1991/1992 - Office of the Registrar - McMaster University

Arts and Science Programme
B.M. Fetrier/B.Sc., Ph.D., Director
The Arts and Science Programme has been designed for students who
wish to use their university years to hlrther their intellectual growth
through a study of the methods of inquiry, and significant achievements
in both arts and sciences. The Programme also allows for substantial
specialization in a discipline or problem area through the use of electives.
The philosophy of the Arts and Science Programme can be
expressed by quoting A.N. Whitehead:
What education has to impart is an intimate sense for the power of ideas,
for the beauty of ideas, and for the structure of ideas, together with a
particular body of knowledge which has peculiar reference to the life of
the being possessing it.
(The Aims of Education and Other Essays, 1929).
The core curriculum consists of. courses offered by the Council of
Instructors of the Arts and Science Programme, together with other
courses offered by Departments. The core curriculum is designed to
m~et three major objectives:
1. to increase understanding of biological and physical sciences, behavioural
sciences, technology, and the arts;
2. to develop skill in the use of the written and spoken word, and in
quantitative reasoning; and
3. to foster the art of practical inquiry into problems of public concem.
Meeting the last of these objectives is the aim of inquiry seminars
which begin in Level I and continue in upper levels. To investigate with
skill and insight a serious public issue, such as world population growth
in relation to food supply, requires an understanding of the methods and
findings of many disciplines; it calls on a liberal education. Moreover,
acquiring skill in such investigations requires practice in formulating
issues, searching out evidence, and bringing the insights of academic
disciplines to bear on the interpretation of evidence. The Programme
offers preparation for advanced study in many professional schools
including those of law, medicine, health administration, business, and
joumalism.
Students in this Programme who wish to prepare for graduate study
in an academic discipline should consult with the appropriate department
concerning reqUirements. In generai, preparation for graduate
study may be accomplished by combining the core honours Arts and
Science curriculum with a concentration of electives in the intended area
of graduate study.
Combined honours programmes which are available in many subjects
(see specific programme descriptions below), combine the core curriculum
of the Arts and Science Programme with a prescribed set of
courses in a subject. Completion of a combined honours programme
can be expected to satisfy course requirements for admission to graduate
study in the particular subject. Students are adVised, however, to contact
the Department in which they are contemplating graduate study to
obtain information on adm~ssion requirements;
Students who plan to seek employment directly upon graduation may
wish to consider concentrating their electives in such work-related subjects
as economics, psychology, computer SCience, business or applied
mathematics.
Academic Regulations
The Arts and Science Programme is govemed by the General Academic
Regulations of the University, (see the Academic Regulations section of
this calendar) and the regulations described below.
The Programme begins in Levell and leads to the degree, Bachelor
of Arts and Science (B. Arts Sc.) on completion of Level III or B. Arts
Sc. (Honours) on completion of Level IV. The four-level Programme
provides an increased opportunity for specialization through electives
and through an individual study or thesis course. Continuation in the
Programme requires honours-level performance, and the requirements
for Level III are the same whether or not Level IV is undertaken.
Registration in Level I of the Arts and Science Programme is limited
to approximately fifty students.
Inquiry Seminar Requirements
Inquiry seminars are comprised of Arts and Science 1C06 and a set of
upper-level inquiry seminars on a variety of topics that change from time
to time. The upper-level inquiry seminars are deSignated as "3C" at the
beginning of the course code (3CA6, 3CB6, etc.) and are described in
the programme listing as "upper level Inquiry". See the course listing for
topic designations. Arts and Science 1C06 must be completed in Level
I.' Upper-level inquiry seminars may be taken in Level II and beyond.
Students intending to graduate with the B. Arts Sc. (Honours) degree
are required to complete 12 units of upper-level inquiry seminars or 6
units of upper-level inquiry seminar and an additional 6 units of a course
or courses, approved by the Director, in which another age or culture is
studied, and in which students can enhance their skills in inquiry.
Students intending to graduate with B. Arts Sc. degree are required to
complete 6 units of upper-level inquiry seminar. An additional 6 units
of upper-level inquiry seminar may be taken as an elective.
Combined Honours
Students in the Arts and Science Programme may undertake combined
honours programmes in many disciplines within the Faculties of Social
Sciences, Humanities or Science. The combined programmes with
Physics and with Biology are five-level programmes. Combined programmes
that are already established are described below. Students are
encouraged to consult the Director of the Arts and Science Programme
for consideration of oth,er possible combinations.
Registration: Registration in each level of any combined honours
programmme requires the written approval of the Director of the Arts
and Science Programme and the appropriate Departmental Counsellor.
Individual Study/Thesis: Students in the B. Arts Sc.(Honours) Programme
are required to complete either Individual Study or Thesis (Arts
and Science 4A06, or 4C06). This requirement can be, and in some
cases must be, met by a Departmental course in the combined diseipline.
Level I Standing
Level I standing is computed as a weighted average of the best 80% of
the 30 units of Level I work. Continuation beyond Levell requires a
weighted average of at least 7.0. In the case of some combined honours
programmes, the weighted average must include specified courses.
These courses are indicated in the programme descriptions below.
Continuation Beyond L~vel Ii
For students in the B. Arts Sc.(Honours) and B. Arts Sc. Programmes,
continuation beyond Level II requires a Cumulative Area Average (CM)
of at least 7.0.
For students in a combined programme of Arts and Science and
Another Subject, continuation beyond Level II requires an overall CM
of at least 7.0 in all courses taken in Levels II, IIi and IV, and a CM of
at least 7.0 calculated for those courses deSignated as area courses by
the combined discipline.
Area Courses
All courses completed by students in -Level II, III, IV or V are Area
courses unless deSignated as extra at the time of registration, or otherwise
stated in the Programme descriptions below.
Programme Probation
A student whose Cumulative Area Average is less than 7.0 but no lower
than 6.5, and who has not been placed on probation before, may be
granted Programme Probation at the discretion of the Director. A student
whose Cumulative Area Average is less than 6.5 will not be granted Programme
Probation.
Graduation Average
The Graduation Average for all Arts and Science pr.ogrammes will
include Arts and Science 2A06 and 2D06. For combined programmes,
a single Graduation Average will be computed.
24