After you’ve been admitted to the Bachelor of Arts degree, you’ll have to decide which courses to take when registration opens in June. That might seem like a long way off, but it’s worth thinking in advance about how you might like to structure your timetable.

There are three ways to shape your first year in the Faculty of Arts. Arts One and the Coordinated Arts Program (CAP) offer curated course schedules, where you’ll take most of your classes with the same group of students—helping you build connections with peers and professors from the start. These programs provide a more structured, interdisciplinary learning experience with built-in academic support, making them a great way to transition into university. You can also choose to create a Custom Timetable, selecting individual courses and building your own schedule.

What are Arts One and CAP?

Arts One and CAP allow students to study together in small seminars (up to 25 people) and larger lectures (up to 125 people). Each brings courses and ideas together across different disciplines – for example literature, history, psychology, economics, and philosophy – by focusing on a shared topic or theme.

Both programs are worth 18 credits, but you can take up to 12 additional credits (2 classes) each semester to explore other subjects you’re interested in.

Why should you choose Arts One or CAP?

Arts One and CAP will help ease your transition from high school to university by offering:

• A pre-selected timetable — most of your first-year requirements are included, so you don’t have to worry about picking courses to fulfil your degree requirements
• Coordinated assignment deadlines, which means your major assignments won’t overlap or cause too much stress
• Dedicated academic support with program-specific advisors who are there to help you throughout your first year
• Access to exclusive study spaces where you can connect with your classmates and professors

The small-group format makes it easier to form friendships and build a sense of community, while close interaction with your professors helps you build personal connections and sets you up for a variety of degree pathways across different disciplines.

What’s the difference between Arts One and CAP?

Arts One

Arts One is a single, integrated course led by five instructors who work together to create the assignments and a reading list centred on a shared theme. The program is capped at 100 students, and then divided into five seminars each with up to 20 students. You will also meed regularly in smaller groups to present and discuss the papers you’re writing, offering a more personalized way to refine your work and ideas.

Rather than taking six separate one-term courses, you’ll take one cohesive course with multiple components that let you approach the materials from a variety of perspectives.

You’ll explore classical and contemporary texts from novels and philosophical writings to political texts, films, drama, and graphic novels to discuss their impacts on culture and society. The professors will take turns giving the weekly lectures, and you’ll work closely with one instructor who leads your seminars and tutorials each week.

CAP

In CAP, you’ll get to choose from one of five streams, each offering a different combination of courses from across the Faculty of Arts. This year’s streams are: Environment and Society, Individual and Society, Law and Society, Media Studies, Philosophy and Economics, and Political Science.

While courses in your CAP stream are separate, the faculty members work together to make sure the themes and concepts you study in each course are connected. They will also coordinate deadlines for your major assignments and tests, making it easier to stay on top of your work.

Like Arts One, CAP offers smaller classes than you will find if you create a Custom Timetable, with seminar-style courses typically having 25 students, and lectures ranging from 100-125 students.

How to register

Registration for both Arts One and CAP is first-come, first-served. Both programs simplify the process by offering easy-to-use forms on their websites, or you can register directly in Workday when first-year registration opens in June. Find out more about registering for Arts One and registering for CAP on their websites.

Looking for more information? Read what it’s like to be an Arts One student and a Coordinated Arts Program student and why students chose each program.

Once you’ve decided to apply for the Bachelor of Science degree, it’s time to start thinking about how you’d like to structure your first-year courses.

One option is to take Science One, where you’ll get a predesigned course schedule for your first year and take nearly all of your classes with the same people.

What is Science One?

Science One is a first-year program that integrates Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Mathematics. The program focuses on the connections between disciplines, while teaching both the foundational content and the tools and approaches of modern scientific research — within a single, 28-credit course.

Why should you choose Science One?

Science One offers an immersive learning experience and a solid foundation for your undergraduate education. It also makes the transition from high school to university smoother with standard timetables, coordinated assignment schedules, a set space in the library to study, and support from a community of students and faculty. All Science One teachers attend each other’s classes to dynamically shape your curriculum, and you’ll share your own work and study space with your instructors.

Because Science One takes a select number of students, you’ll find yourself spending a lot of time with your cohort, which will help you make friends. You’ll also be taught by a select number of professors who will decide together what will be on the curriculum each week and how the disciplines will interact – meaning that you’ll make close personal connections with your profs. There will also be the opportunity to take part in peer-group workshops or field trips.

Is Science One right for you?

Science One is challenging. It has a competitive application process, and teaches first-year science at one of the highest levels at UBC to a tight-knit group of students. You’ll be one of just 80 individuals, and will be supported by nine instructors, offering you an excellent student-to-professor ratio of 9:1. You’ll also take part in weekly workshops, learn from guest lecturers, and have extra instruction in science literacy and computer programming. The curriculum includes mentorship on two major research projects – the results of which can be published in undergraduate journals – and you’ll attend student conferences.

Science One is also a social experience. You’ll help elect student representatives to sit in on the Science One Team meetings and the Science Undergraduate Society (SUS), and take part in mentorship and social activities such as the Winter Formal and talent shows.

How to apply

If you want to take part in Science One, you’ll need to submit an application at the same time or shortly after you apply to UBC’s Bachelor of Science degree, as registration opened on December 1, 2024. You are encouraged to apply early, as applications will be assessed in the order they’re received. Applications received after April 30 may be considered, but not with the same priority as those before that date.