Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

• 01. When will I have access to my Academic Advisement Report?
  New students to the University of Alberta will need to accept their Faculty of Science admission offer and have paid the tuition deposit. 
  
  
• 02. How can I access my Academic Advisement Report in Bear Tracks?
  1. Sign on to Bear Tracks

  b. Under Academics>Plan, click on Academic Requirements
  
  
  

• 03. What is my report showing me?
  1. It is important that you review your report carefully to understand:

  What requirements have been met with courses you have successfully completed and/or with your courses in progress AND

  What requirements are still outstanding and require completion.

  Starting at the top, you will see:

  1. Date and time your report was last generated: Reports regenerate periodically when triggered by processes such as changes in course enrolment.
     
  2. Links: collapse all, expand all and view report as pdf: You can collapse or expand all sections of your report
     
  3. Legend symbols: Your courses will be either "Taken" (green circle with a check on it) or "In Progress" (yellow diamond). The symbols will display in the column next to grades:
     
  4. Requirements will be Satisfied or Not Satisfied: The report will have requirements collapsed, expanded or a combination of the two when it first appears on your screen.
     a. Collapse (arrow pointing sideways to the right) means the requirement is satisfied (you can click on the collapsed arrow to see courses, their descriptions, units, terms, grades and legend for the courses used). Note the report will collapse requirements when you meet them with either courses in progress as well as with courses you have already completed.
     
     b. Expand (arrow pointing down) means the requirement is not satisfied.

  

  5. Units required, taken and needed to complete requirements:

  

  (12.00 same as credits *12)

  • "required" number of units required to satisfy the requirement
  • "taken" number of units in progress and/or completed used by the requirement
  • "needed" number of units not in progress and/or completed but still needed to satisfy the requirement
• 04. What are the different sections in my report?

  Student Responsibility: Refers to your responsibilities as a student completing your BSc General program and it contains the link to form Report an Issue.

  Faculty of Science Program Information: Contains the Calendar year of when you were admitted to your program, specifics about your program, major(s) and/or minor and information about your academic standing in the Faculty of Science.

  Registration: Shows your recent term(s) registration, including courses completed and/or in progress.

  Junior Core Requirement: Reports how your courses fit into the junior requirements including: English, Physical Sciences, Mathematical Sciences and Laboratory Sciences.

  Major Requirement: Shows specific requirements in your chosen major(s) according to the UofA Calendar.

  Minor Requirement: If you have a minor, shows specific requirements in your chosen minor according to the UofA Calendar.

  Options: Lists all courses applicable to your degree but not applied to the junior core, major(s) and minor requirements.

  Program Summary: Displays where credits fit in the different areas of your degree.

  Courses Not Used: Lists credits not used toward your degree

• 05. How do I report inaccuracies or discrepancies in my report?
  Review your report and read throughout before submitting your enquiry by completing form Report an Issue. A link to this form also appears in your report under Student Responsibility (RG 10170). The Faculty of Science will review your submission and make adjustments which you will be able to review once you have been contacted by email.
• 06. Why does my report show many or double requirements?

  This may be happening because you are active in more than one program. This will be sorted out after the Fall delete deadline when you will be active in only one program. You may still be able to view how your courses fit into one program by running a What-if Report (Academics>Plan, click on What-if Report) for that program.

Courses

• 01. I am trying to register in courses but they are full. What do I do?
  Course availability will continue to change over the summer months as students change their schedules. In some cases, departments may open additional sections to meet demand. You will want to add yourself to the Watch List (if available for the course) on Bear Tracks for any courses that you are interested in enrolling in. By adding yourself to the Watch List, Bear Tracks will email or text you once a space becomes available in that course. This feature is set up as “first come first serve” so whomever claims the available space first will be registered. Unfortunately we cannot guarantee that all students will get every course they want at the time they were hoping for as demand is very high. In some cases, you may need to choose another course, such as an Arts or Science option.
• 02. I can't get into a class via Bear Tracks, I get an error message?

  First off, read the message that will inform you of the reason you are unable to enroll in the class. If that doesn't help then:

  • check the listed pre/co-requisites
  • check “Class Notes” to see if it's restricted to a specific Major/Minor, if you're "Undeclared", then you'll want to declare your Major/Minor with your home faculty
  • check “Subject Notes” if any Priority Restrictions (ie: date for when the enrolment is opened up to all students instead of specific groups/cohorts of students (ex: 4th years or XXX Majors) are in effect
  • if a class has a black box with the letter "L" inside of it, that means there's a delayed registration date for the majority of students, you can contact the Department to find out what the delayed registration date is.
  • check to see if it has a Status of a blue square (“Closed (Contact Department)”), which requires students to speak with the Teaching Department for that class to get enrolment assistance
• 03. I want to waive a prerequisite so I can get into a senior class, how do I do that?
  Do not register for a course if you do not have the prerequisite. You risk getting a poor grade and you will not receive credit for the course if you do not have the prerequisites completed prior to registration.
• 04. I have questions about Lectures/Labs/Seminars for various classes?
  Speak with the teaching Department that controls that lecture/lab/seminar, they will have more information for you.
• 05. Is there a limit to how many junior courses I can take?
  Students in the Faculty of Science may not take more than *42 units of course weight at the junior level (100-level). Any junior credits in excess of *42 units of course weight will be declared extra to your BSc degree. Junior courses can be taken in any year of the program.
• 06. What counts as a Science option?
  Any course offered by the Faculty of Science is a science option. NOTE, courses offered by ALES are not science options (ie: Plant Science, or PL SC, is NOT a Science option, it would be considered an outside option).
  
  Science options: Courses offered by the Faculty of Science - includes additional courses in your Major and Science Minor.
  Arts options: Courses offered by the Faculty of Arts, these are a diverse range of courses within Humanities, Social Sciences, Fine Arts and Language courses. The ENGL requirements for JR core also count towards Arts options.
  Outside options: Courses not offered by the Faculty of Science or Arts
• 07. What courses should I enroll in?

  Check your degree requirements on the left hand side of the page or review the Academic Requirements tool in BearTracks.

  REMEMBER: You need to follow the requirements from the year you were admitted. Current and previous calendars can be found here, http://calendar.ualberta.ca/. Also, please pay special attention to when you entered the General program as the requirements are different for those admitted prior to 2014.

  Hints:

  • Review the degree requirements for your program.
  • Evaluate where you are. Look at the requirements for your major/minor.
  • By your second or third year you should be making good progress in fulfilling those courses, particularly at the 200 or 300 levels.
  • If you have not declared your major or minor, simply go to SCIForms
  • If there is one area you particularly like, find out more about what programs are available in specialization/honors/specific area.
• 08. I've been here three years, but I can't get into a class that says it is available to 3rd year students.

  "Year 1/2/3/4" are not based on physical years spent at the University of Alberta, it's determined based on successfully completed credits:

  0 to 30 credits = "Year 1"

  31 to 60 credits = "Year 2"

  61 to 90 credits = "Year 3"

  91 to 120+ credits = "Year 4"

• 09. Does ANAT (Anatomy) courses count as Biological Sciences courses in the Faculty of Science?
  No, ANAT courses are offered by the Division of Anatomy in the Faculty of Medicine and, as such, do not qualify as a Science or Biological Sciences courses in the Faculty of Science. ANAT courses are considered to be Outside Options in the BSc General program. In each BSc General degree there is room for up to 18 units of course weight of Non-Arts, Non-Science (Outside) Options. ANAT courses may be used as options in a BSc Specialization or Honors program, so long as they are approved by the appropriate Specialization or Honors advisor.
• 10. How many classes should I take each term?
  That depends on the program to which you have been admitted. Each program has its own course load requirement that you must follow. Refer to the calendar first, to find the minimum course load you are required to take. For example, most Specialization and Honors programs require students to successfully complete a minimum of *24 credits each Fall/Winter. However, some programs require only *18 credits or *30 credits each Fall/Winter. When in doubt refer to the calendar or speak with an advisor.
  General Science students do not have course load requirements and can take up to 5 courses per term.
  
  NOTE: Some scholarships, awards or loans require you to carry a specific course load. Keep this in mind when registering for courses.
• 11. How many courses should I take to be a full-time student?
  A course load less than *9 (less than 3 courses) is classified as part time. A course load of *9 or more (3 courses or more) is classified as full time.
• 12. Do I have to take English in my first year?
  The requirement is to complete 6 credits in English (ENGL or WRS courses) by the time you graduate. You do not have to take both of your English courses in the first year, some students choose to get them out of the way in first year, but other options are to take them in Spring/Summer or in future years. As long as they are completed by the time you graduate.
• 13. How do I meet my English Jr Core Requirement?

  You can meet this by completing *6 from the following
  ENGL 102, ENGL 103, ENGL 108 or ENGL 125.
  WRS 100, WRS 101, WRS 102, or WRS 104 (max *3 in WRS)
  Note: The ENGL requirements for JR core also count towards the Arts option total. 

• 14. Do Spring and Summer courses count towards my degree?

  Yes they do. They will count towards your degree. Major GPA and fulfill prerequisites when applicable, and can be used in graduation requirements. Academic Standing (which determines if a student can move forward in their degree one year to the next) is determined on Fall and Winter term courses only.