Bachelor of Arts in Development Studies

at St. Francis Xavier University Canada

With increasing public interest in food and health, human nutrition is a dynamic field with new career opportunities emerging. StFX Human Nutrition students graduate with a strong scientific background in foods and nutrition, combined with social science perspectives, communication skills and understandings of ways to effect individual and social change.

WHY STUDY HUMAN NUTRITION AT STFX?
You will be well equipped to assist individuals, groups, and the population-at-large to achieve their food, nutrition, and health-related goals.

Under the guidance of talented faculty, you will learn through theory–based courses and experiential learning, such as lab and community-based assignments and Service Learning.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a burgeoning field undergoing rapid progress and development. Technological advances that rely on AI are numerous and include applications such as self-driving automobiles, medical diagnosis, computer-assisted translation tools, speech recognition, biometrics, entertainment, and a wide variety of classification and predictive technologies. AI is recognized as having immense social, technological, and ethical implications for society. The diploma will allow graduates to either begin or broaden their career in computing-related fields and provide them with a depth of knowledge in the highly sought-after field of AI. AI is an area that is in high demand, and graduates of this program will be prepared for entry into the workplace or into graduate programs.

Computer Science faculty at StFX are very active in research. Together, they provide an education in Computer Science that produces high-achievers who are well-suited for graduate studies or to develop a career in industry. StFX’s Computer Science program is the top ranked in Atlantic Canada in Maclean’s for the third year in a row. Computer Science research at StFX was tied for first place in Canada in field-specific research impact (Field-weighted citation impact, Maclean’s 2019). Students in the Artificial Intelligence Post-Baccalaureate Diploma will also join a vibrant department surrounded by like-minded undergraduate and graduate students.

The Program
The Post-Baccalaureate Diploma in Artificial Intelligence is a two-year diploma program for students who already possess an undergraduate degree. The diploma is geared towards students whose undergraduate degree is not in Computer Science. The program is concentrated and rigorous, with at least half of the courses at the upper-year levels. Students will be introduced to a discipline that is new to them, build the basic knowledge quickly (within the first term), and then move to rigorous higher-level courses. Learning will be enriched by prior education and by the diverse backgrounds of their peers. As graduates of this program, they will bring this rich educational foundation to the workplace.

Post-Baccalaureate diplomas are attractive to students who want to do one or more of the following:

• Expand their knowledge into a discipline outside of their first degree.
• Change the direction of their first degree into new areas for career reasons.

As a StFX Human Kinetics student, you will pursue a four-year integrated program that focuses on human body movement from a variety of perspectives (athletic therapy, biomechanics, disability, exercise physiology, gender, growth, health, history, motor control, philosophy, physical education, sociology, psychology).

You will be well-prepared after graduation to enter the work force or apply to professional programs and medical school, or pursue graduate studies.

WHY STUDY HUMAN KINETICS AT STFX?
Movement is essential to life. Students learn how to create, interact, think, grow, communicate, and connect through physical movement. The department’s reputation attracts some of the foremost experts in the field of Human Kinetics who you will interact and have research opportunities with.

You will study in a program offering breadth, depth and holistic applied approaches (including skill courses like yoga and golf). Opportunities for Service Learning Experiences for physical activity with a variety of individuals: Toddlers (Fit 4 Tots), Children (Fit 4 Life + Gymnastics) Individuals with disabilities (Motor Activities with X: learn to skate for children with autism + sledge hockey) and Seniors (Aging and exercise). This leads to the development of well-rounded graduates who excel in the community directly or in advanced studies.

As a student of Applied Forensic Psychology, you will learn about psychological concepts, methods, and practice skills and their application within the legal system. Eyewitness testimony, jury selection, deception detection, criminal law, police stress, forensic risk assessment, criminal behaviour, types of offenders (e.g. sexual offenders, psychopaths, murderers) are all topics that Forensic Psychology sheds light on.

To cement your understanding of the academic material from the classroom, you will receive hands-on experience by participating in practicum placements in forensic settings (prisons, courts, addiction services, forensic hospitals, etc.). Placements vary in length and take place in different settings so that you’ll graduate having experienced working in a variety of settings where careers in Forensic Psychology are applicable. As a student in the program, you’ll need to complete practicum placements in years 2, 3, and 4 of study. Placements can be arranged in your home community, near Antigonish, or elsewhere. In addition your practicum placements, many of your Forensic Psychology courses will include field trips to relevant locations for practice including correctional centres and court rooms.

The program is ideal for students with an interest in careers in social, correctional, and legal fields. The following is an unexhaustive list of potential career paths for graduates in Forensic Psychology:

• Crime Analyst
• Social Worker
• Law Enforcement Officer
• Correctional Officer
• Lawyer
• Journalist
• Interventionist
• Victim Advocate
• Psychologist
• Counselor

There are many more options available to graduates of Applied Forensic Psychology. Some of the above careers will require additional education beyond a Bachelor’s degree.

The Accounting stream provides students with a dynamic and global perspective on the use and reporting of financial information by both external users (e.g., analysts) and internal users (e.g., managers). Accounting provides the foundation on which profitability, sustainability, strategic focus and implementation, wealth, and share prices are determined. The topic coverage within the stream is broad and includes:

• reading and preparing statements of comprehensive income, financial position, cash flows, changes in equity, and the accompanying notes
• focusing on budget preparation and use
• performance measurement of organizations and individuals
• assessing taxation obligations
• compliance with corporate governance requirements
• assessment of the impact of accounting information in capital markets
• attestation of financial reporting

The pedagogy in the Accounting stream is diverse, requiring students to engage in different education strategies including case analysis, service learning, simulations, presentations, research papers, and other experiential learning opportunities.

The accounting program at the Gerald Schwartz School of Business will prepare students for future careers as public accountants, consultants, controllers, internal auditors, tax professionals, etc. The accounting program is focused on preparing students to earn their CPA designation.

Students will be able to complete all the prerequisites for direct entry into the CPA Professional Education Program; these prerequisite courses have been recognized by CPA Atlantic School of Business (and one of its predecessors, the Atlantic School of Chartered Accountancy) for over 25 years.

The accounting program also provides interested students with the opportunity to engage in research projects (under the supervision of faculty) in areas such as financial literacy, corporate governance, and value relevance of accounting information.

If you have a passion for the environment, and want to learn more about aquatic resources and sustainability, explore Aquatic Resources at StFX. Within this program, you’ll study aquatic life, climate change, policy and the complexity of human­ ecosystem interactions, all related to our most precious resource - water.

WHY STUDY AQUATIC RESOURCES AT STFX?
StFX is located next to Canada’s rugged Atlantic coastline, so you’ll have plenty of opportunity for hands-­on research exploring freshwater and marine resources first­-hand. It's this research that will give you invaluable experience — a distinct advantage in whatever you choose to do next!  In addition, you’ll develop and hone skills in oral and written communications, organization, and technical abilities like maintaining lab equipment, quality control and safety procedures.

Psychology is the scientific study of thoughts, feelings, and behaviour. At StFX, students are taught by active research psychologists studying both human and animal behaviour. Studying psychology at StFX will give you an understanding of the ways that psychological scientists apply their knowledge to solve problems in the real world.

WHY STUDY PSYCHOLOGY AT STFX?
The StFX Psychology Department is led by a team of professors and lab instructors with varying perspectives on behaviour, development, health, social relationships, mental processing, and culture. As a psychology student at StFX, you will have opportunities to gain first-hand experience with psychological research in our lab courses and by working with your professors, lab instructors, and senior honours students. Many of our courses also have service learning options enabling you to apply your knowledge in community settings. In our program, you will receive a foundation in basic psychological science and the opportunity to choose from a wide selection of courses that give you a depth of knowledge in various fields, including forensic, gender, developmental, social and personality, abnormal, cultural, biopsychology, and health, with several courses available in each field. 

Whether students plan to work in the finance industry or pursue higher studies in finance, the Finance stream provides students with solid foundations in finance to help them excel in the future.  Courses within the Finance stream cover a broad variety of topics including:

• corporate finance
• investments
• portfolio management
• derivatives
• financial institutions
• international finance
• personal finance

Our curriculum is rigorous as well as fun, allowing students to learn through problems, cases, spreadsheets and guest lectures. Beyond theory courses in finance, every student in the Finance stream has the opportunity to participate in training within our state-of-the-art Finance Trading Lab, equipped with professional software for trading and research that includes Thomson Eikon, Datastream, and Stockguide.

Through hands-on learning in the classroom and field, in the StFX Earth Sciences Department, will help you follow your passion to learn about the natural processes that have shaped Earth’s evolution for over 4.6 billion years, and continues to influences its modern environment.

Earth sciences uses physical, chemical, biological, and mathematical methods to study the Earth’s materials, behaviour, history and environment.

You will study fascinating field topics such as the origin of the majestic Rocky Mountains, the life and death of dinosaurs, climate change and greenhouse gases, and the origin and evolution of the oceans.

WHY STUDY EARTH SCIENCES AT STFX?
Often, the most important learning takes place in the field, where studies bridge the gap between textbook descriptions and actual occurrences. The StFX Earth Sciences Department has a natural laboratory just steps away, where over 620 million years of geological history are exposed for study, and where you can access ecosystems from soaring hardwood forest, to tundra, to coastal estuary.  

As one of the most research-intensive departments on campus, you will have abundant opportunity to work one-on-one with professors on cutting edge research projects that are regional, national, and international in scope.

In Computer Science (CS), students are offered a well-rounded education in the scientific foundations of information and computation together with practical techniques for the implementation of these foundations, applicable to almost every facet of life, through an intensive, hands-on approach. 

There are many sub areas (e.g., artificial intelligence, databases, game development, cyber security, graphics, high performance computing, big data, networking, programming languages, robotics, etc.) within the broader discipline of CS, with new areas such as health informatics and the internet of things being created as the discipline evolves. 

WHY STUDY COMPUTER SCIENCE AT STFX?
Here, you learn directly from professors, not teaching assistants, who are accomplished scholars -- many that hold National Sciences and Engineering Research Council grants and are very active in research. Together, they provide an education that prepares students well for the opportunities and challenges of the information age whether they wish to go directly into a career, go on to further studies at the graduate level, or go into an education program.