Science, Agriculture Technology
ufv.ca/scienceThe Bachelor of Agricultural Science (BAS), Horticulture major emphasizes the academic study of the natural sciences in combination with an applied agriculture curriculum. The program will provide students with an understanding of science and the practical nature of large scale horticulture production. Breadth of knowledge will be enhanced by communication, business, and general elective courses related to agriculture in society, in addition to science and agriculture courses.
The BAS requires 125 credits. To receive a Bachelor of Agricultural Science degree, students must complete an industry-based practicum (AGRI 192) and an applied research project (via a Capstone course) which provides graduates with practical experience with which to enter the workforce and face the challenges associated with the horticulture industry.
Students may enter directly from secondary school, from another post-secondary program, or transition into the program from an Agriculture Technology certificate or diploma.
Students transitioning from one of UFV's agriculture certificates or the Agriculture Technology diploma must satisfy the Agriculture Technology diploma's entrance requirements, as well as meeting the prerequisites for BIO 111, CHEM 110, and STAT 104.
Students who do not meet these requirements might consider Qualifying Studies and a meeting with an Academic Advisor to plan for the degree.
Applications are accepted on a continuous basis throughout the year. However, Agriculture Technology diploma students are encouraged to apply to the degree prior to the end of the third semester of the diploma. Applications will be reviewed based on work complete to date.
Qualified applicants are considered for the next intake in which there is space. See Continuous application process for more information.
Applicants who meet the entrance requirements will be admitted in order of their application date. This date is set when an application, all required documentation, and the application fee have been submitted.
See the Fees and Other Costs section.
With appropriate planning, the Bachelor of Agricultural Science requirements (125 credits) can be completed in four years of full-time study. Because upper-level courses are offered on a limited basis, students should seek the help of an Academic Advisor to plan their courses in advance, in order to complete their degree in a timely manner. The choice of which courses are to be offered each year will be made with reference to the needs of students who have been admitted in the program or have formally declared their intention to complete the degree.
The degree can be largely completed on the UFV Canada Education Park campus in Chilliwack, although some courses, especially at the upper level, may be offered at the Abbotsford campus only. Practicum may be on off-campus sites.
Course | Title | Credits |
One of: | 3 | |
BUS 100 | Introduction to Business | |
AGRI 142 | Agribusiness Principles | |
ECON 100 | Principles of Microeconomics | |
ECON 101 | Principles of Macroeconomics | |
Plus: | ||
STAT 104 | Introductory Statistics | 4 |
or STAT 106 | Statistics I | |
CMNS 125 | Communicating Professionally to Academic and Workplace Audiences | 3 |
or ENGL 105 | Academic Writing | |
One of: | 3 | |
CMNS 251 | Professional Report Writing | |
GEOG 257/ CMNS 257 | Environment: Science and Communications | |
CMNS 325 | Writing for the Sciences and Technologies |
Course | Title | Credits |
CHEM 113 | Principles of Chemistry I | 4–5 |
or CHEM 110 | Introductory Chemistry | |
BIO 111 | Introductory Biology I | 5 |
BIO 201 | Cell Biochemistry/Metabolism | 4 |
BIO 210 | Introduction to Ecology | 4 |
or BIO 219/ GEOG 219 | Biogeography | |
BIO 220 | Genetics | 4 |
Note: Students wishing to take GEOG 353 as an Agrology elective will need GEOG 253.
Course | Title | Credits |
Eight credits from: | 8 | |
GEOG 311 | Global Resources and the Environment | |
GEOG 312 | Nature, Power, and Place | |
GEOG 313/ SOC 313 | Agriculture and Rural Life | |
GEOG 314 | Geography of Food | |
GEOG 340/ GDS 340 | Geographies of Development: Landscapes of Inequality | |
GEOG 360 | Introduction to Regional and Community Planning and Policy | |
GEOG 364 | International Planning and Development Policy: Adapting to Climate Change | |
SOC 260/ ANTH 260 | Food for Thought: Food, Culture, and Society | |
SOC 360/ ANTH 360 | Eating and Thinking: Food, Identity, and Power in Global Societies | |
PHIL 318 | Environmental Ethics | |
BIO 477/IPK 477 | Traditional Ecological Knowledges |
Course | Title | Credits |
AGRI 123 | Horticulture Skills I | 3 |
AGRI 124 | Introduction to Horticulture | 3 |
AGRI 129 | Horticulture Skills II | 3 |
AGRI 163 | Pest Biology and Identification | 3 |
AGRI 183 | On-Farm Occupational Health and Safety | 3 |
AGRI 192 | Practicum I | 3–6 |
or COOP 110 | Co-op Work Term I | |
AGRI 203 | Fundamentals of Integrated Pest Management | 3 |
AGRI 204 | Introduction to Soils and Soil Fertility | 3 |
AGRI 212 | Principles of On-Farm Food Protection | 3 |
AGRI 220 | Plants in the Landscape | 3 |
AGRI 272 | Agriculture Seminar Series | 3 |
Course | Title | Credits |
AGRI 306 | Field Techniques in Integrated Pest Management (see Note) | 3 |
AGRI 311 | Sustainable Soil Management | 3 |
AGRI 321 | Vegetable Crop Production: Science & Practice | 3 |
AGRI 323 | Fruit Crop Production: Science & Practice | 3 |
AGRI 324 | Protected Crop Production: Science and Practice | 3 |
AGRI 327 | Nursery Production and Propagation: Science & Practice | 3 |
AGRI 371 | Agroecology | 3 |
Note: Students who have taken AGRI 206 will be considered to have satisfied the AGRI 306 requirement. Students with AGRI 206 cannot take AGRI 306 for further credit and must ensure they satisfy the minimum of 45 upper-level credits required for the BAS degree through their selection of elective courses.
Course | Title | Credits |
Four or five of: | 14–20 | |
AGRI 328 | Forage Crop Production: Science and Practice | |
AGRI 331 | Dairy Herd Management: Science and Practice | |
BIO 307 | Anatomy and Diversity of Plants | |
BIO 308 | Plant Physiology | |
BIO 309 | Microbiology I | |
BIO 310 | Conservation Biology | |
BIO 319/ GEOG 319 | Swamps and Bogs | |
BIO 330 | Plants and Animals of British Columbia | |
BIO 335/ GEOG 335 | Freshwater Ecology | |
BIO 360 | Insect Biology | |
BIO 370 | Introduction to Mycology | |
BIO 407 | Applied Biotechnology | |
BIO 410/ GEOG 410 | Plant Ecology | |
BIO 419/ GEOG 419 | Paleoecology | |
BIO 426 | Environmental Microbiology | |
BIO 430 | Forest Ecology | |
GEOG 303 | Environmental Hydrology | |
GEOG 308 | Climate Change and Variability | |
GEOG 315 | Soilscapes | |
GEOG 318 | Water Resources Management | |
GEOG 353 | GIS Applications |
Course | Title | Credits |
AGRI 390 | Directed Studies in Agriculture II | 3 |
or AGRI 490 | Directed Studies in Agriculture III |
Note: Specific topics to be approved by the Bachelor of Agricultural Science Program Committee.
Course | Title | Credits |
12 university-level credits at the 100 level or higher | 12 |
The Co-operative Education option provides students with the opportunity to acquire paid, career-related work experience in conjunction with their studies in the Bachelor of Agricultural Science degree. See the Co-operative Education section for more details.
To receive a Bachelor of Agricultural Science, students must complete 125 credits including the general requirements (Business, Statistics, and Communication; lower-level Science; and Agriculture in Society) and the Horticulture major requirements. At least 45 credits must be at the upper level.
Students enrolled in undergraduate courses (courses numbered 100 or higher) must maintain an undergraduate Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of at least 2.00 to remain enrolled in Good Academic Standing at UFV. Students in Good Academic Standing will have no registration limits placed on them. Failure to meet the minimum CGPA requirement will result in restrictions on registration and may eventually lead to academic suspension from undergraduate studies at UFV. Students on Academic Warning or Academic Probation are limited to registering in 10 credits. For further details, see the Academic standing and undergraduate continuance section of the academic calendar. Academic standing is governed by UFV’s Undergraduate Continuance policy (92).
Students are not permitted to register for the same course more than three times. Students wishing to register for a course for a fourth time should connect with the Student Rights and Responsibilities Office. Where a course has been repeated, only the higher grade is counted in the GPA calculation. See UFV's Course Repeat policy (86).
No more than five upper-level course duplications will be permitted on courses which apply to the BAS. Students with more than five upper-level course duplications will be required to withdraw from the program.
Of the 125 credits, 60 credits must be completed at UFV. At least 50% of the upper-level credits in the Horticulture major (including the capstone course) must be completed at UFV.
It is the student’s responsibility to ensure all program requirements are met. This should be done by regular consultation with an Academic Advisor. All degree candidates must be approved by UFV Advising. To be eligible to graduate, students must achieve a minimum GPA of 2.00 in the BAS program, a minimum GPA of 2.00 in their major, and a minimum CGPA of 2.00 in all upper-level credits is required for graduation.
Students must apply for graduation in the first month of their final semester. Visit the Graduation webpage for more information. The final deadline for students who wish to attend the June Convocation ceremony is April 1 of each year, with all program requirements completed by April 30.
For complete details on courses see the course descriptions section.