Overall Rating Gold
Overall Score 78.59
Liaison Beverley Ayeni
Submission Date March 1, 2024

STARS v2.2

University of Toronto Mississauga
AC-2: Learning Outcomes

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 7.88 / 8.00 Minali Giani
Sustainability Intern
Facilities Management and Planning
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1. Institutional sustainability learning outcomes

Has the institution adopted one or more sustainability learning outcomes that apply to the entire student body or, at minimum, to the institution's predominant student body?:
Yes

Which of the following best describes the sustainability learning outcomes?:
Sustainability-focused

A list of the institution level sustainability learning outcomes:
Each U of T division has established its own Degree Level Expectations aligned with the Ontario Undergraduate Degree Level Expectations (UDLEs) and is empowered to update them through appropriate governance. The current, approved DLEs for all divisions are available on the Office of the Vice-Provost, Academic Programs website: https://www.vpacademic.utoronto.ca/academic-programs/degree-diploma-certificate-programs/degree-level-expectations/

The UDLEs encompass a range of competencies that students will acquire as part of their overall degree experience: some within the context of a major or specialist program, others as part of the complex of personal and intellectual changes that students experience as members of a research-intensive university and of the UTM community.

The DLEs for the UTM campus are found on the following document: the University of Toronto Mississauga Undergraduate Degree Level Expectations (2022). It provides a set of guidelines that UTM has established for its undergraduate degree level students. The competency that specifically focuses on sustainability is shown below:

Autonomy and Professional Capacity

Goals: Students will acquire the skills, knowledge, and critical problem solving they need to become informed, ethical, inclusive, independent, and creative thinkers and decision-makers; gain an awareness and appreciation that knowledge and its applications are influenced by and contribute to society as a whole; and lay the foundation for learning as a life-long endeavour.

Outcomes:
a. Manage and critically reflect on their own learning within and beyond the core field(s) of study.
b. Uphold the ethical values of the University, including freedom of expression and scholarly inquiry, academic integrity, equity, diversity, and inclusion, sustainability, and global citizenship.
c. Exercise initiative, personal responsibility and accountability in personal and group problem solving and decision-making contexts.
d. Identify how their areas of study relate to their personal and professional development.

The document also has "Supplementary Materials for the Use of the University of Toronto Mississauga Undergraduate Degree Level Expectations (2022)" which, under heading 6. Autonomy and Professional Capacity Goals, highlights sustainability:

Autonomy and Professional Capacity

It is vital that students acquire an appreciation of the values and practices of respect, equity, inclusion, and academic freedom that are integral to our educational mandate. We have a wide range of student clubs, activities, events, and programs – both academic and nonacademic – that offer students the opportunity to learn more and participate in the variety of communities that comprise our institution and address and promote issues such as social justice, global citizenship, and sustainability.

Finally, UTM aspires to instill students with a sense of the importance of sustainability in all aspects of human endeavours, as well as their role as global citizens. Both of these aspirations require respect for diversity, an awareness of personal and collective limitations and humility, and a true desire for inclusiveness. We continue to strive for this level of inclusive (educational) excellence in all our academic programs, and beyond them.

Part 2. Program-level sustainability learning outcomes

Total number of graduates from degree programs:
3,242

Number of graduates from degree programs that require an understanding of the concept of sustainability:
762

A brief description of how the figure above was determined:
This report presents graduation rates for the 2022/2023 academic year, encompassing undergraduate, graduate, and professional master's programs. The analysis focused on programs that require an understanding of sustainability-focused concepts, as determined by the successful completion of courses identified in the "Academic Courses (AC-1)" credit. To ensure a consistent data set, the inventory created for AC-1 Graduate and Undergraduate courses exclusively used courses offered during the 2022/2023 academic year as well.

A list of degree programs that require an understanding of the concept of sustainability:
• Human Geography (specialist and major) - The program requires the completion of GGR227H5, which is sustainability-focused.

• Physical Geography (specialist and major) - second year requires that you take 3 of 4 courses; 2 of these courses are sustainability-focused (GGR214H5 and GGR227H5).

• Environmental Science (specialist, major, and minor) - Requires completion of the following sustainability-focused courses: ENV100Y5; ENV201H5.

• Environmental Management (specialist, major, and minor) - Requires completion of the following sustainability-focused courses: ENV100Y5 and ENV201H5

• Sustainability (minor program) - Requires completion of the following sustainability-focused courses: ENV100Y5; ENV201H5; ENV210H5; ENV305H5

• Master of Science in Sustainability Management (MScSM) - The program is explicitly focused on sustainability. All 11 required core courses for this program are sustainability-focused.

• Master of Urban Innovation – Requires the completion of the following sustainability focused course: MUI1040H

• Environmental Law and Policy (minor program) - Requires completion of the following sustainability-focused courses: ENV100Y5; ENV201H5; JPE251H5; JPE252H5

• Earth Science (specialist, major, and minor) - Requires completion of the following sustainability-focused courses: ERS101H5 or ERS111H5 or ENV100Y5

• Education studies (minor program) - Requires completion of the following sustainability-focused courses: EDS220H5

• Environmental geosciences (specialist program) - Requires completion of the following sustainability-focused courses: ERS101H5 or ERS111H5 or ENV100Y5; and ERS315H5

• Canadian studies (major program) - Requires completion of the following sustainability-focused course: GGR202H5

• Geographical Information Systems (major and minor) – Requires the completion of the following sustainability focused course: GGR337H5

• Sociology – Requires the completion of the following sustainability focused course: SOC304H5, SOC339H5, SOC356H5, SOC463H5, SOC465H5

Documentation supporting the figure reported above (upload):
Do the figures reported above cover one, two, or three academic years?:
One

Percentage of students who graduate from programs that require an understanding of the concept of sustainability:
23.50

Optional Fields 

Website URL where information about the sustainability learning outcomes is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.