A Major is your primary field of study and requires a specific set of core courses. Generally, before you start school, you 'declare a major,' which means you have stated that this area of study is what interests you most. For example if you declare History as your major, this means you will spend the majority of your time taking History related courses. To get a visual representation of this, take a look at the program requirements on the Office of the Registrar's website. There you will see your program broken down into areas of study, including Major Requirements.

A Minor is an optional, secondary concentration (usually 18–24 credit hours) that allows you to explore another area of interest without the full requirements of a second major. Minors in Undergraduate Studies and Concentrations in Seminary & Graduate Studies act in much the same way. They are declared by the student as an alternate area of study within your degree. They have their own requirements, but it requires less credit hours than a major. Typically, students will use their general elective slots to fulfill these requirements. To see how many elective slots you have, refer to your Program Requirements sheet. Your Admissions Counsellor would have provided you with one, but you can also request a new copy from the Office of the Registrar.

Minors and concentrations can augment or compliment your major, but they can also be completely independent from your major. For example, you could major in Psychology but minor in Linguistics. This could show that you intend to work with persons who have speech impediments upon graduation. Or, you could be a Philosophy major and take a Music minor because it is something you are passionate about, even though it is unrelated to your major. There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to declaring a minor or concentration.

Electives are courses that you are required to take to finish your degree, but they are not designated to a specific department or program. Thus, electives give you the freedom to choose any course you want and can allow you to pursue subjects outside your major. They allow you to broaden your education, pursue personal interests, and fulfill the total credit hours required for your degree.

However, there are some exceptions to note:

1. If you declare a minor or concentration, focus or track, and/or an Honours Degree, a significant amount of your electives will be used up by them. Thus, you will have less electives available to you--if any at all.
2. At the Undergraduate Studies level, you must have 45 credit hours of courses at the 3000 or 4000 level. This may mean that some of your electives will need to be at those levels.
3. If you have transfered credits to Tyndale University from another institution, your transfer credits may have gone towards fulfilling some of your electives requirements. If you are unsure about how your transfer credits were allocated, refer to the credit evaluation that the Office of the Registrar provided you in your first year or contact them for a copy of it.

In some programs, a "Focus" is a specific area of interest within a major, while a "Track" is a prescribed path of courses leading toward a specific professional outcome or certification. A focus and a track are very similar. They are a narrow lense to study within your major and allow you to direct your studies towards a specific direction. These exist only within a major and only certain majors have them.

Credit hours reflect the amount of time a course requires each week of a semester. Most courses at Tyndale are 3 credit hours. This means each week you will spend roughly 3 hours in class. However, there are some courses that are only 1 or 2 credit hours, so do keep those in mind when considering the number of credit hours you need to graduate.

Credit hour requirements vary by degree. Typically, to graduate, you need either:

• 120 credit hours to graduate with a Bachelor of Arts (BA)
• 90 credit hours for a Bachelor of Religious Education (BRE)
• 81 credit hours for a Master of Divinity (MDiv)
• 54 credit hours for a Master of Theological Studies (MTS)

You should consult your specific Program Sheet or your Academic Advisor to confirm your total requirement.

This is for Undergraduate students only.

Course codes can be very helpful in determining when you should take specific courses. When you view the course offerings you will see 2 things, a department indicator consisting of four letters, and a number. For example BSTH 1013 - Old Testament Studies. BSTH tells you that this course belongs to the Biblical Studies and Theology department. 1013 tells you a few more things. The first number tells you generally what "year" that course is to be taken in. The last number tells you the credit hours for that specific course, and you can largely ignore the middle two numbers. So for example a course like ENGL 3083 tells us that this is an English course that is generally taken around 3rd year and is worth 3 credit hours.

The year indicator (first number) is a guideline and not a rule. Students can take courses in any year provided they have the prerequisites (if any) for that course. For example many Biblical Studies and Theology students will take BSTH 2013 - Hermeneutics in first year, despite the year two indicator. 

Midterm reports are conducted half-way through the semester providing a "snapshot" of a student's progress. It is for undergraduates in the first semester of their first year and for students who require on-going academic support.  It is a collaboration with undergraduate faculty, advisors at the Centre for Academic Excellence, and staff from the Registrar's Office. The information on the reports are particularly helpful for identifying courses where a student may need additional support or tutoring.

If you are a first year student, or a student requiring additional academic support, you can expect to hear from an Academic Advisor or a member of the Registration staff shortly after the midterm point of the semester. Students' grades are based on preliminary work in each class and will be evaluated to determine if any intervention is needed. These grades cannot be considered final, only a reflection of work completed to the point of submission by the faculty.

Students who are deemed in need some intervention can expect to be invited to a meeting. These meetings are for your benefit and should be considered mandatory. Missing these meetings can make it challenging for us to advocate for you should you have any needs or require assistance later on in the semester. 

If you are performing well you will receive an email encouraging you to keep up the good work.

On your transcript you will note 'Term GPA' and 'CGPA.' Your Term GPA is the Grade Point Average you recieved for that specific semester term. Your CGPA is the Cummulative Grade Point Average, and it is the average of your GPA over the course of all your studies. Your CGPA (among other things) is used to determine graduation, and it is used for any application to Graduate or Post-Graduate studies. Additionaly, Student Development will use your CGPA to determine elegibility for student leadership, athletics, and other extra-curricular activities.

In order to remain in good standing at Tyndale and avoid probation or suspension, you must maintain a GPA of 2.0 or higher.

Learn more about Grading System & Scale

If your CGPA falls below the minimum requirement for your program, you may be placed on Academic Probation. This is a formal warning and an invitation to work closely with the Academic Advisor to create a plan for academic recovery.

Typically, faculty advisors handle specific major requirements, while the Academic Advising team provides general support regarding core requirements and university policies. Each student is assigned a faculty advisor. This information is available in the MyTyndale student portal.

If you have a permanent or temporary disability, you may register with Accessibility Services at the Centre for Academic Excellence. They will work with you to establish an accommodation plan that ensures you have equal access to learning.

Learn more about accommodations.