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DEGREE/DIPLOMA REQUIREMENTS

  • BFA and BDes
  • First-Year Liberal Arts & Sciences Requirements
  • Diploma
  • Year-level Restrictions

BFA and BDes

September 2012 to present: new and first-year entry

All students admitted to OCAD University 2012 or later must complete the following Liberal Arts & Sciences requirements for a total of 5.0 credits:

LBST (First-Year)
1.5 credits
VISA, VISC, VISD, VISM (History and Theory of Visual Culture)
1.0 credit
Breadth discipline courses (English, Humanities,
Science/Technology/Mathematics, Social Sciences)
1.5 credits
Choice of Breadth and/or Visual Culture courses
1.0 credit
TOTAL
5.0 credits

At least 1.5 credits out of the 5.0 credits above must be completed at the 300 or 400 level.

NOTE: BUSI and DIGF courses DO NOT count towards liberal studies graduation requirements.  However, two INVC courses (previously ABVC) DO count towards liberal studies graduation requirements:  INVC 2B01 The Story of Us: Indigenous Peoples of the Americas = VISC, and INVC 2B03 Ways of Telling: Indigenous Literature and Narrative Traditions = ENGL. 

Students must complete courses in at least 2 breadth disciplines (English, Humanities, Science/Technology/Mathematics, or Social Sciences. (LBST 1B11 or LBST1B12 is included as ENGL).

Please note prerequisites listed in the course descriptions and refer to program guides when selecting courses.



September 2006 to September 2011: first-year entry (including students who took LS One) - formerly Group A

All students who entered first year from Septemer 2006 to September 2011, as well as students who took LS ONE (LBST 1D01) in 2005/2006, must complete the following Liberal Arts & Sciences requirements for a total of 5.0 credits:

LBST (First-Year) 1.5 credits
VISA, VISC, VISD, VISM (History and Theory of Visual Culture) 1.5 credits

Plus 0.5 credit selected from four of the five following categories: 2.0 credits
ENGL (English)
HUMN (Humanities)
SCTM (Science/Technology/Mathematics)
SOSC (Social Sciences)
VISA, VISC, VISD, VISM (History and Theory of Visual Culture)

TOTAL
5.0 credits

At least 1.5 credits of the 5.0 credits above must be completed at the 300 or 400 level.


September 2005 or earlier: first-year entry  (except students who took LS One) - formerly Group B

All students in degree programs who entered first year in September 2005 or earlier (except students who took LS ONE; see Group A above) must complete the following Liberal Arts & Sciences credits for a total of 5.0 credits:

ENGL (English) 0.5 credit
HUMN (Humanities) 0.5 credit
SCTM (Science/Technology/Mathematics) 0.5 credit
SOSC (Social Sciences) 0.5 credit
VISA, VISC, VISD, VISM (History and Theory of Visual Culture) 3.0 credits
TOTAL
5.0 credits

Alumni in degree completion programs and students who entered second year prior to September 2004 must complete at least 2.0 credits at the 300 or 400 level. Students who entered second year in September 2004 or later, must complete at least 1.5 credits at the 300 or 400 level.

Alumni in the Degree Completion Program: Alumni admitted to the degree completion program are required to complete 5.0 credits in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Sciences, as outlined in Group B above. At least 2.0 of these credits must be completed at the third and/or fourth year levels. All alumni returning for degree completion are strongly urged to meet with an academic advisor in the Student Advising Centre (located at 100 McCaul in room 266) for advice about their program of study.

Alumni are subject to the general registration restrictions for Liberal Arts & Sciences courses, but are exempt from specific course prerequisites. It is nevertheless strongly recommended that students take the prerequisites listed for 300 and 400 level courses.

Alumni who completed degree-eligible liberal studies credits for their diploma program at OCAD University may apply up to 2.5 of these credits towards their degree requirements. At least half of the credits required for degree completion, as determined at the time of admission, must be completed at OCAD University.

Students may apply for Transfer of Credit for courses completed at another university prior to admission to degree completion or may apply to take courses on a Letter of Permission at another university subsequent to admission to degree completion, subject to OCAD University's residency requirements and Transfer of Credit policies.


First-Year Liberal Arts & Sciences Requirements

All incoming first-year students are required to complete 1.5 Liberal Arts & Sciences credits at the 100 level.

First Year Writing Course*
one of:
LBST 1B11: The Essay and the Argument - Mechanics
LBST 1B12: The Essay and the Argument - ESL
0.5 credit
LBST 1B04: Global Visual and Material Culture: Prehistory to 1800 0.5 credit
LBST 1B05: Global Visual and Material Culture: 1800 to the Present 0.5 credit

*Students may take LBST 1B11 in either Fall or Winter, but LBST 1B12 is only offered in the fall semester. Students must complete their first year writing course (one of: LBST 1B11 or LBST 1B12) and either LBST 1B04 or LBST 1B05 before they may register for 200-level Liberal Arts & Sciences courses.

PLEASE NOTE: The minimum passing grade for the first year writing course is 60% (C-).

First-Year Options for Alumni and Advanced Standing Students
The first-year Liberal Arts & Sciences options described above may or may not be appropriate for alumni and advanced standing students, depending on their background and experience with university-level liberal arts & sciences courses.

All alumni in the degree completion program and advanced standing students are urged to make an appointment with a student advisor in the Student Advising Centre (located at 100 McCaul in room 266) prior to registration to determine the appropriate first-year and upper level Liberal Arts & Sciences courses.

Alumni are generally exempt from the first year writing course and may select an English course at the 200 or 300 level to fulfill the ENGL requirement. Advanced standing students who have not taken a university level writing course should register for one of: LBST 1B11 or LBST 1B12.

Diploma (AOCAD): First-Year Entry September 2005 or Earlier

Students completing the old Associate of OCAD University (AOCAD) diploma program must complete the following Liberal Arts & Sciences credits:

A total of 4.0 Liberal Arts & Sciences credits are required for the AOCAD

First-Year Entry in September 2003, 2004 or 2005
1.5 First-year credits
2.5 VISA, VISC, VISD, VISM, ENGL or HUMN credits at the 200, 300 or 400 level of which 1.0 credit may be studio/seminars offered by the Faculties of Art and Design

First-Year Entry in September 2002 or earlier
1.0 First-year credit
3.0 VISA, VISC, VISD, VISM, ENGL or HUMN credits at the 200, 300 or 400 level of which 1.5 credits may be studio/seminars offered by the Faculties of Art and Design

All year-level restrictions and specific course prerequisites are applicable to diploma students.

Year-Level Restrictions

The academic progress of students is measured in terms of credits completed. Student year level is defined as follows:

Year One: 0 to 4.75 completed credits
Year Two: 5.0 to 9.75 completed credits
Year Three: 10.0 to 14.75 completed credits
Year Four: 15.0 or more completed credits

Year one of each OCAD University undergraduate degree program is comprised of 3.5 studio and 1.5 liberal studies
credits at the first year level.

Students in some programs may substitute 0.5 credit at the year two level for one of their first year courses. Permitted substitutions, if any, are outlined in the program guides.

The prerequisite for second year level courses is normally 3.0 first year level studio and 1.0 first year liberal studies
credits, including the first year writing course.

Students may not register for third year level courses unless they have completed most of second year as well as all of their first year requirements as outlined in the program guides. Each Faculty publishes annually the total number of completed credits prerequisite for their third year level courses.

Students may not register for fourth year level courses unless they have completed most of third year as well as all of their second year requirements as outlined in the program guides. Each Faculty publishes annually the total number of completed credits prerequisite for their fourth year level courses.

Students are advised that the required developmental level of academic skills and background knowledge is progressively greater through the 200, 300 and 400 levels of study. Students should register in courses in keeping with both their year-level placement in studio programs and their academic ability. However, third- and fourth-year students are not prevented from taking 200-level liberal studies courses and in fact may find they cannot fit these courses into their schedules until later. Course planning with an advisor for the full four-year program is strongly recommended.

Course Prerequisites
Prerequisites may also apply for specific courses at the 300 and 400 level. Students should familiarize themselves with the prerequisites listed for individual courses and ensure that they plan their course selection accordingly.

Last Modified:6/17/2013 5:22:39 PM