York University is taking measured actions to address both the 2023 Auditor General’s report and to achieve financial sustainability in light of unexpected policy directions at the provincial and federal levels affecting higher education. The actions we are taking are part of a responsible set of initiatives in the Programs Sustainability Review as part of the Forward Action Plan.
All current students can continue their studies and will be supported to complete their degrees as planned. High demand courses in all areas will continue to be offered to majors in each program and to students in other degree programs as electives.
York continues to offer more than 200 exciting and excellent degree options for students. All applicants to affected programs will be offered the opportunity to enrol in other degree programs at York, and to take elective courses in their areas of interest.
| Campus | Faculty | Program |
| Glendon | Glendon College | English (Keele English BA program remains open for admission) |
| Global History and Justice (Keele History BA program remains open for admission) | ||
| Spanish & Latin American Cultures | ||
| Sociology (Keele Sociology BA program remains open for admission) | ||
| Keele | Liberal Arts & Professional Studies | Gender and Women Studies |
| Classics | ||
| Classical Studies | ||
| East Asian Studies | ||
| German Studies | ||
| Hellenic Studies | ||
| Italian Studies | ||
| Indigenous Studies | ||
| Jewish Studies | ||
| Portuguese and Brazilian Studies | ||
| Religious Studies | ||
| Spanish | ||
| Sexuality Studies | ||
| Science | Biomedical Physics | |
| Environmental Biology |
Absolutely not. York values these fields of study – and the many scholars and students engaged in them – as active and vital, generating and sharing new knowledge through faculty research, graduate programs, and well-enrolled undergraduate courses.
The decision to pause admission to these undergraduate programs is not meant to disrupt the research, teaching, learning, creative activities or community engagement that are central to these intellectual communities. We have, and will continue, to invest in the people and ideas at the heart of these fields.
A temporary suspension of admission to a program allows faculty colleagues the needed time to review and enhance program offerings and develop plans to offer the program sustainably.
Several options are available, including program renewal through major or minor modifications, relaunching as either a new major or as a minor; merger with other programs; cross-campus collaboration; and the continued offering of in-demand courses to students in other programs.
Suspension of admission is intended as a temporary measure and does not necessarily lead to program closure. Should program closure be determined as the best path forward, procedures under the York University Quality Assurance Procedures will be followed.