Program Requirements
Note: University regulations apply to all students at Laurier. If there is any discrepancy between the program or progression requirements outlined on this page and those in the university's academic calendars, the academic calendars are the official sources of information. The information below is from the latest calendar, and you may be following progression requirements from an earlier calendar. Students are responsible for checking the appropriate calendar. Contact your program coordinator should you notice any discrepancies.
The Indigenous Studies combined honours is only available at the Brantford campus, while the minor is available at both the Brantford and Waterloo campuses.
Note: For any academic concerns or help understanding program requirements, contact Academic Advising.
Honours BA Indigenous Studies in Combination with another Honours BA Program
Indigenous Studies Minor
The Minor in Indigenous Studies engages with Indigenous perspectives and experiences, preparing you to think critically about key social, cultural, and environmental dimensions of life in both local and global Indigenous contexts. This minor provides applied and experiential opportunities for students who may be interested in working with and for Indigenous communities, in advocacy positions, in health and wellness, and in education-related fields.
Designed for both Indigenous and Non-Indigenous students, the courses offered in the minor center Indigenous ways of knowing and being in order to reflect on historical and contemporary resistance, holistic understandings of the world, and opportunities for social and environmental change. They also offer insight into the relationship between settlers and Indigenous people, foreground Indigenous approaches to education and research, and emphasize the vitality of Indigenous languages.
The Minor in Indigenous Studies is available at both the Brantford and Waterloo campuses. Students completing the Indigenous Studies minor must complete 3.0 credits of ID, including ID120/SOJE120, and 2.0 senior credits.
Please refer to the university's academic calendar for details.
Indigenous Studies Option (Admission Suspended as of 2016/17)
Note: The Indigenous Studies option is no longer available for students who started at Laurier as of 2016/17. Students who entered Laurier in 2015/16 or earlier will still be able to complete the option. The Indigenous Studies combined honours BA and the Indigenous Studies minor continue to be available to all.
How Foundations Works with the Indigenous Studies Program
If you are pursuing a combined major in Indigenous Studies, Foundations courses are part of your program requirements. You cannot graduate without finishing the four Foundations courses.
The following two courses will probably help you the most with courses in your combined major, and we strongly recommend that you complete them in your first year. Senior-level Indigenous Studies courses may hold you accountable for the material covered in these courses.
- BF190: Modernity and the Contemporary World: This course and its successor, BF199, will help you contextualize the discussions that you will encounter in Indigenous Studies, and will give you the intellectual background to form stronger arguments. Try to take this in your first year.
- BF299: Academic Literacy: Humanities: This course will help you read more carefully, analyze texts more precisely, conduct research effectively, discern and form better arguments, and write clearer, sharper, better organized essays. Try to take this in your first year.
The following courses, to be taken in your second year or earlier, will make you a better scholar, and can help you better engage any course you take.
- BF290: Academic Literacy: Social Sciences: This skills-based course will allow you to practice your presentation skills, and it will teach you about the importance of research ethics and how to formulate an effective research question. Try to take this in your second year.
- BF199: Critiques of Modernity: This course, the successor to BF190, will provide essential context for the discussions that you will encounter in your Indigenous Studies classes, as we work together to emphasize Indigenous perspectives and challenge western theorists. Take this no later than in your second year.