Advising for New Students

New Students

There are two groups of newly admitted students:

  • First Year students who have been admitted with no advanced standing or transfer credit to the first year of study - generally students directly out of high school.

  • Advanced Standing students who have been admitted with transfer credit and whose year level of study is determined by the number of transfer credits they have been granted - generally students who have completed studies at another post secondary institution.

 

Calendar of Course Descriptions and Lecture Schedule

The York Undergraduate calendar reflects the most current University policies, Faculty rules and regulations, Faculty academic standards, and requirements for degrees and/or certificates. It is important for you to review the information for 2009-2010 prior to enrolling in courses at your advising appointment.

Note: Not every course listed in the calendar is offered in each academic year. To know what courses are being offered in a particular academic session, consult the on-line lecture schedule on the York website under Current Students.
Select Courses and Enrolment, then select Search Course Timetables.

Once you have registered, you become bound by the policies and regulations of York University, including those of the Faculty in which you are registered.

 

Advising / Enrolment Appointment

Your enrolment appointment will require approximately three hours. We recommend that you arrive at least 15 minutes early. If you are unable to attend your scheduled appointment, reschedule online.

Your appointment will begin with a small group orientation to the Faculty of Fine Arts during which you will receive general information about Fine Arts degree programs, enrolment and registration procedures. An advisor will then provide information on your specific program of study, address any questions or concerns you may have, and provide assistance with course selection and enrolment.

By the end of your enrolment/advising appointment you will:

  • be familiar with the student services offered by York University and Fine Arts
  • understand your major and degree program requirements
  • have selected and enrolled in your first course(s)
  • know when and how to pay your fees

First Year Students are encouraged to take a variety of courses in order to expose themselves to a number of areas of academic enquiry. As part of this, students are encouraged to complete a minimum of 6 credits of the General Education requirements in their first year.

Advanced Standing Students, upon attending an advising appointment, will have their transfer credit assessed and will be notified of the credits granted. In some cases not all transfer credit received can be used to fulfill degree requirements and you may be required to complete additional courses. An advisor will discuss your transfer credit in detail during your advising appointment. You should consider taking major courses along with any outstanding General Education courses in your first year.

 

Year Level and Student Progress

York University measures a student's progress towards a degree in terms of the number of credits passed rather than years of study completed. Note: Reference to Year 4 applies to students in an Honours degree program only.

Year Level

Credits Completed

1

Fewer than 24 credits

2

24 to 53 credits

3

54 to 83 credits

4

84 or more credits

The maximum course load for the Fall/Winter session is 36 credits.

 

Course Identification

All courses are identified by a standard York format. For example, FA/VISA 1000 3.0:

  • FA = the designation of the Faculty offering the course (in this case Fine Arts);
  • VISA = the prefix of the teaching unit offering the course (in this case Visual Arts);
  • 1000 = the number of the course, the first digit of which identifies the year level of the course (in this case 1st year);
  • 3.0 = is the suffix indicating the academic credit value of the course.

 

Cross-listed Courses

Some courses in Fine Arts are cross-listed: that is, they are jointly offered by two or more academic units/Faculties. Cross-listed courses may not be double-counted in order to fulfill degree requirements. For example, FA/VISA 2560 6.0 is cross-listed with AS/HUMA 2140 6.0; it may be counted as a Visual Arts course or a Humanities course, but not as both.

 

Overlapping Courses: Equivalent/Excluded Courses

Some courses overlap significantly with other courses in content and approach. Such courses fall into two categories: equivalent courses and excluded courses. Students who receive credit for a course may not also receive credit for its equivalent(s) or exclusion(s). Equivalent courses are so similar that they may be substituted for one another in order to satisfy any program or prerequisite requirements. Excluded courses (called "course credit exclusions"), may not be substituted for each other, although there is some overlap in content. Any equivalents or exclusions are listed under the course descriptions in the calendar.

 

Prerequisite and Co-requisite

A prerequisite is a course that must be successfully completed before another course can be taken. A co-requisite is a course that must be taken in the same term as another course.

 

Course Conflict

A course conflict occurs when a student has enrolled in two courses which are scheduled at the same time on the same day. This is against University regulations. Students are responsible for avoiding course conflicts in their timetables.

 

Fine Arts degrees consist of the following key components:

General Education Courses: (18 credits) are first year multidisciplinary six credit courses. These courses are designed to introduce students to a wide variety of academic disciplines, research practices, critical thinking, writing, and textual analysis. All students are expected to fulfill their General Education requirements within their first 90 credits:

    • 6 credits 1000 level Humanities (or ESL if required),
    • 6 credits 1000 level Social Science, and
    • 6 credits 1000 level Natural Science.

Non-Fine Arts Elective Courses: Unless otherwise specified, elective courses are your free choice.

Fine Arts Electives (In/Outs): Fine Arts students are required to complete a minimum of 12 credits outside their major discipline, but within the Faculty of Fine Arts. Example: A Dance major must satisfy this requirement by completing 12 credits outside of Dance, but in another Fine Arts discipline/s (Visual Arts, Theatre, Music, etc.).

Major Courses: A Major is a concentration of courses in the specific discipline the student has chosen to study. The number of credits required for a major will vary with the degree program.

Upper Level Courses: All Fine Arts Honours Degree programs require a minimum of 24 major credits at the 3000 or 4000 level. Some programs have additional upper level requirements.

Residency and In-Faculty Requirement: All York students are required to meet a residency requirement. At least 30 credits not used towards another academic program are to be taken at York University. Also, no fewer than half of the credits required for the Fine Arts major must be taken in the Faculty of Fine Arts.

Passport York

Passport York is York's primary method of online authentication. You must sign up for your Passport York username and password so that you can log into York's online services. Passport York determines which services you are able to access. Do do not sign up prior to your advising appointment.

Once you have both your Passport York username and password, you can access the various online services for students.

If you have forgotten your Passport York username and password, click on any application that requires Passport York and then click on "Forgot your password or username?"

 

Steps for Enrolment

Step 1: At your advising appointment you will receive your enrolment access date and time.

Every student is assigned an access date and time when they can begin to access the registration and enrolment system to enroll in fall/winter courses.

How to Design your schedule:

  • Many courses have two or more components: a lecture and lab, tutorial or workshop. Make sure you schedule all components into your timetable. By selecting the catalogue number associated with the tutorial/lab, you will automatically be placed in the lecture as well.
  • Do not enroll in any courses for which you do not meet the prerequisites or restrictions as outlined in the appropriate Calendar or departmental publication.
  • Refer to the information provided on the York web site under Current Students, select Courses and Enrolment, then select Search Course Timetables, then on the left side under course information, click on Timetable Help. This information will prepare you for Step 2.

Step 2: Organize your enrolment materials.
Select your Fall/Winter 2009/10 courses according to your program requirements or interests.

  • Go to the York Courses Website
  • Use the menu to search by course* or search the entire lecture schedule.
    *To locate a specific course you wish to take, from the subject box, click on the subject you are looking for (i.e. Visual Arts - VISA)
  • In the box next to Session: make sure you select Fall/Winter 2009-10 courses only.
  • Click on "Search Courses".
  • A list of courses as per your selection will be displayed. Click on description to view a brief description of the course.
  • You now have the brief course description for the course you have selected. Check the course for prerequisites and degree credit exclusions. Click on "Fall/Winter 2009-10 Schedule".
  • You now have the detailed lecture schedule information for the course:
    • Term - The term the course is being offered (e.g. Y = Sept. - April)
    • Section - The specific course section you have chosen to enrol in (e.g. Section A)
    • Type - The format the course will be taught (e.g. lecture, correspondence, internet, tutorial, lab)
    • Day/Day(s) of the week the course is being offered (e.g.. MW = Mondays and Wednesdays)
    • Start Time - The time of day the course begins
    • Duration - The length of time (in minutes) the course will run
    • Location - The building code and room number where the course will take place
    • Catalogue # - a six digit code (alpha/number) you will be required to use to enrol in the course.

Pick two or three alternative sections or a different term (if applicable) of the course in case your first choice is full. Build your timetable. Make sure that it is conflict free.

Step 3: Enrol
Connect to Web registration and enrolment system, then click on ‘Enrol in classes'.

Step 4: Complete your enrolment transactions

  • Login using your Passport York username and password.
  • Confirm the tuition fee rate currently on your York record and acknowledge the contractual fee agreement. Your fee rate will be either domestic or international. You must agree and click yes to continue. If you do not agree with the tuition fee rate, contact Student Client Services at 416-736-5440.
  • If you get this message, read it carefully and make your choice. You must make a choice in order to continue. Confirm your choice of degree program. You can now proceed to enrol.

There are four enrolment procedures that you can follow:

  • You can enrol in a course. Click add a course. Type the catalogue number in the add course field. Click the add course button. The catalogue number, course and title will be displayed. If this is the course you want to add click yes. If you are unable to add the course you will get an explanation.
  • You can drop a course. Click drop a course. Highlight the course you want to drop. Click the drop course button. The course and title will be displayed. If this is the course you want to drop click yes. If you are unable to drop the course you will get an explanation.
  • You can exchange a course you are in for a different course. If you are not able to get into the second course successfully, e.g. it is full, you will still remain enrolled in the first course. If you are successful, the first course will be dropped. Click exchange course. Type the catalogue number of the course you want to add. Highlight the course you want to drop. Click the exchange course button. The catalogue number, course and title of both the course you are adding and the course you are dropping will be displayed. If this is the exchange that you want to make click YES. If you are not able to make the exchange you will get an explanation.
  • If you are enrolled in a course with a lab, tutorial or section, you can transfer into a different lab, tutorial or section in the same course, in the same term. Click transfer course. Type the catalogue number of the meet or group that you want to transfer into. Click the transfer course button. The catalogue number, course and title will be displayed. If this is the transfer you want click YES. If you cannot make the transfer you will get an explanation.

Step 5: Verify your course enrolments before you log out, and correct any errors. When you are finished, always log out.

Step 6: Pay your fees to secure your registration

You must pay your $450 enrolment deposit within five business days of enrolling before you will be considered officially registered in your courses. (See Registration and Financial Information.)

If you do not pay your enrolment deposit, (or are not entitled to an academic fee waiver), the University will de-enroll you from your courses. Spaces in these courses will then be made available to other students.

If you have been de-enrolled, you may attempt to re-enroll in your courses through the registration and enrolment system. However, there is no guarantee that space will still be available in any or all of your courses.

Note that for all payment options, the payment is not applied to your account until the Office of Student Financial Services actually receives it in their office. Please plan accordingly.

Web/telephone banking

This quick and easy method of payment will help you to avoid line-ups. You can pay your enrolment deposit or your Student Account Statement by telephone or through the Internet. Contact your banking institution in order to set up your bank account(s) for telephone or Web banking. Your York Student Number is the York account number you will use when paying your bill. For further details, please refer to the Student Financial Services Web site or check your bank's Web page.

Some of the terms used in the Student Account Statement are unfamiliar to students. (For a detailed explanation, check the Student Financial Services Web site.)

 

The YU Card

The YU-card is York's official ID and campus debit card. As a York student, the YU-card will be your key to services on-campus.

Here's what your new YU-card will do for you when you receive it:

  • It can be used as photo ID on campus for exams and OSAP pick-up.
  • It will be your Library card.
  • It may be used as a meal plan card.
  • It can be used as a "student ID" card (e.g. for student discounts).
  • It will be used for access to York athletic facilities and services as well as additional campus services, retail and vending.

The YU-card itself will not cost you anything. (If you lose it, however, there is a $20 replacement fee.)

For more information on the YU Card please refer to YU Card FAQs.