Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies (AP) – Urban Studies

Department of Social Science

For purposes of meeting program requirements, all nine-credit general education (foundation) courses will count as six credits towards the major or minor.

All approved general education courses may count for general education credits; some may count for major credits; none may count as both.

The Department of Geography and the Urban Studies program also offer a Specialized Honours degree in geography and urban studies; for details refer to the Geography and Urban Studies section.

Specialized Honours BA: 120 Credits

Residency requirement: a minimum of 30 course credits and at least half (50 per cent) of the course credits required in each undergraduate degree program major/minor must be taken at York University.

Graduation requirement: students must successfully complete (pass) at least 120 credits which meet the Faculty's degree and program requirements with a cumulative grade point average of at least 5.00.

General education: a minimum of 21 general education credits as follows:

6.00 credits in natural science (NATS)
a 9.00 credit approved general education course in the social science or humanities categories
a 6.00 credit approved general education course in the opposite category to the 9.00 credit course in social science or humanities already taken

Major credits: students will take at least 54 credits in urban studies including the following:

AP/SOSC 2710 6.00;
AP/SOSC 3700 6.00;
24 credits chosen from the urban studies list of courses, including at least 12 credits at the 3000 or 4000 level;
AP/SOSC 4700 6.00 or AP/SOSC 4735 6.00;
and at least 12 further credits at the 4000 level chosen from the list of urban studies courses.

Upper-level credits: at least 36 credits at the 3000 or 4000 level, including at least 18 credits at the 4000 level.

Credits outside the major: at least 18 credits.

Honours BA: 120 Credits

General education: a minimum of 21 general education credits as follows:

6.00 credits in natural science (NATS)
a 9.00 credit approved general education course in the social science or humanities categories
a 6.00 credit approved general education course in the opposite category to the 9.00 credit course in social science or humanities already taken

Major credits: students will take at least 42 credits in urban studies including the following:

AP/SOSC 2710 6.00;
AP/SOSC 3700 6.00 and at least 18 further credits chosen from the urban studies list of courses, including at least six credits at the 3000 or 4000 level;
AP/SOSC 4700 6.00 or AP/SOSC 4735 6.00;
and at least six further credits at the 4000 level chosen from the list of urban studies courses.

Upper-level credits: at least 36 credits at the 3000 or 4000 level, including at least 18 credits at the 4000 level.

Credits outside the major: at least 18 credits. (Note: students who are completing a double major or major/minor are deemed to have fulfilled this requirement.)

Honours Double Major BA

The Honours BA program described above may be pursued jointly with approved Honours Double Major degree programs in the Faculties of Environmental Studies, Health, Liberal Arts and Professional Studies, or Science, the School of the Arts, Media, Performance and Design, or the Lassonde School of Engineering. For further details on requirements, refer to the listings for specific Honours programs that may be pursued jointly with other Faculties.

Note: in a double major program, a course may count only once toward major credit.

Honours Double Major Interdisciplinary (Linked) BA

Urban studies may be linked with the following Honours Double Major Interdisciplinary BA programs in the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies: Latin American and Caribbean Studies, African Studies, Social and Political Thought, South Asian Studies, European Studies. Students must take at least 36 credits in urban studies and at least 36 credits in the interdisciplinary program. Courses taken to meet urban studies requirements cannot also be used to meet the requirements of the interdisciplinary program. Students in these interdisciplinary programs must take a total of at least 18 credits at the 4000 level, including at least six credits in urban studies and six credits in the interdisciplinary program. For further details of requirements, refer to the listings for specific Honours Double Major Interdisciplinary BA programs.

Note: in a double major program, a course may count only once toward major credit.

Major credits: the 36 credits in urban studies must include:

AP/SOSC 2710 6.00;
AP/SOSC 3700 6.00;
AP/SOSC 4700 6.00 or AP/SOSC 4735 6.00;
and at least 18 further credits from the list of urban studies courses.

Honours Major/Minor BA

The Honours BA program described above may be pursued jointly with approved Honours Minor degree programs in the Faculties of Environmental Studies, Health, Liberal Arts and Professional Studies, or Science, the School of the Arts, Media, Performance and Design, or the Lassonde School of Engineering. For further details on requirements, refer to the listings for specific Honours programs that may be pursued jointly with other Faculties.

Note: in a major/minor program, a course may count only once toward major credit or minor credit.

Honours Minor BA

The Honours Minor BA program described may be combined with any approved Honours BA program that offers a major/minor option in the Faculties of Environmental Studies, Health, Liberal Arts and Professional Studies, or Science, the School of the Arts, Media, Performance and Design, or the Lassonde School of Engineering. For further details on requirements, refer to the listings for specific Honours programs that may be pursued jointly with other Faculties.

Note: in a major/minor program, a course may count only once toward major credit or minor credit.

Minor credits: the Honours Minor in urban studies comprises at least 30 credits including the following:

AP/SOSC 2710 6.00;
AP/SOSC 3700 6.00;
AP/SOSC 4700 6.00 or AP/SOSC 4735 6.00;
12 additional credits chosen from the list of urban studies courses, including at least six credits at the 3000 or 4000 level.

Note: at least six credits in the minor must be at the 4000 level.

BA: 90 Credits

Graduation requirement: students must successfully complete (pass) at least 90 credits that meet the Faculty's degree and program requirements with a cumulative grade point average of at least 4.00.

General education: a minimum of 21 general education credits as follows:

6.00 credits in natural science (NATS)
a 9.00 credit approved general education course in the social science or humanities categories
a 6.00 credit approved general education course in the opposite category to the 9.00 credit course in social science or humanities already taken

Major credits: students will take at least 30 credits including the following:

AP/SOSC 2710 6.00;
12 credits chosen from: AP/SOSC 3700 6.00, AP/SOSC 3710 6.00, AP/SOSC 3730 6.00 (cross-listed to: AP/GEOG 3730 6.00), AP/SOSC 3735 3.00, AP/SOSC 3745 3.00, AP/SOSC 3746 3.00, AP/SOSC 3755 3.00, AP/SOSC 3760 6.00, AP/SOSC 3770 3.00 (cross-listed to: AP/GEOG 3770 3.00) or AP/SOSC 3791 3.00 (cross-listed to: GL/SOSC 3617 3.00, AP/GL/GWST 3505 3.00);
12 additional credits chosen from the urban studies list of courses.

Note: at least 12 credits in the major at the 3000 level or above.

Upper-level credits: at least 18 credits at the 3000 or 4000 level.

Credits outside the major: at least 18 credits.

Honours iBA: 120 Credits

General education: a minimum of 21 general education credits as follows:

6.00 credits in natural science (NATS)
a 9.00 credit approved general education course in the social science or humanities categories
a 6.00 credit approved general education course in the opposite category to the 9.00 credit course in social science or humanities already taken

Major credits: students will take at least 42 credits in urban studies including the following:

AP/SOSC 2710 6.00;
AP/SOSC 3700 6.00 and at least 18 further credits chosen from the urban studies list of courses, including at least six credits at the 3000 or 4000 level;
AP/SOSC 4700 6.00 or AP/SOSC 4735 6.00
and at least six further credits at the 4000 level chosen from the list of urban studies courses.

Note: at least 12 credits in the major at the 4000 level.

In addition, students in the Honours iBA program must fulfill the following requirements:

Required Course: AP/ANTH 2300 3.00 Intercultural Training Skills completed before the term or terms abroad. Note: This course is considered to be outside the major (even for ANTH students).

Language study credits: at least 18 credits in a modern language offered by York University, including the Advanced I university-level course in the chosen language. Up to six (6) language credits may be taken while the student is abroad. Such courses must be approved by the coordinator of the relevant language section in the Department of Languages, Literatures and Linguistics.

If a iBA student is fluent in a language, he/she will undergo an examination to test language proficiency by the Department of Languages, Literatures and Linguistics. Students exempted from one or more of the language courses required for the degree must complete cultural courses related to that language.

Internationally-oriented credits: at least 9 credits of internationally-oriented courses chosen outside the major.

International exchange: at least one full term abroad as a full-time student at one of York University’s exchange partners.

Upper-level credits: at least 36 credits at the 3000 or 4000 level, including at least 18 credits at the 4000 level.

Credits outside the major: at least 18 credits. (Note: for the Honours iBA, courses taken outside the major to satisfy the language study requirement and/or the internationally-oriented course credits can also be used to satisfy the outside the major requirement. Students who are completing a double major major/minor are deemed to have fulfilled this requirement.)

Honours Major/Minor iBA

The Honours iBA program described above may be pursued jointly with any Honours Minor BA program in the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies.

Note: in a major/minor program, a course may count only once toward major credit or minor credit.

Urban Studies Courses

Not all of the courses listed below will necessarily be offered in any given year.

With the approval of the program coordinator, and subject to course exclusion and residency requirements, students may complete other courses for program credit in urban studies.

Rules and regulations in the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies
Search for courses offered in Urban Studies
Other programs offered in the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies