PSYCHOLOGY Red Deer College – School of Arts & Sciences Updated April 2021

BACHELOR OF ARTS - PSYCHOLOGY Red Deer College – School of Arts & Sciences Updated April 2021

What is this guide?  This is an Academic Planning Guide, prepared by the School of Arts & Sciences to help you register for courses towards a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology.  This guide is prepared using information gathered from RDC, Academic Calendars from Universities, and other resources and will only highlight major points related to transfer. o We strongly advise that you read the Academic Calendar of your destination institution for full information.

Can you tell me about the BA Psychology Program at RDC?  The BA Psychology program at RDC offers students the first 2 years of university transferable coursework towards BA Psychology programs in Alberta.  The first 2 years are very similar from institution to institution, however, each institution will have notable differences.  Pages 3 and 4 will go over key registration and transfer information, but if you know the institution you want to transfer to and complete your degree at, please let us know when you register so we can help with the best advice for you path (e-mail your plan to [email protected])

I don’t want to transfer out of Central Alberta/Red Deer – what can I do?  RDC has a partnership with Athabasca University that will allow a student to complete the degree in Red Deer. It is highly recommended you speak to [email protected] if you are interested in this path. Course recommendations for the first 2 years will mimic the recommendations you see in this guide.

Why can I only take two years at RDC?  Every 30 credits (10 courses) a student completes is equivalent to one academic year. If a student completes 10 courses per year for four straight years (with appropriate course selection) they will graduate with their degree in four years.  Universities have what is called a residency requirement. This means that universities require a specific amount of credits to be completed as their student in order to grant the degree. o UAlberta and UCalgary (and most universities), require a minimum of 60 credits to be completed while registered as a student of their institution. Therefore, students can transfer up to 60 credits towards their degree.

What are terms, and how many of them are there? Terms are the period of time in which your studies take place. At RDC, we offer four terms.  Fall term (September through December)  Winter Term (January through April)

 Spring term (May through June): Spring term is a condensed term. We recommend only a maximum of two courses in the Spring. Course offerings are reduced in this term as well.  Summer Term (July through August): Limited course selection.

How many courses should I take a term?  The traditional path you will see is 5 courses per term, 10 total (5 in the Fall, 5 in the Winter).  Bachelor of Arts does offer flexibility in how a student schedules and pursues their degree. o Some students will complete 10 courses in a year by taking 4 courses in the Fall, 4 in the Winter, and 2 in the Spring (or some mixture). o Some students will take 3-4 courses per term (6-8 per year) and take 5-6 years to complete their degree.  We encourage you to take a course load that works best for you. In most cases, to be considered for full time funding students need a minimum of 3 post-secondary courses and 9 academic credits in the Fall and Winter term. o Please check and confirm the course load requirements if you are receiving funding.

What happens if I take less than 10 courses a year?  You may need an extra term or year to complete your degree.

What is a credit?  A credit is what you earn for completing courses. To earn a BA from UAlberta or UCalgary, a student will need to earn 120 credits.  Most courses a student completes will be three credits. There are some courses that span a full year (Fall to Winter) that are six credits. As such, 120 credits is generally 40 courses.

How do I know what courses to take?  Use this guide and use the advice!  Make sure the courses you take are transferable using Transfer Alberta.  You should be taking university level and university transferable courses o “200” Level courses are Year 1 courses at RDC o “300” Level courses are Year 2 courses at RDC o (each institution will use different numbering conventions for their years)

COURSE REGISTRATION AND SCHEDULING

The schedule below is a recommended schedule which can be greatly customized depending on a student’s transfer institution, desired course load, and other factors. If you are not sure how to put your schedule together, the example below can help you get started.

YEAR 1 EXAMPLE FALL TERM WINTER TERM PSYC 260 PSYC 261 ENGL 219 Humanities Elective (see elective note below) Social Science or Humanities Elective (see Social Science or Humanities Elective (see elective note below) elective note below) Open Elective (see elective note below) Science Elective (see elective note below) Open Elective (see elective note below) Open Elective (see elective note below)

YEAR 2 EXAMPLE FALL TERM WINTER TERM PSYC 313 PSYC 314 300 Level PSYC 300 Level PSYC 300 Level PSYC 300 Level PSYC Open Elective (see elective note below) Science Elective (see elective note below) Open Elective (see elective note below) Open Elective (see elective note below)

Electives

 Electives are requirements you will find in any Bachelor of Arts degree. o Yes – you do need to take them! Electives add depth and are degree requirements.

Click this link to see 2021-2022 Arts & Science courses in more depth. This will help with course selection in the categories listed below.

Humanities Electives: At RDC, choose courses from: Classics (CLAS), English (ENGL), History (HIST), Philosophy (PHIL)

Social Science Electives: At RDC, choose courses from: Anthropology (ANTH), Economics (ECON), Political Science (POLI), Sociology (SOCI).

Science Electives: At RDC, choose courses from: Astronomy (ASTR), Biology (BIOL), Chemistry (CHEM), Computer Sciences (CMPT), Mathematics (MATH), and Physics (PHYS). Psychology students should not take Statistic (STAT) courses. Please consult with [email protected] if you plan to take a STAT course, or have in the past.  See Page 4 for important transfer information about Science electives.

Open Electives: Any additional course from the lists above, or any 3 credit course transferable to your future transfer institution.  See page 4 for important transfer information about open electives, specific to University of Alberta and University of Calgary.

INFORMATION FOR TRANSFER STUDENTS

Each institution will have different requirements outlining how their BA degree, and each requirement, can be satisfied. While there is a great deal of similarity, there are differences. This next section will highlight a few specific recommendations for students interested in transferring to University of Alberta or University of Calgary (the two most popular transfer routes, besides completing the degree in Central AB).

What if I want to transfer to another institution in Alberta? Please contact us at [email protected] with your desired institution. Also, make sure to use Transfer Alberta to ensure your courses will transfer to your desired institution.

What if I want to transfer out of province? Please contact us at [email protected] with your desired institution. There are no out of province transfer agreements, so there is a bigger onus on the student to gain information from their desired transfer institution.

UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA – COMMON REQUIREMENTS

 At UAlberta, there are Common Requirements that all BA students will need to satisfy as part of their degree. While it is recommended to complete these requirements prior to transfer, they are graduation requirements, not transfer requirements. o Any Basic Requirements not completed at RDC, will be completed upon transfer.

 Junior English: 3 credits (1 course) o ENGL 219 will meet this requirement at RDC.

 One Language Other than English (LOE): 6 credits (2 courses) o Students need to complete 2 courses in one language other than English. IE, 2 French courses, or 2 Spanish courses. o RDC only offers French courses, so students wishing to take different languages can complete this requirement upon transfer. o UAlberta will waive the LOE for any student who has successfully completed a Language other than English at the 30-level.

 Non-Arts courses: 6 credits (2 courses) o Students must complete 6 credits in courses offered by Faculties other than Arts (i.e. Science, Kinesiology, Education, Business). o Psychology majors will satisfy this requirement simply by completing their major as UAlberta categorizes certain PSYC courses (i.e. PSYC 260) as a Science course.

UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY – ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

Junior English: This is not required for most majors, but it is recommended students take one introductory English course (i.e ENGL 219)

Language Other than English: This is not required for most majors.

Science: Students must take at least 6 credits (2 courses) in courses from the Faculty of Science. The planning guide will provide recommendations for what is considered “Science”.

UCalgary students can transfer a maximum of 24 credits (8 courses) towards their University degree. As such, students transferring to the UCalgary should be cognizant of how many courses they are taking in their Major field. For a students first two years at RDC (60 credits/20 courses), it is recommended students take 8 courses (max) towards their major and 12 courses in Electives/Other degree requirements

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA AND CALGARY University of Alberta University of Calgary Transfer Credit  Transfer up to 60 credits  Transfer up to 60 credits  Recommended max of 24 credits in  Maximum of 24 credits in your your major field major field

Applying for Transfer  Deadline typically March 1. Consult U  Deadline typically March 1. of A timelines. Consult U of C timelines.  Apply to U of A here.  Apply to U of C here.

Minimum Transferable A minimum grade of C- must be A minimum grade of C- is Grade achieved in order for course credit to be recommended to maximize transferable. While courses with grades transferability (“D” grades may of D or F will not transfer, they remain transfer, depending on the on your transcript and will be used in circumstance). Please talk to an calculation of your GPA. Please talk to Academic Advisor as soon as an Academic Advisor as soon as possible if you feel you may be in possible if you feel you may be in jeopardy of not getting at least a jeopardy of not getting a C- in a course C- in a course you are enrolled in. you are enrolled in.

Junior Courses A maximum of 48 credits (16 courses) of A maximum of 48 credits (16 Junior level coursework is allowed. courses) of Junior level coursework is allowed. Non-Arts or Non-Science A maximum of 18 credits (6 courses) No more than 6 credits (2 Options may be taken outside of the Faculties of courses) may be used from Arts & Sciences. Physical Activity/Dance courses.

How Admission Grade Point Calculated on all university transferable Will be calculated using the most Average (AGPA) is coursework completed in the most recent course work to a maximum calculated recent two terms of study if they contain of 30 units, unless otherwise a minimum of 24 credits. If those two specified by the faculty. All terms contain less than 24 credits, all courses attempted within a term work in the next most recent term(s) is will be included except where the included in the calculation until the number of courses taken within a minimum total of 24 credits is reached. term results in the overall number Fall/Winter courses are considered of units exceeding 30 units. Winter courses in these calculations. Should this occur, the highest For applicants who have attempted less grades from the oldest term being than 24 credits of transferable considered will be used to postsecondary work, the AGPA is based calculate the GPA. on all university or university transfer credits attempted. For more information on transfer, Note: Where the applicant has more please consult the University of than one passing grade for the same Calgary Calendar. course at any institution, only the first passing grade is used in calculating the grade point average(s) for admission purposes.

For more information on transfer, please consult the University of Alberta Calendar.

CONTACT INFORMATION

School of Arts & Room 2203 Sciences [email protected] Red Deer College 403.342.3585 (select option 1)

Transfer Alberta Guide http://transferalberta.alberta.ca

University of Alberta https://uofa.ualberta.ca/arts [email protected]

University of Calgary http://arts.ucalgary.ca [email protected]

PLEASE NOTE:

This document is designed to provide recommendations and general information related to transfer pathways that best suit Red Deer College (RDC) course offerings. There are many ways to create a schedule and complete your studies, and we recommend you familiarize yourself with the intricacies of the program and university you want to transfer into. We are here to assist in helping you navigate your studies and can connect you with resources as needed, but you are responsible for your course registration, class schedule, applications to transfer and other related matters. Students in university transfer programs are strongly advised to refer to the calendar of the university that they wish to attend, and should contact appropriate university departments as required.

Please note that institutions can make changes to their program and/or transfer requirements without consulting RDC. As such, it is recommended you consult with the appropriate institutional information (i.e. university calendars, websites, advisors,) to gain the most up to date information as you progress through your studies.

You are cautioned that any changes to your courses, your major, or your transfer destination may adversely affect your transferable credit or admission requirements for future programs. Consult with the School of Arts & Sciences if you have any questions.