New Programs

Here’s what you can expect: 
✔ Study across sociology, psychology and health disciplines 
✔ Learn about wellness, sport and health from a societal perspective 
✔ Get involved with hands-on projects, research and community engagement 
✔ Explore career options in public health, wellness programming, sport development and more 

Minor in Archaeology and Material Culture 
Through the Minor in Archaeology and Material Culture, learn scientific methods, theories and techniques for studying past human cultures and societies through the material record. Students can also participate in ongoing archaeological field research or field schools conducted by Saint Mary’s professors working in the Maritimes or Europe. 

Other recent program additions 

• Interdisciplinary Major in Public Humanities and Heritage 
• Major in Law and Ethics 
• Minor in Climate Change Studies

Summer 2025 Special Topics courses  

These courses are available in July-August. For the most current course information, please refer to the Academic Calendar and Banner. Courses are in person on campus, unless otherwise noted.  

CRIM 4827: Criminal Justice Politics and Policy (CRN 40931) 
Monday and Wednesday 5:30–8:30 p.m. 
Instructor: TBA
Through critical socio-legal inquiry, this course examines the development, implementation and impact of justice policies within the Canadian political landscape. It also analyzes the effects of progressive and oppressive policies and practices characterizing the contemporary Canadian justice system.

Students will examine how laws and criminal justice policies are shaped by political institutions, ideologies, public opinion, law enforcement agencies, Indigenous communities and advocacy groups. The course will also critically assess the roles of federal and provincial governments, the judiciary, and key policy actors in shaping justice outcomes. Through case studies and contemporary policy analysis, including investigation of topics such as the bail system, pre-trial detention, safe injection sites and sentencing reform, students will gain a nuanced understanding of the complex interplay between politics, law, and justice in Canada.

SOCI 3828: Sexualized Violence (CRN 40933)
Remote asynchronous delivery 
Instructor: TBA

WGSS 3828/SJCS 3608: Forms of Servitude (CRN 40940/40939)
Remote synchronous | Tuesdays and Thursdays, 5:30–8:30 p.m. 
Instructor: Dr. Benita Bunjun 
Explore different forms of servitude at the intersections of imperialism, racialization, globalization, labour and citizenship. Students will analyze a combination of texts (including film) that largely focus on Canadian contexts but also include texts set in other countries. Topics include chattel slavery, indentured labour and migrant labour.
Prerequisite: SJCS 1211 and SJCS 2220 or permission from the instructor.

Fall 2025 Special Topics courses

ANTH 2827: What’s The Deal with Taylor Swift? (CRN 28596)
Tuesday and Thursday 2:30–3:45 p.m. 
Instructor: Dr. Rylan Higgins
The social, cultural and economic noteworthiness of Taylor Swift is hard to overstate. Her influence and wealth are staggering, her reach, spectacularly global. Her appeal to hundreds of millions of people is mindboggling. This course takes these aspects of Swift’s celebrity status as a starting point and endeavours to interrogate and understand the nature of her appeal, power and influence. The anthropology of the celebrity reminds us that it is a social construct, the product of the public’s interactions with the entertainment industry. Indeed, celebrity figures have been referred to as “America’s royalty.” But even among this noble class, Swift stands out. In this course, we will explore Swift as a global celebrity juggernaut.

ANTH 3833: Are We Still Evolving? (CRN 28508)
Tuesday and Thursday 2:30–3:45 p.m.
Instructor: Dr. Laura Eastham   

ENGL 3832: Atlantic Canada Film & TV (CRN 28498)
Tuesday and Thursday 2:30–4:30 p.m. 
Instructor: Dr. Jennifer VanderBurgh 

FREN 4848: Literature and Culture of the French Pacific (CRN 28556)
Remote asynchronous delivery 
Instructor: Dr. Rohini Bannerjee

IRST 2842: Irish Politics (CRN 28571)
Tuesday and Thursday 11:30 a.m.–12:45 p.m. 
Instructor: Dr. Edward Molloy 

WGSS 4829 / WGST 6838: The Academic Incubator (CRN 28132/28135)
Tuesday and Thursday 10–11:15 a.m. 
Instructor: Dr. Michele Byers
This incubator course offers a playful space for experiments in taking academic knowledge out of the university into the wider world. Most students think about this transition but rarely get time or guidance to explore. You'll have the opportunity to creatively share knowledge with people beyond your own discipline and the space to brainstorm ideas, develop plans and try things out with them. It’s open to students from all faculties and fields of study because interdisciplinarity is a cornerstone of modern life. 

The project possibilities are virtually endless. Here are just a few:

• Start a business or develop a product
• Generate policy
• Community build and engage in direct action and / or advocacy
• Create art, craft or literature
• Produce a short film, podcast or website
• Make something accessible that wasn’t before

Stay tuned here for more course information as it becomes available.