Program Overview

Registration

Students are responsible for meeting all program requirements. Program advisors are available to assist with the appropriate course selection to meet graduation requirements. Before completing their final 30 credits, students are encouraged to have their progress reviewed by a program advisor to ensure that they meet all graduation requirements.

Students enrolled in the following programs: double major, major/minor, double honours or honours/minor are permitted to double count a limited number of credits between the two fields of study (see Double Counting of Credits in Honours, Majors, and Minors).

B.Sc. Major Program

The Faculty of Science currently offers Major programs in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Biology; Chemistry; Computer Science¹; Data Science; Earth and Environmental Sciences; Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation Biology; Economics¹; Environmental Chemistry; Freshwater Science; Mathematics¹ ; Microbiology; Physics and Astronomy; Psychology⁴; Statistics; and, Zoology. Completion of a Major program prepares students for career-entry positions, graduate study, or admission to post-baccalaureate professional programs. Students entering a Major program should note the courses listed in years one, two, three, and four as indicated under each discipline.

¹Computer Science is also offered as a B.A. program. ²Economics is also offered as a B.A. program. ³Mathematics is also offered as a B.A. program. ⁴Psychology is also offered as a B.A. program.

Honours

The B.Sc. with Honours provides an intensive program of study in an established discipline or program. Students who complete this program will learn to work independently with a high standard of competency in their chosen field. Honours programs require students to acquire sophisticated analytic and communication skills. May require completion of an honours thesis. Requires a minimum grade average as specified by the program.

Major

Please refer to the individual major program description for course and credit requirements.

Major with a Science Minor

In addition to a major, a student may receive a minor in either another Science discipline (See Incompatible Majors, Honours, and Minors) or in an interdisciplinary Science area (such as the Data Science Minor or the GIS Minor) by earning at least 30 credits, of which at least 18 must be at the 300 or 400 level. The minor must be in a discipline different from the student's major. Please refer to the individual major program description for the requirements for a minor. The student must also complete all requirements for the major.

Double Major in Sciences

A student may earn a double major by completing all program requirements, including first-year requirements, for each major. Completing a double major in the Sciences will likely require more than 120 credits. Note: the two majors must be from different disciplines (See Incompatible Majors, Honours, and Minors). It is not possible to double major in two sub-areas of one discipline. 

Double Major in Arts and Sciences

A student may earn a double major by completing all program requirements for the B.Sc. degree with a major, and completing all requirements, including first-year requirements, for a major offered in Arts. Completing a double major in Arts and Sciences will likely require more than 120 credits. B.Sc. students completing a double major in a program offered in both Sciences and Arts (i.e. Psychology and Economics) must follow the requirements for the B.Sc. version of those programs. Arts-elective credits may be obtained through the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences and the Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies in disciplines outside the declared major that are not designated as science.

Double Counting of Credits in Honours, Majors, and Minors

Students enrolled in the following programs: double major, major/minor, double honours, or honours/minor are permitted to double count a limited number of credits between the two fields of study. No more than 6 upper-level credits that count toward the program-specified requirements for the first major or honours may be double counted to fulfill requirements for the second honours, major, or minor. Students should be aware that by double counting they could substantially weaken the intellectual content of one of their fields of study.

Incompatible Majors, Honours and Minors

B.Sc. students may enroll only in one program of study (honours, major, minor) in the following cases:

• One of Biology, Ecology Evolution and Conservation Biology, Microbiology, Zoology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
• One of Chemistry, Environmental Chemistry, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

In addition, Data Science majors/honours may not receive a second major/honours or minor in Statistics, and Statistics majors/honours may not receive a second major/honours or minor in Data Science.

B.Sc. General Program

This program provides a comprehensive undergraduate science education with the opportunity for specialization in two or three of the following concentrations:

•    Biochemistry and Molecular Biology 
•    Biology 
•    Chemistry 
•    Computer Science 
•    Data Science 
•    Earth and Environmental Sciences 
•    Economics 
•    Geospatial Information Science 
•    Mathematics 
•    Physics 
•    Psychology 
•    Statistics