Academic Matters

Academic Advisement Report

Your Academic Advisement Report shows all the courses you have taken (or are enrolled in) and those courses needed in order for you to graduate. Learn how to view your Academic Advisement Report online.

Full-time students follow the curriculum as follows:

Your Academic Advisement Report will summarize your completed and unresolved graduation requirements (see below).

Course Exceptions: Substitutions and Directives

You are expected to follow the curriculum as published in the Undergraduate Calendar for the year level you are enrolled in. Sometimes, students ask for a curriculum exception. There are two kinds of exceptions: Substitutions and Directives.

Course Substitution

A Course Substitution is when a Ryerson course that is not part of your normal curriculum is used as a substitution for a specific required course. In other words, you are replacing required Course A with Course B. You should seek approval for a Course Substitution before enrolling in the course. Course Substitutions do not automatically affect your GPA, replace any future prerequisite requirements, nor are they a formal statement about course equivalence. Course Substitutions requests must be reviewed and approved by the Teaching Department, your Program Department and Curriculum Advising.

Course Directive

A Course Directive is when a Ryerson course that is not part of your normal curriculum is used for credit for one of your program’s elective groups (Professional, Professionally-Related, Liberal Studies, Core, Open). For example, you wish to use Course B, not normally taken by students in your program, as one of your Professional electives. You should seek approval for a Course Directive before enrolling in the course. Course Directives requests must be reviewed and approved by both your Program Department and Curriculum Advising. Liberal Studies Course Directive requests are reviewed and approved by both the Faculty of Arts and Curriculum Advising.

For instructions, definitions and regulations download the Course Substitution/ Directive Request form.

Timespan

In order to graduate, you must finish all of your courses within a specified number of years. This is known as your timespan and the clock starts “ticking” in your first term of eligibility for enrolment. Even though you may not be attending Ryerson for one or more terms (for example, you have been Discontinued), you continue to use up your timespan.

Calculate your timespan for undergraduate programs as follows:

1. For full-time programs, multiply the number of years scheduled for fulltime study by 2 (typically 8 years);
   
2. For full-time co-op programs, multiply the number of years scheduled for full-time study (including co-op terms) by 2 (typically 10 years);
   
3. For part-time degree programs, divide the number of single-term courses in your program (or equivalent) by 3.

1. The number of required single-term courses (or equivalent) should be divided by 2, plus one year. The timespan you have to complete the certificate will vary depending on the number of courses that must be completed in order to satisfy the graduation requirements of the certificate. 

Timespan Extensions

In special circumstances, you may ask permission from the Dean of your Faculty or School to extend these time limits. Read Policy 46: Policy on Undergraduate Grading, Promotion and Academic Standing ("GPA Policy") and see also Essential Policy Highlights, opens in new window. 

See also

• Graduation
• Grades, GPA, and Academic Standing

References 

• PDF filePolicy 46: Undergraduate Grading, Promotion, and Academic Standing ("GPA Policy"), opens in new window

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