First-year courses
As an Arts student, you’ll choose your major at the end of first year. You’re encouraged to explore a second major in first year to discover potential new interests.
In your Arts First courses, instead of going to a lecture hall, you and your classmates will work together to respond to an intriguing challenge. With only 25 students in each of the two first-year courses, you might address topics such as The Science of Happiness, Are We Erasing History?, Games and Culture, and Writing About Poems and Songs.
You can choose to study Fine Arts Studio Practice and Fine Arts Visual Culture through Honours Arts or Honours Arts and Business.
Honours Arts - Studio Practice
September to December
- FINE 100 – Studio Fundamentals
- Arts First Requirement 1
- Prospective major #2
- Two electives
January to April
- FINE 101/VCULT 101 – Art History and Visual Culture
- Arts First Requirement 2
- Prospective major #2
- Two electives
This is a sample schedule. Courses or when a course is offered may change depending on availability.
Honours Arts and Business - Studio Practice
September to December
- ARBUS 101 – Introduction to Business in North America
- ECON 101 – Introduction to Microeconomics
- Arts First Requirement 1
- FINE 100 – Studio Fundamentals
- Prospective major #2
January to April
- ARBUS 102 – Accounting Information for Managers
- ARBUS 202 – Professional and Business Ethics
- Arts First Requirement 2
- FINE 101/VCULT 101 – Art History and Visual Culture
- Prospective major #2
This is a sample schedule. Courses or when a course is offered may change depending on availability.
Honours Arts - Visual Culture
September to December
- FINE 101/VCULT 101 – Art History and Visual Culture
- Arts First Requirement 1
- Prospective major #2
- Two electives
January to April
- FINE 101/VCULT 101 – Art History and Visual Culture
- Arts First Requirement 2
- Prospective major #2
- Two electives
This is a sample schedule. Courses or when a course is offered may change depending on availability.
Honours Arts and Business - Visual Culture
September to December
- ARBUS 101 – Introduction to Business in North America
- ECON 101 – Introduction to Microeconomics
- Arts First Requirement 1
- VCULT 100/FINE 102 – World Cinema and Visual Culture
- Prospective major #2
January to April
- ARBUS 102 – Accounting Information for Managers
- ARBUS 202 – Professional and Business Ethics
- Arts First Requirement 2
- FINE 101/VCULT 101 – Art History and Visual Culture
- Prospective major #2
This is a sample schedule. Courses or when a course is offered may change depending on availability.
After first year
40% of the classes you’ll take will be Fine Arts courses. With your remaining classes, you can choose electives from many of the 100 subject areas at Waterloo.
Sample upper-year courses
FINE 244 – History of Visual Media to 1910
VCULT 200 – Visual Studies Across the Discipline
FINE 368 – International Comics and Animation Film
FINE 330 – Topics Course in Museums, Galleries, Curatorship
Advisors are here to help
With so much flexibility, you might have a lot of questions. We're here to help! If you're applying for admission, contact our Faculty of Arts recruitment team.
Once you're a Waterloo student, you'll have access to academic advisors who can help you
- choose your courses,
- select minors and specializations,
- ensure that you're meeting the requirements for your degree, and more.
Learn more
Overview of Waterloo's Fine Arts program.