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Course Requirements

Note: This is the 2014–2015 edition of the eCalendar. Update the year in your browser's URL bar for the most recent version of this page, or click here to jump to the newest eCalendar.

Faculty of Arts Course Requirements

All required and complementary courses used to fulfil program requirements must be completed with a grade of C or better. If you fail to obtain a satisfactory grade in a required course, you must either pass the supplemental examination in the course if this option is available, or repeat the course. Course substitution will be allowed only in special cases; you should consult your departmental academic adviser.

Normally, you are permitted to repeat a failed course only once. (Failure is considered to be a grade of less than C or the administrative failures of J or KF.) To attempt a required course for the third time, you must appeal to the Associate Dean (Student Affairs) for permission. If permission is denied by the Associate Dean and/or the appeals committee, you must withdraw from the program. If the failed course is a complementary course required by your program, you may choose to replace it with another appropriate complementary course. If you choose to substitute another complementary course for a complementary course in which a D was received, credit for the first course will still be given, but as an elective. If you repeat a required course in which a D was received, credit will be given only once.

For more information on course requirements, please contact a departmental adviser (www.mcgill.ca/oasis/ba/departmental/adviser).

Programs, Courses and University Regulations—2014-2015 (last updated Mar. 4, 2014) (disclaimer)

Course Prerequisites

Faculty of Arts Course Prerequisites

The Faculty of Arts does not prevent you from registering for courses if you do not have the required prerequisites. However, if you lack the prerequisite course, you must consult with the instructor of the course you want to take, to ensure that you have the necessary background. Please note that other faculties may not allow registration without the required prerequisite courses.

Programs, Courses and University Regulations—2014-2015 (last updated Mar. 4, 2014) (disclaimer)

Course Overlap

Faculty of Arts Course Overlap Policy

You will not receive additional credit toward your degree for any course that overlaps in content with a course for which you have already received credit at McGill, CEGEP, at another university, or Advanced Placement exams, Advanced Level results, International Baccalaureate Diploma, or French Baccalaureate. It is your responsibility to consult with a faculty adviser in Arts OASIS or the department offering the course as to whether or not credit can be obtained and to be aware of exclusion clauses specified in the course description in this publication. Please refer to the following website for specific information about Advanced Standing credits and McGill course exemptions: www.mcgill.ca/students/courses/plan/transfer.

Credit for statistics courses will be given with the following stipulations:

Credit for computer courses will be subject to the following restrictions:

  • Credit for courses offered by the School of Computer Science is governed by rules specified in each individual course description.
Programs, Courses and University Regulations—2014-2015 (last updated Mar. 4, 2014) (disclaimer)

Programs Outside the Faculties of Arts or Science - For Arts Students

Programs Outside the Faculties of Arts or Science - For Arts Students

The following regulations apply to you if you are an Arts student and wish to take a program outside the Faculties of Arts or Science:

  1. Regardless of the minimum credit requirement towards your B.A. degree, you are allowed a maximum of 12 credits in elective and/or complementary courses taken in faculties other than the Faculties of Arts or Science.
  2. In certain designated programs that include a number of required and complementary courses in other faculties, you are permitted a maximum of 30 required, complementary, and elective credits outside the Faculties of Arts or Science. These programs are as follows:
    • Minors or Minor concentrations:
    • Education for Arts students
    • Educational Psychology
    • Finance for non-Management students
    • Geography Urban Systems *
    • Management for non-Management students
    • Marketing for non-Management students
    • Music
    • Musical Applications of Technology
    • Musical Science and Technology
    • Operations Management for non-Management students
    • Major concentrations:
    • Geography Urban Systems *
    • Music
    • Honours:
    • Environment
    • Urban Systems *
    • Joint Honours:
    • Economics and Accounting
    • Economics and Finance
    • For additional Joint Honours options please refer to the eCalendar under Faculties & Schools > Arts > Undergraduate > Joint Honours Programs.
    • Faculty programs:
    • Environment
    • Industrial Relations *
    • *located within the Faculties of Arts or Science
  3. If you combine any two or more of the programs listed above, you may not exceed 40 credits outside the Faculties of Arts or Science.
  4. Any courses taught at McGill University may be used towards the maximum allowed with the following exceptions:
    • School of Continuing Studies: School of Continuing Studies courses with a teaching unit that starts with C are not for credit (except for CHEM and courses offered by the McGill Writing Centre).
    • Distance Education: Refer to Policy on Online Courses in this publication.
  5. For the purpose of this policy, courses taught in other faculties and specifically listed in the Arts or Science section of the eCalendar are considered as courses taught in the Faculties of Arts or Science.
  6. For the purpose of this policy, all courses taken to fulfil the requirements for an approved field semester will be considered as courses in Arts or Science.
  7. The maximum number of credits allowed will be strictly enforced.
Programs, Courses and University Regulations—2014-2015 (last updated Aug. 18, 2014) (disclaimer)

Inter-University Transfer Credit Policy for Courses Taken Outside the Faculties of Arts and of Science

Faculty of Arts Inter-University Transfer Credit Policy for Courses Taken Outside the Faculties of Arts and of Science

If you transfer from a faculty outside the Faculties of Arts and of Science at another institution, you may transfer up to a maximum of 30 credits under the following conditions:

  • Only courses passed with a grade of C or better will be transferred. Grades of C-, P or S are not acceptable. The letter grades applied by your former home institution take precedence over the numerical grades if provided.
  • Decisions on whether a course is outside the Faculties of Arts and of Science will be based on the original faculty in which your course was taken.
  • Refer to Policy on Distance Education Courses.
  • Transfer credits for Continuing Education courses will be granted only if the courses can be used towards a degree program in a faculty other than Continuing Education at your former home university.
  • You will be allowed to take courses outside the Faculties of Arts and of Science at McGill only if you have transferred fewer than 12 credits, and then only up to a maximum of 12 credits.
  • If you register for a Faculty of Arts program that requires additional credits outside the Faculties of Arts and of Science, you will be allowed to take only the number of credits outside the Faculties of Arts and of Science required to complete your program, as long as the total number of credits outside the Faculties of Arts and Science, including transfer credits, do not exceed 40 credits.
Programs, Courses and University Regulations—2014-2015 (last updated Mar. 4, 2014) (disclaimer)

Inter-Faculty Transfer Credit Policy for Courses Taken Outside the Faculties of Arts and of Science

Bachelor of Arts Inter-Faculty Transfer Credit Policy for Courses Taken Outside the Faculties of Arts and of Science

You will normally have counted for credit (for grades of D or better) and/or GPA (regardless of the grade) all courses in Arts and Science, and up to a maximum of 30 credits of courses outside of Arts and of Science.

  • You will be allowed to take courses outside the Faculties of Arts and of Science at McGill only if you have transferred fewer than 12 credits, and then only up to a maximum of 12 credits.
  • If you register for a Faculty of Arts program that requires additional credits outside the Faculties of Arts and of Science, you will be allowed to take only the number of credits outside the Faculties of Arts and of Science required to complete your program, as long as the total number of credits outside the Faculties of Arts and Science, including transfer credits, do not exceed 40 credits.
Programs, Courses and University Regulations—2014-2015 (last updated Mar. 4, 2014) (disclaimer)

Policy on Online Courses

Policy on Online Courses for the Faculty of Arts

A maximum of 6 credits of elective courses taught through online education may be used towards your degree at McGill. Courses taught through online education from institutions other than McGill will be approved as transfer credits under the following conditions:

  • the course is given by a government-accredited, degree-granting institution acceptable to McGill;
  • the course counts for credit towards degrees granted at the institution giving the course (i.e., not courses taken towards a certificate/diploma, nor offered through Continuing Studies);
  • students have carefully read and completed the steps specified on the following Arts OASIS web page: www.mcgill.ca/oasis/away/online-courses;
  • prior approval for the course is obtained from Arts OASIS (please refer to the above link for details).

The combined total of regular course credits and online education course credits may not exceed the permitted maximum number of credits per term according to Faculty regulations. Courses taught through online education may not be used to complete program requirements, except on an individual basis when serious, documented circumstances warrant it. In such cases, prior approval must be obtained from your departmental academic adviser and the Associate Dean of Arts (Student Affairs).

Programs, Courses and University Regulations—2014-2015 (last updated Aug. 13, 2014) (disclaimer)

Internship Courses

Internship Courses (Faculty of Arts)

The Faculty of Arts offers internship courses for credit. For more information, refer to Faculty of Arts Internship Program.

Programs, Courses and University Regulations—2014-2015 (last updated Mar. 4, 2014) (disclaimer)

Courses in English as a Second Language – Bachelor of Arts Degree

Courses in English as a Second Language – Bachelor of Arts Degree

Up to a maximum of 12 credits of CESL courses (previously known as ESLN courses), including academic writing courses for non-anglophones, are open to you if your primary language is not English and you have studied for fewer than five years in an English-language secondary institution. For more information, please refer to the McGill Writing Centre and meet with a Faculty Adviser in Arts OASIS.

Placement tests are required for most CESL courses. For more information on placement tests, see www.mcgill.ca/mwc/courses/placement-tests. Soon after the placement test is evaluated, you will be issued a permit from the MWC for course registration.

Programs, Courses and University Regulations—2014-2015 (last updated Aug. 18, 2014) (disclaimer)

First-Year Seminar Courses

Faculty of Arts First-Year Seminar Courses

Registration for First-Year Seminars is limited to students in their first year of study at McGill, i.e., newly admitted students in U0 or U1. These courses are designed to provide a closer interaction with professors and better working relations with peers than is available in large introductory courses. These seminars endeavour to teach the latest scholarly developments and expose participants to advanced research methods. Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis. The maximum number of students in any seminar is 25, although some are limited to even fewer than that.

You may take only one First-Year Seminar. If you register for more than one, you will be obliged to withdraw from all but one of them.

For a complete listing, see First-Year Seminars.

The First-Year Seminars offered by the Faculty of Science are also open to Arts students. For a complete listing, see the eCalendar under Faculties & Schools > Faculty of Science > Undergraduate > Registration for First-Year Seminars.

Programs, Courses and University Regulations—2014-2015 (last updated Mar. 4, 2014) (disclaimer)

Graduate-Level Courses

Faculty of Arts Graduate-Level Courses

Enrolment of undergraduate students in 600-level courses

Policy:

An undergraduate student will be permitted to take 600-level courses subject to the following conditions:

  • The student has a minimum CGPA of 3.3.
  • The student is in U3 or higher.
  • The professor of the course and the program adviser or the director of the undergraduate program provide written approval supporting the request.
  • A maximum of 6 credits of 600-level courses are allowed toward the degree.
  • The actual course number appears on the transcript.
  • The course evaluation methods and grading standards are the same for all students, whether graduate or undergraduate.
  • The regulations and practices of the Faculty of Arts are also applied to such a course.

A copy of the application form is available at the Arts OASIS counter.

Programs, Courses and University Regulations—2014-2015 (last updated Mar. 4, 2014) (disclaimer)
Faculty of Arts—2014-2015 (last updated Mar. 4, 2014) (disclaimer)
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