciplines that you can probably have a bit of overlap between courses (i.e. take credits that fulfil requirements for both POSts). however, you have to keep in mind the 12.0 distinct credits rule when entertaining the possibility of overlap – only 2.0 FCEs out of a double major worth 14.0 credits can overlap.

    so your two majors could take anywhere between 12.0 – 14.0 FCEs to complete. already, we’ve got some uncertainty. but it gets worse.

    2. in a degree at UTSC, you’ll need to fulfil the breadth requirements. that’ll take 2.5 credits altogether, however, some of the credits that fulfil the breadth requirements will likely fulfil your major requirements, as well.

    meaning you’ll have take anywhere between 0.0-2.5 FCEs on TOP of your major requirements to meet the breadth req’s.

    so already – assuming you don’t have to late withdraw from a course, and that you pass every course you take – we’re looking at anywhere between 12.0-16.5 FCEs.

    of course, you need at least 20.0 FCEs to graduate, but depending on how many credits it takes you to complete those requirements (i haven’t even factored in the requirement that both history and philosophy have that you take a certain number of upper-year FCEs – that could up your credit count, too), you may have to take more than 20.0 FCEs.

    as you can see, this is getting nightmarishly complicated. let’s just assume nothing goes wrong, your plans won’t change, and it’ll take you 20.0 FCEs on the dot to complete your degree.

    how long would it take if you took courses every summer? well, that depends. how many courses are you planning on taking  here we have another ambiguity. let’s just assume you were to take the expected full-time course load – 2.5 FCEs – every term.

    20.0 FCEs/2.5 FCEs per term = 8 terms.

    8 terms/3 terms per year = 2.66 years. you would finish in june of your third year. which – i believe – means you would be able to request a june graduation.

    so there’s your short answer, but as you can see, things are never as simple as they first appear. uoft is good at teaching that lesson.

    cheers,

    aska

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  • subject POST

    not just first-year, ADVANCED first-year

    August 11, 2014

    Hey, ASKA!

    I’m an incoming first year at UTSG. I plan on entering a Psych POSt at the?end of first year. Thing is, I read somewhere that we apply to a POSt after?the completion of 4.0 FCEs. I’ll be starting in the fall with 3.0 FCEs on?my transcript from AP credits transferred. How does that work? I don’t take?PSY100, which is the prerequisite for applying to the POSt, until the?spring semester. Will I be able to wait and apply when all my fellow first?years are applying at the end of the year, or will they try and make me?choose a POSt already at the end of first semester?

    Thanks!

    ???????????????

    hey there,

    welcome to first year! i hope you’re excited. try to use that?excitement to crush the borderline panic that threatens to overwhelm you at all times*.

    this is one of those situations where you have to read the university guidelines VERY CAREFULLY. the registration instructions say that “St. George campus, Arts & Science students are required to enrol in subject POSt(s) at the end of the session in which they complete their fourth full-course equivalent.”

    there are two sessions at UTSG: the summer session and the Fall/Winter session (September-April). even though you’ll have completed 4.0 FCEs before April, April is the end of the session, not December. also, you’re not able to add/request subject POSts until April anyway. so if you take PSY100 in the spring term, you’ll be alright to ?request a psych POSt in April-September, along with everyone else.

    don’t worry, you too can experience the magic?of stressing about subject POSts all summer when you really want to be enjoying some well-deserved time off. yay!

    cheers,

    aska

    *sorry, i don’t mean to assume that you’re panicking. maybe you’re completely cool and composed about the next major stage of your life. but, you know, that’s a much less safe bet than panic.

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  • dean's list

    craving the dean’s approval

    August 8, 2014

    Hello,

    I was just wondering whether the the deans lost looks at the cumulative GPA achieved for one single full year (September to April), or is it the cumulative GPA that you’ve accumulated for your whole undergraduate years? Like for example lets say my cGPA is 2.5, but my cGPA for one year was a 4.0, does my name go on the deans list for that year??

    Thanks

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    you’re assessed for the dean’s list “at the end of the Fall-winter or Summer Session in which the fifth, tenth, fifteenth and twentieth course taken for Faculty of Arts & Science degree credit, has been passed.”

    the designation is based on CGPA, not AGPA. by definition, the CGPA is the average GPA of all the credits you’ve taken to date (not including transfer credits, courses outside the faculty, or extra courses, which do not count for degree credit).

    the ‘CGPA for one year’ is just your AGPA (annual GPA). unless the year you got a 4.0 was your first year, you wouldn’t be on the dean’s list for that year. also, they usually notify you in late july if you have made the dean’s list, so not to worry – if you get on it, you’ll know.

    cheers,

    aska

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