Welcome from the Dean
Hello and welcome to VIU’s Faculty of Social Sciences! Come learn with us and discover where your VIU Social Sciences experience will take you.
An education in the Social Sciences will shape how you think. Learn in our Faculty and become adept in seeing, analyzing, and appreciating the complexity in people and circumstances. Develop your readiness to succeed in today’s rapidly changing world marked by globalization and innovation!
VIU’s Faculty of Social Sciences is home to an array of programs. Join us and realize your full potential as a flexible, creative thinker and communicator, well equipped to launch successfully into a broad range of career possibilities. Your education in this Faculty will ignite your personal growth as you step into a world of learning where your well-being and success form the backbone of our programs.
Classes are small, interactive, and filled with innovative teaching. Faculty members, invested in your success, create engaging learning that will get you asking questions about the course content and making discoveries about your talents and dreams. Discussions, projects, presentations, research activity, field trips will be part of your learning experience.
Our departments and programs include Anthropology, Criminology, Geography and Geoscience, Global Studies, Interdisciplinary Studies, Liberal Studies, Philosophy and Religious Studies, Political Studies, Psychology and Sociology. We also offer an Addictions Certificate, a Legal Studies Certificate, a Diploma in Criminology, an Advanced Diploma in Geographic Information Systems Applications, a Master of Geographic Information Systems Applications and a Master of Community Planning. We also participate in the Connexions program for students who want a special experience in first year.
Our students come from many different nations and cultures. We recognize, value, and support the diverse needs and talents of our students. We live and learn together in a supportive, inclusive community.
Your degree will prepare you for many career options as well as avenues for further study. Some of our alumni have advanced to law school, a wide range of graduate programs in Canada and abroad, employment with non-profit societies and government agencies, freelance writing, and entrepreneurial ventures.
I invite you to browse our site and discover what we have to offer. Like our Facebook page and learn about the exciting work of our people and the good times we share together. A recruitment officer can assist you in learning more about VIU and the application process. Get in touch with me, Elizabeth.Brimacombe@viu.ca, about any questions you have about our Faculty.
Come join us! We offer a wonderful mind-expanding journey fueled by your passion for learning.
Elizabeth Brimacombe, Dean Faculty of Social Sciences
- Why a liberal arts education pays off
- VIU Social Sciences on Facebook
- VIU Indigenous Student Handbook
- VIU International Student Admissions
- VIU Positive Space
- Mental Fitness Tips from the Canadian Mental Health Association
- Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada
The VIU campuses are located on the unceded territories of the Snuneymuxw First Nation, Tla’amin First Nation, Snaw-naw-as First Nation and the Cowichan Tribes. With deep respect for the Original Peoples of this land, we nurture learning experiences grounded in a spirit of reconciliation and collaboration with Indigenous communities. Haychqu’ sii’em siye’ yu mukw Mustimuxw