Recreation and health education (BA)

The list of required courses and the recommended sequence for the Recreation and Health Education Co-operative Education Program are outlined in the current UVic Academic Calendar. 

Co-op is mandatory with this program, for more detailed information visit the Co-op website

Students' programs are normally governed by the Calendar regulations in effect at the date of their first registration in the faculty. If program requirements change before you finish your degree, you may, with approval, choose to be governed by the new regulations.

Contact the EPHE academic adviser if you have any questions.

For Secondary/High School applicants the Faculty of Education admission requirements.

Required courses notes:

• ADMN courses refer to the distance education courses offered through the School of Public Administration. Some courses require attendance at workshops, others are completed through on-line education. Administration courses are not usually listed in the Course Schedule.  You cannot register in your required ADMN electives yourself. You need to contact the School of Public Administration directly. You should email the School’s program manager, Heather Kirkham. Heather will register you in your preferred course(s) if there are places available. You will need to provide your name, student number and the course numbers you wish to register in.
• EPHE 454 must be taken during the last year on campus and after completion of at least two co-operative education work terms. Effective September 2016, this course will change from being year long to offered in one term only.
• Options for work terms sometimes include back to back or part-time work term opportunities. This results in a re-structuring of the course and work term rotation schedule.

The Recreation and Health Education Honours program is intended for motivated, self-directed students who want to engage in research during their undergraduate program.

Application 

If you are student in the Recreation and Health Education program you can apply for admission to Honours. 

To be eligible for admission to Honours you must have: 

• completed or be currently completing EPHE 357 or PSYC 201,
• Year 3 standing (i.e., have completed 27 or more units), and
• a GPA of at least 6.5 on 6.0 or more units of EPHE courses (excluding EPHE 104-137). 

To apply for admission to Honours you should email the EPHE Academic Adviser requesting an Honours eligibility check and Honours application form. If you are eligible for admission to Honours the EPHE academic adviser will provide you with an endorsed Honours application form. You then need to find an EPHE faculty member who is offering an Honours project opportunity. If the EPHE faculty members agrees to supervise your Honours project you need to ask them to complete the bottom of your Honours application form indicating their agreement to supervise your Honours project. The completed from should be returned to the EPHE Academic Adviser who will add Honours to your degree program. 

1. EPHE 357 (1.5 units) or PSYC 201 (1.5 units) is added as a required course
2. EPHE 499 (3.0 units) is added as a required course (NB, registration in this course requires completion of an Undergraduate Pro Forma Course Registration for by the Honours student and their supervisor)
3. 300- or 400-level electives are reduced by 3.0 units 

Registration in EPHE 499 (Honours project) is done manually using an Undergraduate Proforma Course Registration form that is completed by you and your supervisor and returned to the School of Exercise Science, Physical and Health Education program assistant. You must have been admitted to Honours before you can register in EPHE 499.

If you are using PSYC 201 in lieu of EPHE 357 in your Honours program and you are also completing the Minor in Psychology, you will need to take an additional 200-level PSYC course in place of PSYC 201 in the minor.

Kira Peterson: Love of sports leads to VANOC position

Kira Peterson, who is now working full-time for the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) after graduating in 2008, first developed her event planning skills while working as a co-op student. She completed her first work term as a coordinator with Burton Snowboards’ Chill Program, which helps at-risk youth in Vancouver take part in snowboarding activities. After this experience, Peterson was determined to add more events to her résumé. She was set on working for Gymnastics Canada Gymnastique in Ottawa, so she approached the organization and successfully secured a co-op work term. “I worked as an assistant to the events coordinator and learned so much about organizing sporting events. I ended up taking most of my electives by distance education so that I could immerse myself in this position.” 

Peterson continued event planning in sports on her fourth and final co-op work term with the Canadian Snowboard Federation (CSF), which she also helped set up. “I really fell in love with event planning while working with the CSF,” she says. “By the time I planned the athletes’ after-party for the 2007 Nokia Snowboard FIS World Cup in Calgary, I was fully hooked.”

Peterson’s relationship with the CSF didn’t end when she finished her co-op work term. As Coordinator, Freestyle Skiing & Snowboard, Sport for VANOC she works closely with her former employers and is using many of the skills she learned while with the CSF. “The biggest thing I learned while on my work terms was how to be flexible and adaptable. This has helped me in my job with VANOC coordinating volunteers, creating training material, and interacting with athletes.”

Whether it’s working with a team of 15 or a team of a thousand, collaboration is key for Peterson. Her work terms with Gymnastics Canada and the Canadian Snowboard Federation led to positive co-op experiences for herself, and also helped UVic Co-op and Career build relationships with these two new employers.

So what’s in store for Peterson after February 2010? She hopes to continue working in action sport events. “The experiences and challenges that I’ve faced in my co-op positions and at VANOC have been priceless and I’m positive that I can use them to create a future for myself.”

Update on Kira Peterson: After graduation, Peterson began working as alumni relations coordinator with UBC's Faculty of Medicine's Alumni Affairs office.

Sarah Rinaslarson: Working with disabled children inspires Indigenous student

“My experience was far more rewarding than I could have imagined. Although some days were difficult, the staff were always there to lend a hand or provide moral support. I am so blessed to have been given this opportunity,” says Sarah.

Though she was hesitant about taking part in the UVic Co-operative Education Program at first, the insight she gained through her work terms at the Queen Alexandra Centre has inspired her to pursue a career in occupational therapy. While at the camp, Sarah worked in the camp office and with the children directly.

Sarah has already applied to UBC’s Master of Occupational Therapy program and is excited to move to the “big city” of Vancouver. She feels that her experiences with UVic Co-op have given her the tools she needs to succeed.

“I have grown as a person, I’ve matured and I’ve been given the opportunity to see society from another perspective. I am now aware of those around me that may have a disabling condition or impairment and I am sensitive to their needs,” she says.

But ultimately, Sarah’s goal is to honour her family through her career choice. “I am a very family-oriented person and I want to choose a career and life path that will make myself and them proud. I have always seen a future for myself in the health field, helping people to change their lives for the better,” she says.

Update on Sarah: Sarah is currently completing her Master's degree in Occupational Therapy at UBC and is a recent winner of a Métis Health Career Award from the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation.

The Recreation and Health Education degree contains 18.0 units of electives, including 10.5 units of electives that can be selected from any 100 or above course, and 7.5 units of electives that can be selected from any 300 or 400 level course. If you are taking a transfer course via distance, be sure that the course transfers at a 300 or 400 level.

You should be aware that some elective courses may have prerequisites to register in them. It is your responsibility to ensure that you have completed any necessary prerequisites.