Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies

at Memorial University of Newfoundland - St Johns Campus Canada

Laws are fundamental to any successful society. Law and society is the study of the place of these laws in social, political, economic and cultural life. Throughout history, as communities and countries have struggled to define and serve justice, social, cultural, and legal institutions have been essential. By studying how legal and social systems are interconnected and how law is woven into communities, students gain an understanding of what happens when legal instruments and institutions succeed and when they fail.

Law and society at Memorial
The law and society major encompasses many diverse disciplines of study, among them anthropology, linguistics, philosophy, political science, police studies and sociology. It introduces you to different facets of law and the role of law in society through the ages.

The law and society major is housed in the Department of Political Science.

Anthropology is the study of the origins of human beings and their culture worldwide. In addition to documenting a particular culture, anthropologists are interested in how and why human cultures change. Anthropology students at Memorial University will focus on core concepts, theoretical perspectives and case studies while examining a wide range of issues that exist in the contemporary world. 

Why study anthropology?
Anthropology courses provide a strong background if you intend to specialize in any of the social sciences and humanities or in medicine, nursing, social work, education, law, business, government and many other fields which require a cross-cultural understanding of human behaviour. 

Anthropology at Memorial
Our Faculty have addressed a wide range of important topics, including the Northern Ireland Peace Process, the political transformation that took place in Spain after the fall of Franco’s fascist regime, the politics of authenticity in Newfoundland’s fishing and tourism industries, historical memory of the Vietnam war, issues of development in Latin America, and social and political struggles over access to ocean spaces and resources.

Memorial’s bachelor of commerce (B.Comm.) is ideal for students seeking flexibility. It allows students to develop the expertise required for a career in business while customizing the pace and location of their studies.

• 40 courses (120 credit hours)
• Common first year (Business One) for all undergraduates
• Professional development
• Experiential learning opportunities
• Study abroad options

A five-year co-operative degree program composed of eight full-time academic terms and a minimum of four full-time work terms. You will have the opportunity to apply the engineering concepts and theories you learn in the classrooms and laboratories to the real world as you complete work terms that will give you the equivalent of up to two years of real engineering work experience prior to graduation.

Beginning in the second year of the program, you will specialize in one of six available majors:

• Civil engineering
• Computer engineering
• Electrical engineering
• Mechanical engineering
• Ocean and naval architectural engineering
• Process engineering

Students will be introduced to each of the disciplines to aid in selecting their preference prior to Term 3. Focus streams in biomedical engineering are available in the Computer, Electrical and Mechanical programs.

Program Structure

• The common first year of our engineering program is referred to as Engineering One. You will study mathematics, physics, chemistry and engineering fundamentals which are common to each of the majors we offer. Courses in Engineering One will introduce you to engineering problem-solving, analysis, design, communication and teamwork. You will develop an understanding of different engineering fields and how engineering relates to real world issues.
• At the end of the first year, you must apply for your major. In the second year of the program, you begin alternating between academic terms and work terms in the fall, winter and spring semesters.

Linguistics is the scientific study of human language through exploring language structure, language variation, language change, the development of language, as well as through the exploration of the psychology and biology of language. Linguistics evaluates the different facets of language, like childhood acquisition of language, the sounds of language and the ways in which social groups use language.

Memorial has the only linguistics department in Atlantic Canada. Through our data-driven, theoretically informed inquiry into aboriginal languages, we explore variation and change in language and its acquisition. Memorial is host to exceptional in-house data archives, broad library holdings and state-of-the-art labs and analytical tools.

Economics is a versatile field that deals with the analysis and management of production, distribution and consumption of goods and services. Economics gives us the analytical tools to understand questions such as how prices are determined, why some people are unemployed, why interest rates rise and fall, and why product is traded between nations.

Everything we see around us of human construction, from constitutions to popular culture, is a product of our history. The discipline of history provides an opportunity to develop research and writing skills through the study of fascinating aspects of our past.
The study of history fosters a critical understanding of the past as it relates to our present-day experience. From the depth of recorded history, this program constructs a timeline of human events that teaches us where we came from and illuminates where we are going.

History at Memorial
Our department sees history as a foundational discipline within the liberal arts and social science traditions, one that develops key research, writing and analytical skills, but also promotes knowledge and memory of the past as essential to an engaged citizenry.

The bachelor of science generally takes four years to complete. After one year of study, you may apply to your desired major program; you may also select a minor. You can choose from a full range of majors, minors and joint programs to pursue your areas of interest while getting excellent preparation for graduate work or careers in your discipline.

Majors
Students are encouraged to choose their major after finishing their first year of study.

• Applied mathematics
• Behavioral neuroscience*
• Biochemistry
• Biology*
• Chemistry
• Chemistry (biological)
• Computational Chemistry
• Computer science*
• Computer science (smart systems)
• Computer science (software engineering) - honours option*
• Computer Science (visual computing and games)
• Earth sciences
• Economics*
• Environmental physics
• Geography
• Marine Biology
• Nutrition
• Ocean Physics
• Ocean Sciences
• Ocean Sciences (environmental systems)
• Physics
• Psychology*
• Pure mathematics
• Statistics

Co-op available
Students who wish to declare more than one major should consult the joint program options listed in the links above. If no joint option exists, students can complete a double major by fulfilling all the requirements of two individual majors.

Through a combination of course work and two community-based field practica, the bachelor of social work (BSW) programs emphasize social justice through hands-on learning. Students gain experience in assessment, interviewing, counselling, advocacy and community capacity building.

Environmental engineering has become an increasingly important discipline due to complexity and multi-disciplinary nature of the environmental issues dealing with human health and ecosystem protection. To find cost-effective engineering solutions to these complex issues, it is important to acquire broad-based education and professional training in inter-disciplinary fields of physical, chemical and biological principles, resource management and mitigation measures besides in-depth knowledge in environmental engineering. This course-based program will cover a wide range of related topics, such as environmental law and management; human health and ecological risk assessment; remediation technology; treatment processes of drinking water and wastewater; contaminant transport and environmental modeling; environmental sampling; and pollution-control engineering. To apply the concepts learned in the classroom and laboratory environments, students will work in teams on an engineering project for two terms. In order to acquire broad-based knowledge in the field, students will be encouraged to take courses from other disciplines in the university.