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To view the Spring 2025 Academic Calendar, go to www.sfu.ca/students/calendar/2025/spring.

French, History and Politics Joint Major

Bachelor of Arts

Admission Requirements

Before being formally admitted to the program, students must complete the lower division requirements (see below) with a minimum 2.0 grade or better in each of the specified courses (or equivalents).

For information about initial FREN course selection, the French language placement test, and FREN course disciplines, visit https://www.sfu.ca/french/undergraduate.html.

Program Requirements

Students complete 120 units, as specified below.

Lower Division Requirements

Before being formally admitted to the program, students will complete the following 42 units.

  • 15 units of French
  • 12 units of history
  • 12 units of political science
  • three additional units of either history or political science

French

Students complete a total of 15 units, including both of

FREN 245 - Introduction to French and Francophone Studies (3)
FREN 275 - French Inside Out: Introduction to French Language, Culture, and Society (3)

and nine additional lower division units in FREN

History

Students complete a total of 12-15 lower division history units from the following list. Students may choose other courses only in consultation and with approval of a history department advisor.

Students must complete at least nine lower division history units before enrolling in upper division work.

HIST 101 - Canada to Confederation (3)
HIST 102W - Canada since Confederation (3)
HIST 104 - The Americas from Colonization to Independence (3)
HIST 106 - The Making of Modern Europe (3)
HIST 146 - Africa after the Transatlantic Slave Trade (3)
HIST 151 - The Modern Middle East (3)
HIST 220 - Late Medieval and Renaissance Europe (3)
HIST 223 - Early Modern Europe, 1500-1789 (3)
HIST 224 - Europe from the French Revolution to the First World War (3)
HIST 225 - 20th Century Europe (3)

Political Science

Students complete 12-15 lower division political science units including POL 100-3 Introduction to Politics and Government or POL 101W-3 Introduction to Politics and Government.

Choose courses in consultation with the political science student advisor, or the Department of Political Science's program steering committee representative. Such choices must fit with the thematicity criteria of the joint major to the satisfaction of the steering committee.

Upper Division Requirements

The following are required for a total of 47 units.

  • 15 units of French
  • 16 units of history
  • 16 units of political science

French

Students complete a total of 15 units, including

FREN 301W - Writing Your Way Toward French Proficiency (3)

and 12 units of FREN courses, six of which must be from 300 division FREN courses and another six must be from 400 division FREN courses. (See FREN courses for details about the FREN courses that the department offers.)

NOTE: SFU students accepted in the accelerated master’s within the Department of French may apply a maximum of 10 graduate course units, taken while completing the bachelor’s degree, towards the upper division electives of the bachelor’s program and the requirements of the master’s degree. For more information go to: https://www.sfu.ca/gradstudies/apply/programs/accelerated-masters.html and https://www.sfu.ca/students/calendar/programs/french/master-of-arts.html.

History

Students complete a total of 16 upper division history units from the following list. Students may choose other courses only in consultation and with approval of a history department advisor.

HIST 319 - Modern France (4)
HIST 336 - Ideas and Society in Early Modern Europe (4)
HIST 338 - World War II (4)
HIST 350 - The Ottoman Empire and Turkey (4)
HIST 352 - Religion and Politics in Modern Iran (4)
HIST 355 - The Arab Middle East in the Twentieth Century (4)
HIST 416 - The French Revolution (4)
HIST 417W - Problems in Modern French History (4)
HIST 424 - Problems in the Cultural History of Canada (4)
HIST 428 - Problems in the Social and Economic History of Canada (4)
HIST 430 - French Americas (4)
HIST 465 - The Palestinian-Israeli Conflict (4)

Political Science

Students complete at least 16 upper division political science units. Choose courses in consultation with the political science student advisor, or the Department of Political Science's program steering committee representative. Such choices must fit with the thematicity criteria of the joint major to the satisfaction of the steering committee.

Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences Degree Requirements

For all bachelor of arts (BA) programs, students complete 120 units, which includes

  • at least 60 units that must be completed at Simon Fraser University
  • at least 45 upper division units, of which at least 30 upper division units must be completed at Simon Fraser University
  • at least 60 units (including 21 upper division units) in Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences courses
  • satisfaction of the writing, quantitative, and breadth requirements
  • an overall cumulative grade point average (CGPA) and upper division overall CGPA of at least 2.0, and program CGPA and upper division program CGPA of at least 2.0 on the course work used to satisfy the minimum program requirements. FASS departments may define additional GPA requirements for their respective programs.

Writing, Quantitative, and Breadth Requirements

Students admitted to Simon Fraser University beginning in the fall 2006 term must meet writing, quantitative and breadth requirements as part of any degree program they may undertake. See Writing, Quantitative, and Breadth Requirements for university-wide information.

WQB Graduation Requirements

A grade of C- or better is required to earn W, Q or B credit

Requirement

Units

Notes
W - Writing

6

Must include at least one upper division course, taken at Simon Fraser University within the student's major subject; two courses (minimum three units each)

Q - Quantitative

6

Q courses may be lower or upper division; two courses (total six units or more)
B - Breadth

18

Designated Breadth

Must be outside the student's major subject, and may be lower or upper division:

Two courses (total six units or more) Social Sciences: B-Soc
Two courses (total six units or more) Humanities: B-Hum
Two courses (total six units or more) Sciences: B-Sci

6

Additional Breadth

Two courses (total six units or more) outside the student's major subject (may or may not be B-designated courses, and will likely help fulfil individual degree program requirements).

Students choosing to complete a joint major, joint honours, double major, two extended minors, an extended minor and a minor, or two minors may satisfy the breadth requirements (designated or not designated) with courses completed in either one or both program areas.

Residency Requirements and Transfer Credit

  • At least half of the program's total units must be earned through Simon Fraser University study.
  • At least two thirds of the program's total upper division units must be earned through Simon Fraser University study.

Elective Courses

In addition to the courses listed above, students should consult an academic advisor to plan the remaining required elective courses.