Course Outlines and Syllabi

Course Outlines

A one-page course outline is required by university policy for every course offered by the Faculty of Health Sciences. Instructors will receive an email reminder through TRACS to upload their course outlines. Outlines must be available to students at least two weeks prior to the start of the registration period or two months before the semester begins (March, July and November). Note that the one-page outline is different than the syllabus. See below for syllabus information.

Instructors upload their course outlines online. Please follow these instructions:

Before your outline is activated online, the program assistant will review to ensure that all required fields are complete. 

If you have taught the course before, you may want to use the previous outline as a starting point and make any desired changes. The course content should correspond to the SFU Calendar description. If it does not conform closely, you must apply for approval before any changes can be published. Contact the appropriate program assistant, depending on whether you are teaching an undergraduate or graduate course, if you have not taught a course before and would like a copy of a previous course outline for your reference, or if you would like to apply for approval to upload content that does not closely conform to the SFU Calendar description.

Refer to this link to search for the archived course outlines: http://www.sfu.ca/outlines.html. The system has archived outlines starting from Fall 2015 onwards.

Course Syllabi and Syllabus Policies

Refer to the Policies and Procedures Related to Syllabi Review, Development and Distribution (this link requires your ID to login) for more guidance about drafting a syllabi and to locate a syllabi template.

All HSCI courses at both the graduate and undergraduate levels must have a detailed syllabus that delineates course objectives and means of assessment. Attached to this policy is a template to help you design of a syllabus so that it outlines the appropriate level of detail in terms of content, objectives, and assessment tools. The recommended text in regards to grading distributions, student conduct, and other policies are also provided.

All new and substantively updated/revised courses must be reviewed as indicated below. Syllabi submitted for review do not need to be in the final draft.  The GSC and UGSC are generally concerned with the review of the following:  1) the statement of learning objectives; 2) an outline of topics; and 3) a list of required readings/texts.

You will receive an email from the TRACS system to upload your syllabus, in accordance with the following schedule:

For new or substantially revised courses, feedback will be provided to instructors three weeks prior to the start of the term. Notably for graduate courses, where accreditation requirements demand that courses meet certain core competency requirements, it is expected that faculty will comply with requests for revision.

The course syllabus represents a contract between the instructor and student. It is important that it clearly outlines expectations, grading and attendance policies, and appropriate student conduct guidelines to all students enrolled in the course.

 A syllabus does not need to be provided in hard copy and can be distributed through Canvas or through other online formats. The scheduling of topics may be changed after the start of a term, but once the syllabus has been circulated to students, it is strongly advised not to make further changes to: a) grading policies; b) policies regarding student conduct and academic honesty; or c) the timing of key exams.

For more resources and guidelines, refer to the links below:

FHS course planning and syllabus checklist

Sample course syllabus

Syllabus template