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Undergraduates

The Bachelor of Arts, General program may be completed in-person, hybrid, or fully online. Students can only take the program fully online if the necessary courses are offered. Not all Specializations will include courses that are offered fully online in every year. Selected courses are normally offered online. 

By the end of the program, graduating students will have developed:

  • An understanding of the meaning and value of a contemporary liberal education;
  • The ability to apply interdisciplinary thinking to formulate, analyze, and evaluate complex questions
  • The capacity to reflect on personal, academic, and professional growth, articulating how learning experiences contribute to ongoing personal development and adaptability;
  • The ability to appraise a range of social problems in a theoretically informed, rationally justified, and practical manner;
  • 21st-century skills, including critical self-reflection, intercultural communication, and digital fluency, that are required of citizens and professionals.
  • The capacity to listen to and communicate with a variety of audiences in an articulate, respectful, and effective manner;
  • The ability to critically recognize and analyze the contingent nature of political, cultural, economic, and social truth-claims in the social sciences and humanities;
  • The ability to Identify and explain a variety of disciplinary methodologies and their implications for how knowledge is imagined, organized and communicated
  • The ability to demonstrate responsibility, industry and self-motivation across a range of academic activities.

For student services, experiential learning, admission requirements, and more, please see the tabs below. 

 

Student support

For our various student support services, visit Student Success.

Contact your advising team:

Faculty of Social Science and Humanities
Charles Hall
61 Charles Street, Rooms 330 A and B
905.721.8668 ext. 3838
sshadvising@ontariotechu.ca

Drop-in hours:

Visit the Academic Advising page on the FSSH website for additional information.

Students registered in a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) program within the Faculty of Social Science and Humanities are permitted to pursue any combination of two majors within the Faculty of Social Science and Humanities concurrently as a double major. Double-major program maps have been approved by the Faculty of Social Science and Humanities and are available through the Academic Advising Office. Students undertaking a double major within the Faculty of Social Science and Humanities will, in most cases, be required to complete more than 120 credit hours. Students wishing to declare a double major must consult with the Academic Advising office.

The Honours Thesis is an independent research project on a subject of your own choosing that presents you with the opportunity to further develop your critical thinking and analytical skills. Under the guidance and support of a supervisor, you are responsible for conceiving and executing your particular research project. 

Benefits of pursuing an Honours Thesis:

  • Enhance your research and writing skills
  • Seek the opportunity to work one-on-one with a supervisor 
  • Preparation for graduate studies

Apply for the course

In order to be considered for the Honours Thesis I, you must apply during your sixth semester to begin your Honours Thesis I in semester seven. Your course application must include a detailed statement of intent outlining the methodology, theoretical significance and the projected timelines for completion of the project. To proceed to Honours Thesis II, you must have successfully completed Honours Thesis I with a minimum A- and prepare a written statement outlining the projected timelines for completion of the project.

For more information, please contact Academic Advising.

Experiential Learning

The FSSH Experiential Learning office serves students from all BA programs, arranging placements and internships for students in a wide variety of workplace environments. The office therefore has experience and an established network of contacts for catering to students enrolled in the Arts, General program. For more information, please visit the Experiential Learning Office page. 

Previous placement organizations include:

Graduates from the Bachelor of Arts, General program will have a wide and solid academic foundation, preparing them for a range of professions and employment opportunities, as well as further education in areas including:

  • college instructor
  • community and social service worker
  • correctional officer
  • educational counsellor
  • entrepreneur
  • fundraiser
  • mediator
  • lawyer
  • librarian 
  • retail manager
  • sales and purchasing agent
  • social worker
  • police officer
  • public relations officer
  • elementary school teacher
  • writer/editor

Admission is competitive. The specific average or standing required for admission varies from year to year. Students are selected by taking into consideration a wide range of criteria including school marks, distribution of subjects taken, and performance in subjects relevant to the academic program. Possession of the minimum requirements does not guarantee acceptance. Preference will be given to applicants with the best qualifications.

Current Ontario secondary school students must complete the Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) with six 4U or 4M credits including English (ENG4U). All other applicants should refer to admissions for the requirements for their specific category of admission.

Note: Students intending to take Science courses as part of their Bachelor of Arts, General program are strongly recommended to have Advanced Functions (MHF4U), and two of Biology (SBI4U), Calculus and Vectors (MCV4U), Chemistry (SCH4U) or Physics (SPH4U).