Field Trips Exist in University too!

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One of the best parts of high school is undoubtedly, in my opinion, field trips! What better way to learn about something then to go out and see it for yourself? The fun doesn’t have to end in high school because field trips exist in university too! Just this past week, for instance, the second-year course “Foundations of Urban and Regional Environments” (ENVS 2200 6.0) part of the Faculty of Environmental Studies (FES) led by Professor Roger Keil, went on a weekend field trip to Midland, Ontario to visit the Huronia Museum. Check out this cool photo posted by a student in the course:

If you’d like to see more photos from the field trip, check out this student made photo essay! The Professor who teaches the course, Roger Keil (who btw, is suuuuper cool) later shared this same photo essay on his Twitter account: @rkeil. Yes, professors have Twitter! Sometimes a course will even expect you to make a Twitter account and use it as a form of class participation, is that awesome or what? Professor Keil is also the recipient of the 2013 President’s Research Excellence Award for his contributions to research at York. If you’re interested, you can check out this YFile article for more on Keil. As an upper year university student, I have to say that the fact that FES undergrads have the opportunity to be taught by such an accomplished researcher in a second year course is a big deal! To put things into perspective for you, Professor Keil is someone that Graduate and PhD students hope to be able to work with. He is the principal investigator of a Major Collaborative Research Initiative at the City Institute at York University on Global Suburbanisms (which includes collaborators and partners from across the world). The City Institute is basically a network in which 60+ scholars in related fields work together on a variety of interdisciplinary research projects on Canada’s environmental development. To be part of a Faculty like FES which is so dedicated to constantly flourishing and expanding is pretty amazing. If you are considering studying environmental studies for your undergraduate degree, the Faculty of Environmental Studies (FES) at York U is the largest of its kind in North America. As an FES undergrad, your classes will include a combination of lectures, tutorials and labs that will give you the ability to identify and research environmental issues and also take action in finding suitable solutions. Your courses will be subject focused depending on which stream you chose to study. Check out this video to watch what current FES students are learning and their experiences within their program: Faculty of Environmental Studies Student Profiles   FES is filled with a wide variety of innovative and progressive streams within its Bachelors program, from urban planning to environmental politics. Sound exciting but a little overwhelming? You don’t need to worry because you will spend your entire first year taking core courses. These courses will help you choose which stream your studies will focus on for your degree in FES. After selecting from one of the four areas of concentration in your second-year, you will be able to add additional certifications in a field of your interest. Afeefa is a recent FES grad, check out her degree details and how she decided on her program of choice: Deciding what to study in university and which degree is right for you can be challenging and a lot of responsibility. If you are interested in FES at York or a related program, it helps that you get a lot of choice and opportunity to take a variety of related courses so that you can be sure you are studying something you are passionate about! If you have any questions about programs available at York and want advice from current students, leave a comment here, on our Facebook page or connect with us on Twitter @yorkustudents and get your questions answered! Kren