Faculty of Culture + Community
The Faculty of Culture + Community provides the academic core for every undergraduate at Emily Carr University. All students begin with Foundation Year, an intensive introduction to art, media and design that builds critical thinking, technical skills and creative confidence.
The faculty offers majors and minors that connect cultural theory with studio practice. Courses span history, writing, social and ecological practice, and community engagement. Learning extends into real-world collaborations with public, non-profit, community and academic partners, fostering social awareness, sustainability and cultural transformation.
Foundation Year, Majors + Minors
Explore Foundation Year
Foundation Year
The Foundation Year is the starting point for every undergraduate student at Emily Carr University. Through critical inquiry, creative exploration and interdisciplinary practice, students build core skills while taking studio courses connected to their chosen major.
Foundation Summer Accelerated Program
The Foundation Summer Accelerated Program condenses the first year into two intensive semesters from May to August. Students gain conceptual grounding and introductory skills in visual arts, design, film and screen arts while forming close connections with their peers.
Explore the Majors + Minors
Critical + Cultural Practice Major
The Critical + Cultural Practice Major develops skills in critical writing alongside a sustained visual arts practice. Students connect research and studio work to explore how art engages with culture and society.
Social Practice + Community Engagement (SPACE) Minor
The SPACE Minor offers opportunities to link your creative practice with community. Through applied art, design and media, students address issues of ecology, sustainability and social engagement while working with organizations, schools and citizen groups. It is available to all undergraduate students.
Explore Unique Tracks + Programs
The Writing Track
The Writing Track treats writing as a creative practice in its own right. Students experiment with forms including poetry, fiction, scriptwriting, criticism, graphic novels and collaborative projects, while engaging with art and design contexts. Courses emphasize language as material, encouraging inquiry, play and critical reflection within a diverse community of writers.
The Creative Art Pathway (CAP)
CAP offers a supportive bridge into undergraduate studies. Designed for students who meet ECU’s academic and portfolio requirements, the pathway combines English upgrading with studio courses.
Faculty Members
The Faculty of Culture + Community is led by Dean Jacqueline Turner, a poet and writer whose published works include five books with ECW Press. Her practice extends into arts journalism and residencies, including serving as the inaugural poet-in-residence at the Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts in Brisbane, Australia.
Faculty members in this area include artists, writers and scholars whose teaching connects cultural theory with creative practice across disciplines.
Shops + Studios
Our 20+ purpose-built shops and studios give students space to create, experiment and collaborate across disciplines. They are maintained by expert staff who support students through instruction and guidance.
From ceramics and print media to digital fabrication and wood shops, these facilities support both traditional techniques and emerging technologies.
Research + Creative Practices
Research in the Faculty of Culture + Community bridges theory, writing and social practice with creative methods. Faculty and students investigate cultural histories, language, ecology and community engagement to understand how art and design shape contemporary society.
Projects often grow through partnerships with public, non-profit and community organizations, contributing to dialogue, equity and cultural transformation locally and globally.
