FASS Forward one credit courses

Tuition is based on a per credit basis, not by course. Regular student fees still apply, and potential course-specific expenses may apply.

For more information, visit https://www.sfu.ca/students/calendar/fees-and-regulations/tuition-fees/undergraduate.html

13 hours of class time once a week for 5 weeks. The first week is a one hour orientation to skills-based learning.

They count as elective credits for your degree completion.

FASS Forward courses are typically offered in the Summer intersession term. 

Yes! The courses are structured so that you can take more than one in a day. They will also finish before the workload demands increase for regular summer session courses. 

Rather than mastering academic content to be successful in the course, you will be practicing a skill. For example, in order to become a better writer, you need to practice writing. You will have lots of opportunities to practice, get feedback and practice some more. The readings will be chosen as a reference for the skill development rather than for their argument or academic contribution to the understanding of the content. 

FASS Forward courses were designed in response to a national survey by The Conference Board of Canada in February 2018. This report argued that graduates from the social sciences and humanities needed more support to be able to articulate how their degree has value to potential employers. 

FASS conducted two surveys of 16,186 students in order to understand current work lives and future career aspirations (FASSFutures by Monica Petek, July 2019).

Of the 2,848 responses,

58% of undergraduates taking FASS courses felt that “FASS students do not receive the same guidance on skill development and career planning as students in other faculties.”

and

89.6% of students felt that a 1 credit course option was a good or very good idea.

Anyone across the university who has finished 15 units. You do not need to be in FASS to enroll. 

A FASS Forward course is designed to improve your skills for future success and work in this class is expected to be of high quality. A competency-based grading system will be used to assess your academic performance and active participation in all learning activities. That means only a P (pass) or F (fail) will appear on your transcript. 

• P (pass) means that you have demonstrated your competency in relation to the learning objectives, met all the criteria for the course, and demonstrated the skills you have acquired. The 1 credit/unit from this course will count towards your total SFU units. 
• F (fail) means that you do not receive credit for the course.

There is no numerical equivalent for the final grade (Pass/Fail), therefore your (cumulative) GPA will not be affected.

Just like in any other course, through goSFU. We have increased the number of seats for this year. There is a reserve for FASS students, which comes off at open enrollment time.