Program Requirements

2024-2025 Academic Year

UndergraduateAcademic Calendar information header

Canadian Studies

Chair

Jeffrey MacLeod, BA (CBU), MA (Acadia), PhD (Western), Professor

This program is intended for students who wish to increase their knowledge, understanding and critical analysis of Canadian society, culture and identity. Students will be introduced to issues related to race, ethnicity, multiculturalism, immigration, colonialism, regionalism, gender, class, sexuality and ability in historical and contemporary contexts. It provides an excellent background for careers in education, journalism, law, public relations, and the public service. Any student wishing to complete a major, concentration or minor in Canadian Studies should consult the Canadian Studies Coordinator, who will help the student plan an academic program. Students are encouraged to apply for the Andrea M. and Charles R. Bronfman Award in Canadian Studies.

Admission Requirements

Review sections 2.1.4 Admission Requirements and 2.1.6 Additional Admission Requirements.

Students may count courses from a major, concentration and/or minor towards a second major, concentration and/or minor; however, students must complete a minimum of 50 percent of unique courses toward the second major, concentration and/or minor, unless otherwise stated in the Undergraduate Academic Calendar.

The degree with a major is intended for those students with a clearly focused interest who wish to gain knowledge in depth of a single discipline.

Students intending to complete the major degree must declare their intention to do so before registering for their sixth unit of coursework. Students who do not make this declaration within this time frame will not be permitted to register for further coursework.

The Mount also offers a limited enrollment internship option.

Students must successfully complete 20.0 units with the following requirements:

a minimum of 8.0 and a maximum of 10.0 units in the major as follows:

  • CANA 1102/POLS 1102
  • CANA 1121/HIST 1121 or CANA 1122/HIST 1122
  • CANA 2201/POLS 2201
  •  CANA 2202/POLS 2202
  • CANA 3301/POLS 3301
  • CANA 4401/POLS 4401
  •  an additional 2.0 units of Canadian emphasis courses at the 3000 level or above (Canadian Emphasis Courses list)
  •  3.0 additional units of Canadian Emphasis Courses at any level (Canadian Emphasis Courses list)
  •  a minimum overall GPA of 2.0 in the required 8.0 units of CANA

a minor consisting of 3.0 units as specified by the department offering the minor. Students must achieve a minimum GPA of 2.0 in the required 3.0 units

students may choose a second 3.0 unit minor in any area that offers a minor

1.0 unit from each core group A, B, and C listed under the Bachelor of Arts (General Studies) (exclusive of the major):

  • Core A – Sciences & Mathematics (1.0 unit)
  • Core B – Social Sciences (1.0 unit)
  • Core C – Humanities (1.0 unit)

at least 9.0 units must be at the 2000 level or above

Note: No more than 4.0 units from professional areas may be counted toward the degree. Courses
included in the Applied Human Nutrition science minor will not be counted as professional electives.

Note: Students who have no background in Canadian history or the French language are advised to take a 1000 level course in those subjects along with the other Canadian Studies courses. This is not a compulsory requirement.

Special Studies: Students may count a maximum of 2.0 units of directed/independent/research studies courses towards the degree.

Major Certificate

Students who have graduated from Mount Saint Vincent University with a Bachelor of Arts General Studies degree may apply to do a major certificate. Students must fulfill the requirements for the major degree listed above.

The combined major degree is intended for those students who wish to gain in-depth knowledge of two disciplines. Students must declare a major or combined major before registering for their sixth unit of coursework. Students who do not make this declaration within this time frame will not be permitted to register for further coursework.

The Mount also offers a limited enrollment internship option.

Students must successfully complete 20.0 units. In order to complete a combined major in Canadian Studies, the following requirements must be met:

a minimum of 6.0 units and a maximum of 8.0 units in the Canadian Studies combined major as follows:

  •  CANA 1102/POLS 1102
  •  CANA 1121/HIST 1121 or CANA 1122/HIST 1122
  •  CANA 2201/POLS 2201
  •  CANA 2202/POLS 2202
  •  CANA 3301/POLS 3301
  •  CANA 4401/POLS 4401
  •  an additional 1.0 unit of Canadian emphasis courses at the 3000 level or above (Canadian Emphasis Courses list)
  •  2.0 additional units of Canadian Emphasis Courses at any level (Canadian Emphasis Courses list)

a second combined major specified by another program (Biology, Chemistry, Communication, Cultural Studies, Economics, English, Family Studies, French, Gerontology, History, Mathematics, Political Studies, Psychology, Sociology/Anthropology, Women’s Studies)

a minimum overall GPA of 2.0 in the required 6.0 units of each combined major

at least 5.0 units of the 12.0 units overall required for the combined majors must be at the 3000 level or above

1.0 unit from each core group A, B, and C listed under the Bachelor of Arts (General Studies) (inclusive of the majors):

  • Core A – Sciences & Mathematics (1.0 unit)
  • Core B – Social Sciences (1.0 unit)
  • Core C – Humanities (1.0 unit)

at least 9.0 units of the total 20.0 units must be at the 2000 level or above

Note: No more than 4.0 units from professional areas may be counted toward the degree. Courses
included in the Applied Human Nutrition science minor will not be counted as professional electives.

Students wishing to combine an arts major and a science major (e.g. Chemistry and English or Biology and Political Studies):

must meet all of the requirements listed above

and

♦ to complete a BSc (Combined Major) primary science
discipline plus secondary arts discipline

❏ must complete a minimum 12.0 units of the total 20.0 units in science disciplines

♦ to complete a BA (Combined Major) primary arts discipline
plus secondary science discipline

❏ must complete a minimum 12.0 units of the total 20.0 units in arts disciplines

To obtain a concentration in Canadian Studies, students must fulfill the following requirements:

❏ CANA 1102/POLS 1102 ❏ CANA 1121/HIST 1121 or CANA 1122/HIST 1122

❏ CANA 2201/POLS 2201 or CANA 2202/POLS 2202

❏ CANA 3301/POLS 3301 or CANA 4401/POLS 4401

❏ 2.0 additional units of Canadian Emphasis Courses at the 2000 level or above (Canadian Emphasis Courses list)

To obtain a minor in Canadian Studies, students must fulfill the following requirements:

❏ CANA 1102/POLS 1102

❏ CANA 1121/HIST 1121 or CANA 1122/HIST 1122

❏ CANA 3301/POLS 3301 or approved substitute

❏ 1.5 additional units of Canadian Emphasis Courses (selected from the Canadian Emphasis Courses list)

Note: Prerequisites for individual courses included in the following list must be met or the appropriate departmental approval received. Alternative courses may be approved by the department if they comprise 60 percent Canadian content.

Canadian Emphasis Courses List

Biology
BIOL 3312
Business
BUSI 1112
BUSI 2259
BUSI 3306/POLS 3306
BUSI 3314
BUSI 3324
Canadian Studies
CANA 1001/POLS 1001
CANA 1002/POLS 1002
CANA 2211/CULS 2211
CANA 2301/CULS 2301
Cultural Studies
CULS 3330/WOMS 3330
Economics
ECON 1101
ECON 1102
ECON 2204
ECON 2206
ECON 2207
ECON 2208
ECON 3305
ECON 3325
ECON 4401
English
ENGL 2250
ENGL 2251
ENGL 3354
French
FREN 3307
FREN 3310
FREN 3312
FREN 3317
FREN 3321
FREN 3322
FREN 3398
History
HIST 1121/CANA 1121
HIST 1122/CANA 1122
HIST 2210
HIST 2216/POLS 2216
HIST 2219/POLS 2219
HIST 2222
HIST 2225
HIST 2230
HIST 2231
HIST 2282
HIST 3320
HIST 3321
HIST 3322
HIST 3329
HIST 3330
HIST 3341
HIST 3342
Political Studies
POLS 1001/CANA 1001
POLS 1002/CANA 1002
POLS 2205
POLS 2216/HIST2216
POLS 2219/HIST 2219
POLS 2223/WOMS 2223
POLS 2227
POLS 2530
POLS 3301/CANA 3301
POLS 3306/BUSI 3306
POLS 3308
POLS 3361/WOMS 3361
Religious Studies
RELS 3308
Sociology/Anthropology
SOAN 2530
SOAN 3581
SOAN 3582
SOAN 3651
SOAN 3652
Women’s Studies
WOMS 1110
WOMS 1112
WOMS 2223/POLS 2223
WOMS 3330/CULS 3330
WOMS 3341
WOMS 3361/POLS 3361

Note: Each year additional courses are added if the content is 60 percent Canada. Please check with the department Chair or the faculty advisor. Students can ask the department to consider a course for inclusion on submission of a course outline. This should be done prior to registering for the course.

Academic Note: This web-based calendar information is applicable for the 2024-2025 academic year which runs from September 01, 2024 to August 31, 2025.

For information on previous years, please consult the University Academic Calendars web page.

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