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SASAH – A Transformative Experience

The School for Advanced Studies in the Arts and Humanities is the flagship Program of Western’s Faculty of Arts and Humanities, established in 2013. Unique in Canada, the SASAH Program combines scholarly investigation, pedagogical innovation, experiential learning, and language acquisition to offer an interdisciplinary, cross-cultural, and community-engaged educational experience. Courses are taught in small classes by Research Fellows drawn from our internationally recognized faculty in Classical Studies, English and Writing Studies, Film Studies, French Studies, Languages and Cultures, Philosophy, Visual Arts, and Gender, Sexuality and Women's Studies.

The SASAH program draws on the Faculty of Arts and Humanities’ national reputation for scholarly excellence and classroom innovation: we are a catalyst for cutting-edge research, teaching, and student-directed learning. Graduates receive an undergraduate Major from the School in conjunction with a Major from an existing program. This means that our students combine disciplinary rigour with interdisciplinary flexibility and experimentation.

SASAH graduates will have demonstrated abilities in the following areas:

Cultural: appreciation of the complexities of human achievement, communication, and motivation in a wide range of places and moments in history.

Linguistic: acquisition of languages other than English.

Experiential:  hands on learning and professional experience opportunities in London, across Canada, and abroad.

Global: contact with wider cultural and workplace communities through international study, travel, and exchange.

Social: self-understanding through collaboration with classmates, scholars, and community members at home and abroad.

The Program information provided below is updated on an ongoing basis. Please note that course descriptions will change from year to year depending upon our Research Fellows. For more information, please send inquiries to either the SASAH Director or SASAH Program Coordinator at sasah@uwo.ca. 

Tuition

The cost to enroll in The School is the regular full-time tuition fee paid by all students registered in the Faculty of Arts & Humanities. 

Degree

Graduates will receive an Honors Bachelor of Arts with a Major in SASAH, as well as a Major (honours module) or Honors Specialization in another program of their choice.

Students will register in the Arts and Humanities Major, but they also must be registered in a second Major (honours module) or Honors Specialization. In other words, the Major in Arts and Humanities cannot be taken on its own.

The First Year

All students in SASAH register for SASAH 1020E. Team-taught by the School’s Research Fellows, this course is a thematic and historical survey of representative fields and topics within the Faculty of Arts and Humanities. SASAH Fellows are invited to test-drive innovative and experimental approaches to course designs tailored to our smaller class sizes. This year-long course introduces students to the study of culture, modes of scholarly and public engagement, and their central place in societies. Assignments emphasize scholarly rigour, critical thinking, and advanced communication skills, as well as introduce the principles of experiential learning.

First-year students have the option to live together on a SASAH-dedicated floor in Ontario Hall, with an upper year SASAH student as their Residence Don. Students are also introduced into smaller extracurricular groups across all four years of the program, offering an immediate community of upper year mentors. 

Second to Fourth Years

Students progress through an increasingly intensive and enriched curriculum.

Second-year courses orient students in theoretical approaches and research methods specific to Arts and Humanities. Course constants in the second year include dedicated exploration of the digital humanities (SASAH 2230G) and critical theory (SASAH 2240F), as well as two special topics courses.

Third-year special topics courses combine cross-listed courses in the Arts and Humanities with opportunities for international exchanges. An online half-course in professional and community practices can be taken even if students are studying abroad. This course prepares students for transitioning to careers or post-graduate studies.

The fourth year offers experiential learning courses that expose students to training in the broader community. A full-year capstone seminar is co-taught by the SASAH Director and a guest professor. This course includes a community-engaged group project and an individual research project. 

Experiential and Extracurricular Learning

SASAH provides an environment where students can engage in a wide spectrum of learning activities beyond the classroom. There are opportunities for working with archives and other historical materials, curating exhibitions, editing and project managing publications, experimenting with marketing outreach, learning organizational planning and design, and partnersing on research engagements within and beyond the faculty.

Our students have strong representation on valued extracurricular organizations and initiatives on campus, including: 

• The Arts and Humanities Student Council
• Arts and Humanities Sophs
• Western University Student Council (USC)
• USC's Public Arts Commission
• Pride USC
• Western's Black Students' Association
• The Gazette
• Radio Western
• Theatre Western
• Western Summer Shakespeare
• ICONOCLAST Collective
• The Coterie
• Penned by Western
• Western Mustangs Women's Lacross
• UWO Classics Society
• UWO Poker Club
• Campfire Circle Western 

Research Fellows

SASAH’s focussed learning environment offers engaged mentorship from the School’s Research Fellows, who are drawn from the over 140 professors in Western’s top-ranked Faculty of Arts and Humanities. This group of dedicated scholars includes Canada Research Chairs, Distinguished University Professors, Hellmuth Prize winners, 3M National Teaching Fellows, and Edward Pleva Teaching Award winners. 

Publications and Exhibitions

SASAH sponsors and facilitates the presentation of exhibitions, public programs, as well as digital and print publications. Guided by Faculty Research Fellows, the students gain valuable professional opportunities to disseminate their work and to begin to develop a scholarly and/or creative track record.

View a showcase of our students' research on Scholarship@Western, and enjoy a selection of creative and independent student projects on Pegasus. 

Shared Study Space

SASAH has a dedicated study and seminar space in Stevenson Hall, Room 3156, on Main Campus. This lounge offers a common space for students to engage in creative, critical, and professional exchange and debate. The offices for the Director, Program Coordinator, Community Engagement and Outreach Coordinator, and the Experiential Learning Specialist are also located in Stevenson Hall, across from 3156. SASAH is proud to offer a warm and welcoming environment where staff and dedicated faculty are regularly available for student consultations.