Four-Year Community-Based Bachelor of Education

Geographic Eligibility

Preference for admission is given to students in rural and remote areas of Alberta. Students across Alberta, the Territories, and in rural and remote British Columbia may also be considered.

Please Note: Graduates of this program will meet the teacher certification requirements for the Province of Alberta. Certification in other jurisdictions is not guaranteed.

Admission Resources

Visit Undergraduate Recruitment and Admissions' site for information on submitting your application, dates and deadlines, documents required, and more!

Police Information Check

A current, clear Police Information Check, with a Vulnerable Sector Check, is required of all Bachelor of Education students for the field experience component of the program. Students who are unable to present a current and clear check will not be placed in their field experience courses – a graduating requirement of the degree – and be asked to leave the program.

A Check is not required until your field course terms. As checks are time-sensitive, do not apply for one before instructed to do so by our Field Team! In the meantime, check out our Police Information Checks page.

K-12 Route and Teachables

When applying, you will need to select a teachable subject area. Each teachable has differing admission requirements: find out what options you have, below, and then check out the associated admission requirements. All teachables in the Community-Based Four-Year are in the 'K-12' route (or, kindergarten through grade twelve). Visit our Teachable Subject Areas page for more details!

Note that this pathway only offers a summer term intake.

The four-year plan is for students just starting their studies, or wanting to take lighter non-Education semesters. Ensure to refer to our Registration Guide for specific EDUC enrolment information.

The three-year plan is for students who have already completed a number of post-secondary courses, and are hoping to compress their studies. Typically, this would work for students who have completed 7 - 10 applicable non-Education courses. Ensure to refer to  our Registration Guide for specific EDUC enrolment information.

EDUC 201

EDUC 420 | EDUC 427 | EDUC 430 | EDUC 435 | EDUC 440*

EDUC 445 | EDUC 450 | EDUC 456 | EDUC 460 | EDUC 465**

EDUC 521 | EDUC 525 | EDUC 530 | EDUC 535 | EDUC 540

EDUC 551 | EDUC 556 | EDUC 56X Series | EDUC 560

** Check out our Registration Guide for EDUC 400 and 500-level semester details.

*** Visit our course outlines for EDUC class details! 

Check out the Calendar for a detailed list of your eight required teachable courses, by subject area. Simply select your Four-Year pathway by your chosen teachable subject area, and then click on the 'Program Details' tab. 

Foundationals

English or French Literature | Psychology | Fine Arts | Science (can also be fulfilled by Mathematics) | Canadian Studies | Health and Wellness*

*Check out the Calendar for a detailed list of acceptable foundational courses. Simply select your Four-Year pathway by your chosen teachable subject area, and then click on the 'Program Details' tab. 

Electives

All students must take 5 elective courses.

Considering the Honours pathway? Your Honours classes can also meet elective requirements! Because admission and coursework doesn't occur until the final year of your program, we encourage you to connect with an Advisor to chat about how to plan your degree!

Distance-Learning University of Calgary EDUC Courses

You may want to consider taking at least one of our 200- level series of EDUC courses, which are offered online, and can be used to fulfill your Electives. Please note that these courses have pathway restrictions, and enrolment is opened space-pending. If you are interested in taking one of these courses, please add your email to our web-form.

Once admitted into the program, you may complete your non-Education courses at other institutions, closer to your home community or online, via a Letter of Permission process. This process ensures that the non-Education classes you choose to take will be accepted for transfer credit and fit into your degree requirements. Letters of Permission are only available to current University of Calgary students.

You must submit a Letter of Permission for each semester in which you are planning to take non-Education classes. You should adhere to the deadlines found in the Letter of Permission Guide. If you are hoping to attend more than one institution in a given term, you should consult with your advisors about how to submit such request for review, and should also consult with the University's Financial Aid office about the funding options for taking courses through multiple institutions.

Steps for Submitting Your Letter of Permission

1. First, refer to the 'Suggested program sequence' (above), or, if you have received transfer credit upon admission, to your Academic Requirements report, in order to determine what non-Education courses you need to complete in a given semester.

2. Then, utilize Transfer Credit at UCalgary and Transfer Alberta to ensure that the courses you are interested in taking will be accepted for transfer credit.

3. Contact an advisor in the Undergraduate Programs in Education office at upe@ucalgary.ca, to confirm that the courses selected will work towards your degree’s requirements.

4. Submit your Letter of Permission online via your MyUofC, following the details in the Guide.

5. PLEASE DO NOT CANCEL YOUR LETTER* if you are only intending to make changes to you course selections. You cannot submit more than one letter per term.

*Unfortunately, cancelling a Letter simply removes that semester from your term options. Per Step 3 above, please consult with an advisor prior to submitting your letter.

If necessary, your advisors can make changes to your submitted letter. In this case, it is up to you to consult any resources necessary to ensure that your ‘new’ courses will be accepted for credit, and will fulfill remaining degree requirements. Transfer credit will be processed regardless of whether or not the course was listed on the original Letter of Permission request, however, it is not guaranteed to fit into your degree requirements.

Getting Transfer Credit for Letter of Permission Courses

Transcripts for Letter of Permission courses are due annually on August 1st, covering all courses completed during the proceeding academic year. Students who do not submit transcripts may have future EDUC courses registration blocked, or future Letters of Permission remain unapproved. Transcripts should be sent to Admissions.

Please note that the University of Calgary does not provide students with an assessment of transfer credit prior to formal admission. No transfer credit ever applies to Education major courses: you must complete all mandated EDUC classes in order to obtain your degree. Any transfer credit awarded can only work towards fulfilling non-Education classes. Previously completed coursework that is more than ten years old, either from other post-secondary institutions or the University of Calgary, will not ordinarily be used towards any degree requirements.

Future Students can utilize Transfer Credit at UCalgary and Transfer Alberta in the meantime.

If you are a newly admitted student, check out the Registrar's guide to enrolling as a transfer student. You should additionally utilize your Academic Requirements report to see how your prior courses fit into your degree. If Academic Requirements is not assigning a course to a particular requirement - and you think that it should be  - send us an email at upe@ucalgary.ca for further review!

A few important regulations to highlight:

1. Students cannot take non-Education courses during Education semesters. This is because Education semesters are jam-packed, and full of the academic rigours entirely appropriate for a professional degree program. While you can certainly take advantage of Spring and Summer semesters to fit in additional classes for lighter semester loads (or to catch-up), you should be mindful of your July Education courses, and plan for the pre-readings or post-class assignments.
2. You must have finished all non-Education courses before entering your final year of 500-level Education classes. Ideally, you will not have more than one year between your last 400-level EDUC term, and you 500-level Education classes.
3. Per Calendar Regulation 3.3, you must maintain a 2.50 GPA each semester, including over courses taken at other institutions. Withdrawal maximums also apply to non-Education courses taken elsewhere.
4. You cannot have more than two D/D+ grades within your eight teachable subject area courses. If you exceed this, you will need to re-take/add a teachable subject area course in order to meet graduating requirements.

Email

All University of Calgary students must use their Ucalgary.ca accounts for any and all University of Calgary or degree-related correspondence. Email will not be sent to personal accounts.

You must additionally ensure to include your eight-digit UCID number in all correspondence.

Non-Standard Scheduling

Please note that Education courses are scheduled with 'non-standard' dates and times, and may differ from those semester timelines that you are used to in your non-Education courses. You should anticipate courses or field experiences that run outside of regular semester dates.

Synchronous Sessions

Your Fall and Winter Education courses are paced - and do have deadlines - as well as ‘digital classroom’ components. Classroom sessions are known as ‘synchronous sessions’, in which your class will connect simultaneously via the Zoom conferencing platform.

You should refer to the Zoom schedule via your Registration Guide for more information.

Student Information

As a student in professional program, it is your responsibility to thoroughly review and abide by the information contained in the following pages:

• Police Information Checks
• Field Experience
• Calendar Regulations