This innovative program is aimed at students with interests and abilities in both Computing and the Fine Arts. You can participate in advanced courses in Art, Drama, Film, or Music, while maintaining a solid concentration in Computer Science and Mathematics. Fill out your degree with electives in other Arts areas and interdisciplinary courses of all kinds. Graduates can expect to work in the entertainment industry, in art galleries and museums, in multimedia design and production, and in developing the next generation of software for the Arts.
Program Requirements
This information was directly extracted from the University's Academic Calendar on July 24, 2025 at 12:48. Any discrepancies are the result of errors with this website and can not be used to dispute this plan's requirements.
A half-year/one-term course is worth 3.0 units, while a full-year/two-term course is worth 6.0 units.
Subject: Administered by the School of Computing in partnership with the Departments of Art History and Art Conservation, Film and Media, and the DAN School of Drama and Music. Plan: Consists of 45.00 core units and 39.00 units in one Sub-Plan, as described below. Plan Code: COCA-S [----]-O (where [----] is a Computing and the Creative Arts Sub-Plan) Program: The Plan, alone, or in combination with a Minor in another subject, and with sufficient electives to a minimum of 120.00 units, will lead to a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Degree.
Note: Requirements for this program have been modified. Please consult the 2024-2025 Calendar for the previous requirements.
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
1. Core | ||
| A. Complete the following: | ||
| CISC 102 | Discrete Structures I | 3.00 |
| CISC 121 | Introduction to Computing Science I | 3.00 |
| CISC 124 | Introduction to Computing Science II | 3.00 |
| B. Complete the following: | ||
| COCA 201 | Introduction to Computing and the Creative Arts | 3.00 |
| C. Complete the following: | ||
| CISC 203 | Discrete Structures II | 3.00 |
| CISC 204 | Logic for Computing Science | 3.00 |
| CISC 223 | Software Specifications | 3.00 |
| CISC 235 | Data Structures | 3.00 |
| D. Complete the following: | ||
| CISC 325 | Human-Computer Interaction | 3.00 |
| CISC 352 | Artificial Intelligence | 3.00 |
| CISC 360 | Programming Paradigms | 3.00 |
| CISC 365 | Algorithms I | 3.00 |
| E. Complete 3.00 units from the following: | 3.00 | |
CISC at the 400-level | ||
| F. Complete 6.00 units from the following: | 6.00 | |
CISC at the 200-level or above | ||
2. Sub-Plans | ||
| A. Complete one of the following Sub-Plans: | 39.00 | |
| Electives and/or Other Plan Requirements | 36.00 | |
| Total Units | 120.00 | |
Sub-Plans
A. Computing and Art (COAR-O) (39.00)
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| i. Core | ||
| a. Complete 6.00 units from the following: | 6.00 | |
| Art and Architecture in Britain from the Classical Period to c.1700and Art and Architecture in Britain from c.1700 to the Present | ||
| or | ||
| Introduction to Global Art Historiesand Curating Art Worlds | ||
| ii. Option | ||
| a. Complete 3.00 units from the following: | 3.00 | |
ARTH at the 400-level | ||
| b. Complete 12.00 units from the following: | 12.00 | |
ARTH at the 300-level or above | ||
| c. Complete 18.00 units from the following: | 18.00 | |
ARTH at the 100- or 200-level | ||
| Total Units | 39.00 | |
B. Computing and Drama (CODR-O) (39.00)
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| i. Core | ||
| a. Complete 6.00 units from the following: | 6.00 | |
| Thinking Locallyand Acting Globally | ||
| or | ||
| Introduction to Drama, Theatre, and Performance Studies | ||
| b. Complete the following: | ||
| DRAM 200 | Theatre Histories and Traditions | 6.00 |
| DRAM 220 | Play Reading and Analysis | 3.00 |
| c. Complete 6.00 units from the following: | 6.00 | |
| Introduction to Theatre Production I | ||
| Design and Theatre | ||
| Introduction to Theatre Production II | ||
| ii. Option | ||
| a. Complete 12.00 units from the following: | 12.00 | |
DRAM at the 300-level or above | ||
| b. Complete 6.00 units from the following: | 6.00 | |
DRAM | ||
ENIN | ||
| Total Units | 39.00 | |
C. Computing and Film (COFI-O) (39.00)
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| i. Core | ||
| a. Complete 3.00 units from the following: | 3.00 | |
| Introduction to Film Studies: Approaches to Film Form | ||
| Introduction to Film History: Genres and Movements | ||
| b. Complete 3.00 units from the following: | 3.00 | |
| Introduction to Media Studies: Cultures and Technologies | ||
| Introduction to Media Studies: Arts and Practices | ||
| c. Complete 12.00 units from the following: | 12.00 | |
| Introduction to Animation Studies | ||
| Material Practices in Animation | ||
| Animation Production | ||
| Animation Theory and Criticism | ||
| 3D Animation | ||
| Introduction to Video Game Studies | ||
| Science Fiction Cinema | ||
| Special Topic in Film Histories | ||
| Art as Technology | ||
| Culture and Technology | ||
| Speculative Media Studies: Fictions, Fans, and Franchises | ||
| Computational Cinema | ||
| Virtual and Augmented Reality App Development | ||
| Post-Production | ||
| Special Effects | ||
| d. Complete the following: | ||
| FILM 250 | Fundamentals of Media Production | 3.00 |
| ii. Option | ||
| a. Complete 6.00 units from the following: | 6.00 | |
ANIM at the 400-level | ||
FILM at the 400-level | ||
MAPP at the 400-level | ||
| b. Complete 12.00 units from the following: | 12.00 | |
ANIM at the 300-level or above | ||
FILM at the 300-level or above | ||
MAPP at the 300-level or above | ||
| Total Units | 39.00 | |
D. Computing and Music (COMU-O) (39.00)
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| i. Core | ||
| a. Complete 3.00 units from the following: | 3.00 | |
| Music Fundamentals | ||
| Theory and Analysis IA | ||
| b. Complete 9.00 units from the following: | 9.00 | |
| Introduction to Digital Audio Recording, Editing, and Mixing | ||
| Amplified Sound in Live Contexts | ||
| Sampling and Beatmaking | ||
| Creative Production: Beats, Songs, and Soundtracks | ||
| c. Complete the following: | ||
| MUSC 126 | Ear Training for Production | 3.00 |
| MUSC 257 | Theory of Digital Recording | 3.00 |
| MUSC 258 | Musical Acoustics | 3.00 |
| d. Complete the following: | ||
| MUSC 103 | Music, Meaning, and Society | 3.00 |
| MUSC 209 | Critical Issues in Contemporary Popular Music | 3.00 |
| e. Complete 6.00 units from the following: | 6.00 | |
| Sound Production | ||
| Composition in the Sonic Arts Studio | ||
| Developing Sound Practices in the Sonic Arts Studio | ||
| Digital Scoring for Media | ||
| ii. Option | ||
| a. Complete 6.00 units from the following: | 6.00 | |
ENIN | ||
MUSC | ||
| iii. Notes | ||
| a. Students in this Sub-Plan rank with MUSC Joint Honours students for priority access to Music courses. | ||
| Total Units | 39.00 | |
3. Substitutions
A. Students admitted to the Plan in May 2025 may use ARTH 120/6.0 to satisfy 2.A.A.i.a. of the COAR-O Sub-Plan.
B. Students admitted to the Plan in May 2025 may use FILM 111/3.0 and FILM 112/3.0 to satisfy 2.A.C.i.a. and 2.A.C.i.b. of the COFI-O Sub-Plan.
4. Notes
A. Students with no programming experience should review the Introductory Courses paragraph included on the School of Computing overview page in the Calendar.
B. ELEC courses are offered by the Smith Engineering. Special permission may be required to register. All such courses will count as 3.00 units towards degree requirements in Arts and Science.
C. Students who have completed a conservatory Advanced Rudiments exam or equivalent with a grade of 80% or higher may request to have a different MUSC course substituted for Core 1.D.i.a. (MUSC 104/3.0).
D. FILM 250/3.0 is the prerequisite course for all upper-year production courses, therefore should be taken in second year. FILM 257/3.0 is the prerequisite course for FILM 312/3.0.
E. A maximum of 6.00 units from courses offered by other Faculties and Schools may be counted toward the program and/or Plan requirements. This includes courses in BMED, COMM, GLPH, HSCI, LAW, NURS, and courses offered by Smith Engineering.
Computing and the Creative Arts Course Lists
The following lists may contain courses offered through other Departments. In accordance with Academic Regulation 2.6 (Access to Classes), students do not have enrolment priority in all of these courses. Access to these courses may only be made available during the Open Enrolment period, and then only if space permits.
CISC_Subs
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| ELEC 470 | Computer System Architecture 1 | 3.50 |
| ELEC 474 | Machine Vision 1 | 3.50 |
| MATH 337 | Stochastic Models in Operations Research | 3.00 |
| MATH 401 | Graph Theory | 3.00 |
| MATH 402 | Enumerative Combinatorics | 3.00 |
| MATH 434 | Optimization Theory with Applications to Machine Learning | 3.00 |
| MATH 474 | Information Theory | 3.00 |
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Note that the unit weighting system in Smith Engineering differs from that in the Faculty of Arts and Science. Therefore, upon acceptance of any course from Smith Engineering, the unit weighting towards Arts and Science degree requirements shall be at the discretion of the Associate Dean (Academic). Usually, a one-term course shall count as 3.00 units and a two-term course as 6.00 units.
DRAM_Subs
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| CLST 312 | Greek and Roman Drama | 3.00 |
| DRAM 335 | Acting for the Screen | 3.00 |
| ENGL 259 | Global Shakespeare | 3.00 |
| ENGL 326 | Shakespeare and Renaissance Drama | 6.00 |
| ENIN | ||
| FILM 381 | Fan Studies | 3.00 |
| FREN 305 | Le théâtre depuis 1945 | 3.00 |
| ITLN 357 | Pirandello's Theatre | 3.00 |
| LLCU 200 | Semiotics: Interpreting the World | 3.00 |
| LLCU 257 | Pirandello's Theatre | 3.00 |
| LLCU 339 | XX-Century Italian Playwrights: In Search of the Theatre | 3.00 |
| MAPP 300 | Media and Performance II | 3.00 |
| MUSC 287 | Percussion Techniques and Methods | 3.00 |
| MUTH | ||
MUSC_Subs
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| BADR 200 | 3.00 | |
| DRAM 247 | Drama Practicum | 1.50 |
| ENIN | ||
| GNDS 410 | Special Topics in Gender Studies | 3.00 |
| LLCU 244 | Hips Don't Lie? Music and Culture in Latin America | 3.00 |
| MAPP 311 | Sound Production | 3.00 |
| MUTH | ||