
BA in Interdisciplinary Studies
Customize your degree in a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Interdisciplinary Studies to capture your own unique combination of interests inside the Faculty of Arts or across campus.
Imagine a degree as individual as you are!
- Are you curious by nature and interested in studying many subjects at the same time?
- Are you hesitant, undecided, and not sure what you want to study?
- Do you want to keep your options open?
Come expand your horizons! These multidisciplinary programs provide you with a solid general education in a setting known for its vibrancy. They offer the opportunity to take a range of courses in Arts-specific fields (Humanities, Languages and Literatures, Fine and Performing Arts) or even in other faculties.
You can choose to do a minor or two in a specific subject, such as a foreign language, English or French literature, art history, music, theatre, communication, history, geography, religious studies, or linguistics. You can explore our transdisciplinary Options, which are microcredentials such as Animal Studies, Digital Humanities or Entrepreneurship, Creativity and Social Innovation.
Programs are offered in English and/or in French, so you can work on your bilingualism while you earn your degree.
Key Facts about the Interdisciplinary BA
- The most flexible BA program
- An unparalleled selection of courses
- The most popular BA in the Faculty of Arts

An abundance of career options!
55% of the world’s professional leaders are social sciences and humanities grads
Read about the advantages of a degree in the Arts: “The value of liberal arts: quick facts”

This degree can help to prepare you or make you more competitive for a wide variety of careers in today’s changing market. Among the possible opportunities you may want to consider are:
- A variety of municipal, provincial and federal government positions
- NGOs or diplomacy
- Creative professions: visual artist, musician, actor, writer
- The private sector and industry: project management, public relations, advertising, journalism, administration
- Teaching at the primary and secondary levels and beyond; second language teaching locally and abroad
- Excellent preparation for the many other careers that require critical, analytical, or communication skills
- Graduate study: the Faculty of Arts Master in Information Studies or Master in World Literatures and Cultures
- Law school or medical school (in combination with the required prerequisites)
- Anywhere that is looking for creative minds
Tailor a path to your interests
Whether you choose the three or four-year program, you can customize your studies by choosing a major, a minor or an option. Want to keep your options open and take as many electives as you want? That’s ok too! No matter what you choose, the BA in Interdisciplinary Studies tailors a path to your interests.
Basic Skills Courses (12 units)
- English (ENG)
- Interdisciplinary Studies in Arts, Humanities and Languages (AHL) 1, 2
- Philosophy (PHI)
1 : Only AHL 1100 and AHL 1900 qualify as basic skills courses
Titles of this year’s list of AHL courses include:
- Critical Explorations of Popular Culture
- Food Studies: A Humanities Perspective
- Human Wrong, Human Rights
- Food Studies: A Humanities Perspective
- Introduction to Community Engagement
- Rock Music and Society
2 : A course that allows you to expand your horizons, to confront views from different fields, and to engage in the urgent debates of today and tomorrow. Each year our professors offer courses under the interdisciplinary course code AHL, which you can choose as an elective in your program.
Majors (36 to 42 units)
- Art History
- Communication
- English as a Second Language
- English
- Environmental Studies
- Ethics and Political Philosophy
- French as a Second Language
- Geography
- Greek and Roman Studies
- History
- Indigenous Studies
- Lettres françaises (offert en français seulement)
- Linguistics
- Medieval and Renaissance Studies
- Music/Music Studies
- Philosophy
- Physical Geography and Geomatics (BA or BSc)
- Religious Studies
- Second Language Teaching
- Theatre
- Visual Arts
Minors (30 units)
- Applied Ethics
- Art History
- Arabic Language and Culture
- Asian Studies
- Celtic Studies
- Communication
- Creative Writing
- Digital Humanities
- English
- English as a Second Language – Advanced Minor in English as a Second Language (ESL)
- Environmental Studies
- Études des francophonies (offert en français seulement)
- French as a Second Language – Advanced Minor in French as a Second Language (FLS)
- Geography
- Geomatics and Spatial Analysis
- German Language and Culture
- Greek and Roman Studies
- History
- Indigenous Studies
- Italian Language and Culture
- Latin-American Studies
- Lettres françaises (offert en français seulement)
- Linguistics
- Medieval and Renaissance Studies
- Music /Music Studies
- Philosophy
- Rédaction professionnelle et édition (offert en français seulement)
- Religious Studies
- Russian Language and Culture
- Spanish
- Theatre
- Translation into English (offered in English only)
Options (9 to 18 units)
- Art History
- Animal Studies
- Contemplative Studies and Well-Being
- Creative Writing
- Digital Humanities
- Entrepreneurship, Creativity and Social innovation
- Geomatics and Spatial Analysis
- Vered Jewish Canadian Studies
Electives
To meet the requirements of your program of study, you need to take a certain number of elective units, which you can choose from all the disciplines offered by the University. Electives without prerequisites are courses that do not require you to have passed any other university course in order for you to enrol.
Electives without prerequisites give you the opportunity to explore other disciplines that interest you. For example, you could enrol in a biology course if you are studying in the Faculty of Arts. Also, only the BA in Interdisciplinary Studies allows you to replace your electives units by a combination of Major(s), Minor(s), and/or Option(s).
To help you design your program,
here are some examples of possible combinations:
Example #1
BA in Interdisciplinary Studies with Minor in Creative Writing
- Basic Skills Courses: 12 units English (ENG), Philosophy (PHI), Arts, Humanities and Languages (AHL)
- Minor in Creative Writing: 30 units
- Elective Courses: 48 units
Consider including a minor or two (or even three) in the Faculty of Arts

Example #2
BA in Interdisciplinary Studies with Minor in Environmental Studies, Option in Geomatics and Spatial Analysis, second Option in Entrepreneurship, Creativity and Social Innovation
- Basic Skills Courses: 12 units English (ENG), Philosophy (PHI), Arts, Humanities and Languages (AHL)
- Minor in Environmental Studies: 30 units
- Option 1 in Geomatics and Spatial Analysis: 12 units
- Option 2 in Entrepreneurship, Creativity and Social Innovation: 18 units
- Elective Courses: 48 units
Consider one or more transdisciplinary Options in the Faculty of Arts

Example #3
BA in Interdisciplinary Studies with Minor in French as a Second Language
- Basic Skills Courses: 12 units English (ENG), Philosophy (PHI), Arts, Humanities and Languages (AHL)
- Minor in French as a Second Language: 30 units
- Elective Courses: 78 units
Consider including a minor or two (or even three) in the Faculty of Arts

Example #4
BA in Interdisciplinary Studies with Minor in Communication and Option in Digital Humanities
- Basic Skills Courses: 12 units English (ENG), Philosophy (PHI), Arts, Humanities and Languages (AHL)
- Minor in Communication: 30 units
- Option in Digital Humanities: 18 units
- Elective Courses: 60 units
Consider including a minor or two (or even three) in the Faculty of Arts
Consider one or more transdisciplinary Options in the Faculty of Arts

Example #5
BA in Interdisciplinary Studies with Option in Animal Studies
- Basic Skills Courses: 12 units English (ENG), Philosophy (PHI), Arts, Humanities and Languages (AHL)
- Option in Animal Studies: 15 units
- Elective Courses: 63 units
Consider one or more transdisciplinary Options in the Faculty of Arts

Example #6
BA in Interdisciplinary Studies with double minor in History and Religious Studies, Option in Contemplative Studies and Well-Being
- Basic Skills Courses: 12 units English (ENG), Philosophy (PHI), Arts, Humanities and Languages (AHL)
- Minor 1 in History: 30 units
- Minor 2 Religious Studies: 30 units
- Option in Contemplative Studies: 15 units
- Elective Courses: 33 units
Consider including a minor or two (or even three) in the Faculty of Arts
Consider one or more transdisciplinary Options in the Faculty of Arts

Example #7
BA in Interdisciplinary Studies with triple minor in Indigenous Studies, Philosophy and Anthropology
- Basic Skills Courses: 12 units English (ENG), Philosophy (PHI), Arts, Humanities and Languages (AHL)
- Minor 1 Indigenous Studies: 30 units
- Minor 2 in Philosophy: 30 units
- Minor 3 in Anthropology*: 30 units
- Elective Courses: 18 units
*Offered at the Faculty of Social Sciences
Consider including a minor or two (or even three) in the Faculty of Arts

Consider including a minor in any other Faculty at the University of Ottawa