The text below is proposed for inclusion in the 2004/5 SFU calendar as a new entry under Faculty of Applied Sciences. It is based on the overall program design put forward by the School in FAS UCC Paper 2004-6B, with the following modifications.
[Director, etc.]
Students in the School of Interactive Arts and Technology will become digital culture professionals who are well qualified to fill the jobs of the future related to technology and culture. Students with interests in creativity and design will work with technology to generate interactive media projects and systems and will develop strategies for building communities.
For students entering TechOne in September 2002 or earlier.
BSc(Information Technology, TechBC)
BSc(Interactive Arts, TechBC)
For students entering TechOne in 2003 or later, the following
programs are under development.
BA with Major in Interactive Arts and Technology
BA (Honors) with Honors in Interactive Arts and Technology
BSc with Major in Interactive Arts and Technology
BSc (Honors) with Honors in Interactive Arts and Technology
Minor in Interactive Arts and Technology
The programs of the School of Interactive Arts and Technology are designed around four streams, each representing a distinct academic emphasis within an overall theme of people using technology in context.
This stream has an artistic emphasis within the field of Interactive Arts and Technology. In the PMA stream, the interpretation and expression of human experience is explored through interactive technological environments. This stream combines critical theory with artistic practice to produce artworks in the form of installation, performance and exhibition. Its graduates will create new forms of cultural and artistic expression in our technologically mediated society.
The New Media Environments stream combines the creation of digital media art with the understanding of media artifacts and environments within broader cultural contexts. Digital media sits at the intersection of computation and culture; as a consequence, digital media artifacts, environments, and experiences are emergent phenomena. The NME stream builds on this state of emergence as an ongoing characteristic of digital media. At the same time, digital media are studied in the context of their historical, cultural, social, and economic processes.
This stream studies technological systems used by people in work, learning and play situations. Its emphasis is on system-building with particular emphasis on how people use systems, how to program user-centred systems and how to represent and reason about the objects and environments that people use. Its graduates will be able to make systems that people find useful and engaging.
Arrangements for the work experiences are made through the school's co-op coordinators and the University's Office of Co-operative Education.
Admission to the School is possible through four routes.
Students apply to either the BA or BSc program upon completion of TechOne or its equivalent. Students must have completed at least 24 credit hours of the core lower division BA or BSc requirements listed below for admission to the respective degree program.
Admission is competitive based on a grade point average calculated over all courses taken from the core requirements of the relevant degree program. In the case of duplicated (repeated) courses, all course attempts are counted equally in the admission average. Students who are unsuccessful in their first admission application may improve their average by taking additional courses from the core requirements.
The lower division requirements for all planned IAT major and honors programs consist of the lower division core requirements of either the BA program or the BSc program plus the additional lower division requirements of one of the four streams.
IAT 100-3 Systems of Media Representation
IAT 101-3 New Media Images
IAT 200-3 Cognition for Design Science
IAT 201-3 Usability in Interactive Environments
IAT 202-3 Programming Multimedia
CMPT 120-3 Introduction to Computer Science & Programming I
CMPT 125-3 Introduction to Computer Science & Programming II
One of
MACM 101-3 Discrete Mathematics I
MATH 151-3 Calculus I
or another approved course in mathematics
TECH 100-3 Fundamentals of Teamwork and Communication I
TECH 101-3 Fundamentals of Teamwork and Communication II
TECH 114-3 History and Theory of Technology and Culture
Two additional courses chosen from the Faculty of Arts or the School of Communication.
Students admitted to the 2003 cohort of TechOne may substitute the following predecessor courses for IAT 100, 101, CMPT 120, and 125: TECH 117, 124, 149 and CMPT 118.
IAT 100-3 Systems of Media Representation
IAT 101-3 New Media Images
IAT 200-3 Cognition for Design Science
IAT 201-3 Usability in Interactive Environments
IAT 202-3 Programming Multimedia
IAT/CMPT 261-3 Spatial Computing
CMPT 120-3 Introduction to Computer Science and Programming I
CMPT 125-3 Introduction to Computer Science and Programming II
CMPT 225-3 Data Structures and Programming
MACM 101-3 Discrete Mathematics I
MATH 151-3 Calculus I
MATH 232-3 Elementary Linear Algebra
plus one additional calculus course
TECH 100-3 Fundamentals of Teamwork and Communication I
TECH 101-3 Fundamentals of Teamwork and Communication II
TECH 114-3 History and Theory of Technology and Culture
One of
KIN 142-3 Introduction to Kinesiology
PHYS 120-3 Modern Physics and Mechanics
or another approved course in the physical sciences
Students admitted to the 2003 cohort of TechOne may substitute the following predecessor courses for IAT 100, 101, CMPT 120, and 125: TECH 117, 124, 149 and CMPT 118.
Stream requirements are expressed in terms of the following elective lists.
List 1 - Media Electives:
IAT 241-3 Animation
IAT 242-3 Moving Images
IAT 243-3 Sound Interaction
IAT 244-3 Digital Photography I: Post Photography
List 2 - Lower Division Cultural Theory electives:
IAT 203-3 Cultural Icons & Popular Arts
IAT 206-3 Media Across Cultures
IAT 204-3 Encoding Media Practice
Plus two lower division media electives (List1)
And one lower division cultural theory elective (List 2)
IAT 230-3 Design of Digital Environments
IAT 231-3 Visualizing Interaction
IAT 232-3 Prototyping and Human Factors
And one lower division cultural theory elective (List 2)
IAT 204-3 Encoding Media Practice
And two lower division media electives (List1)
And one lower division cultural theory elective (List 2)
The stream requirements for TAD are included in the BSc core requirements. Students pursuing a BA must take the following additional courses.
CMPT 225-3 Data Structures & Programming
IAT/CMPT 261-3 Spatial Computing
MACM 101-3 Discrete Mathematics I
MATH 151-3 Calculus I
MATH 232-3 Elementary Linear Algebra
plus one additional calculus course
(under development)
The upper division requirements for IAT major and honors programs are still under development at the time of printing of this calendar. [website reference to be added]
A minor in Interactive Arts and Technology is available – this is not specific to any stream.
Students must complete the following courses (21 credits).
IAT 100-3 Systems of Media representation
IAT 101-3 New Media images
IAT 200-3 Cognition for Design Science
IAT 201-3 Usability in Interactive Environments
CMPT 120-3 Introduction to Computer Science and Programming I
CMPT 125-3 Introduction to Computer Science and Programming II
Plus at least one of:
MATH 151-3 Calculus I
MACM 101-3 Discrete Mathematics I
Students must complete 15 upper division IAT credits. It should be recognized that some upper division courses have lower division prerequisites.
This degree program includes 126 credits of course work including the following.
[text or website reference to be added]
This degree program includes 126 credits of course work including the following.
[text or website reference to be added]