Course
A course is a unit of study in a discipline identified by a
unique course number and having a specific credit weight.
Irregular Course
A course for which the specific content has not been
approved by Senate (e.g., a directed study or special topics
course) and is subject to special regulations (see page 37).
Course Number
The course number consists of a two-digit letter abbreviation
indicating the subject area of the course (see Discipline Code
list) followed by a three digit number to which, in some
instances, an additional letter is appended.
The number of a First Year or junior course has
the digit 1 immediately after the discipline code. The number of
a senior course (other than First Year) has 2, 3 or 4 as the
first digit with the 2, 3 or 4, signalling, respectively, a
course intended to be a Second, Third, or Fourth Year course.
Some departments, and the Faculty of Music,
differentiate between General level and Honours level courses,
requiring Honours level courses of their Honours degree students
and General level courses of their General degree students. In
these cases the number of a General level course has 0, 1, 2, 3
or 4 as its second digit, whereas the number of an Honours level
course has 5, 6, 7, 8 or 9 as its second digit. The departments
of English, Modern Languages, History and the Faculty of Music
maintain such a distinction. In other departments the distinction
does not apply with the exception of a few courses cross-listed
from a department where the distinction is maintained. Courses
having double number listings have common lectures for both
General and Honours levels. Additional assignments and seminars
are normally required at the Honours level, and tests and
examinations may be different.
Credit Weight
The credit weight of the course is the relative weight assigned
to the course and is generally based on the value assigned under
the system previously used at WLU: a full-credit course (also
referred to as a credit) corresponds to the former two-term
course; a half-credit course corresponds to the former one-term
course, and a quarter-credit course to the former half-term (or
one-quarter credit) course. A half-credit course carries twice
the credit of a quarter-credit course, and a full credit course
twice the credit of a half-credit course. In the Fall and Winter
terms, a full-credit course is usually taught over two terms, a
half-credit course over one term, and a quarter-credit course
over six weeks. However, courses may be taught over other periods
of time than those just listed. In this calendar half-credit
courses are indicated simply by the course number consisting of
the discipline code (see below) and a three digit number.
Full-credit courses may have the symbol * appended, and
quarter-credit courses the symbol . This system of notation
represents a change, occasioned by the prevalence of half-credit
courses, from that used in the preceding calendars, in which the
symbol * was used to identify half-credit courses.
Discipline Codes
AN Anthropology
AR Archaeology
AS Astronomy
BI Biology
BU Business
CA Canadian Studies
CH Chemistry
CL Classics
CS Communication Studies
CP Computing
DI Development and International Studies
EC Economics
EN English
FS Film Studies
FI Fine Arts
FR French
GG Geography
GL Geology
GM German
GR Greek
HI History
IT Italian
LA Latin
MA Mathematics
MU Music
PY Philosophy
PE Physical Education
PC Physics
PO Political Science
PS Psychology
RE Religion and Culture
SC Science
SL Social Welfare
SY Sociology
SP Spanish
TR Theatre
US Urban Studies
WS Women's Studies
Course Description
The first line of the course description, the course
information line, contains the course number on the left, the
course title in the middle and the course weight on the right.
The credit weight may be preceded, if deemed appropriate, by an
abbreviation (see a list of abbreviations below) indicating the
term or session in which the course is normally taught. The
course information line is followed by a brief description of the
content of the course (more information is often available from
the department) and in some cases may end with a statement that
the course is cross-listed in another academic discipline. The
description in turn is followed, where applicable, by a
prerequisite, co-requisite or credit exclusion statement. Any
deviation from the normal number of contact hours for a course,
namely three per week, will be noted on the right at the end of
the course description.
List of Abbreviations Indicating Term or Session and
Frequency of Course Offerings:
F = Fall
W = Winter
F-W = Fall and Winter
S = Spring
IS = Intersession
SS = Summer Session
= Course normally offered every second or third year.
= Course offered occasionally.
Courses not designated with a or are normally
offered at least once during the academic year.
Prerequisite
A prerequisite for a course states a condition which must be
satisfied prior to registration in the course. This condition may
consist of (a) obtaining credit for another course or other
courses, or (b) having a particular registration status, such as
registration in a program and/or in a specified year, or as a
senior student (i.e. a student who has obtained five or more
credits).
Co-requisite
A co-requisite for a course states (a) condition(s) which must be
satisfied concurrently with registration in the course. This
condition will normally be registration in a specified course
unless credit is already held for the co-requisite course.
Exclusion
An exclusion is a statement indicating either that a student
cannot hold credit for both the course to which the exclusion
statement is attached and any course listed in the exclusion
statement or that the course cannot be counted for credit in the
program or toward the degree listed.
Caution
Not all courses are offered each year. Consult the department
concerned for details of current course offerings.
Registration in an Honours course requires the
permission of the Department Chair unless specified otherwise.
Students who register in a course for which they
have already received credit under another course number will be
deemed to be repeating the course.
Before Selecting Courses:
1. Check the requirements for the degree which you are
pursuing.
2. Read any notes at the beginning of the department's
listings.
3. Check the prerequisites and co-requisites for courses
you intend to take, both now and in the future.