Congratulations on your admission to Queen’s! We are so happy to have you joining us in Arts and Science. Your first year at Queen's may seem like a whirlwind, but our team is here to help you. If you feel lost or you're not sure what your next move is, please connect with us through one of our many advising options. We are here to support you from the day you step on campus to the day you cross the stage.
First-Year Registration Guide
Mark your calendars! Registration begins on July 24. We know that your first time completing course registration can be overwhelming – but it doesn’t have to be. We have developed a Registration Guide that provides you with helpful tips, resources, templates, and answers to your registration questions.
Still have questions? We’re here to help. Our guide also outlines all the best ways to seek support and get in touch with us during registration. You’re not in this alone.
Next Steps
Start preparing for your first year by checking out our Next Steps website. The website will be updated throughout the summer, so make sure to check back often!
Information for parents, friends, and supports is available on the Student Affairs website: queensu.ca/studentaffairs/parents
Are you a first year Bader College student?
Check out the Bader College First-Year page to learn more about your next steps.
Are you a Concurrent Education student?
If you are a first-year Concurrent Education (Con-Ed) student then you are part of two faculties, the Faculty of Arts and Science and the Faculty of Education. You will take most of your classes within Arts and Science and have two extra courses (PROF and PRAC) from the Faculty of Education automatically added to your schedule. Make sure you familiarize yourself with the Arts and Science courses and requirements as well as the Con-Ed ones. You can use the Next Steps website to learn more about your next steps, as well as the Con-Ed website to learn more about the Faculty of Education.
First Year Foundation
The Student Experience Office is offering exclusive First-Year Foundation programming that starts this summer and gives you online and in-person opportunities to build your community, support your transition, and find your path to success.
Explore their programs to learn more about how to make your transition to Queen’s a successful one.
Academics 101
Prepare for your academic transition to university life with Academics 101. This is an engaging and interactive resource that will introduce you to the key learning and writing skills you’ll need to succeed at Queen’s. It includes opportunities to learn, test knowledge, reflect on plans/goals for fall 2022, and receive feedback. You can complete the entire mini-course or individual subsections, as desired.
Now available on onQ.
Learn more about Academics 101 in our story Prepping for Academic Life with FAS.
Academic Advising and Other Resources
Peer Academic Support Service (PASS)
This service is designed to ease student transition into university and to promote academic success. Peer Advisors address common questions and concerns (scheduling, plan requirements, SOLUS, and selecting courses) during confidential, non-judgmental advising sessions.
Academic Advising
If you are looking for some guidance regarding academics, connect with one of our Academic Advisors! They are trained staff who can advise you about your options in Arts and Science.
Ask your questions or book an appointment through:
Email: asc.studentservices@queensu.ca
Phone: 613-533-2470
Student Ambassador Program
Want to connect with a current student and get all your Queens questions answered? Check out our Student Ambassador program!
Other Resources:
Student Academic Success Services (SASS)
Therapy Assistance Online (TAO) Support
Queen’s University International Centre (QUIC)
Arts and Science Undergraduate Society (ASUS)
Athletics and Recreation Centre (ARC)
Office of the University Registrar
Four Directions Indigenous Student Centre
Plan Selection
At the end of your first year in May, you will declare your Plan (in other words, your major, Joint Honours, minor or specialization depending on what you choose). See the Plan Selection page of our website to find out everything you need to know about Plan Selection.
Learn About First Year Courses
Chemistry
Classics
Computing
Environmental Studies
Geology
Global Development Studies
History
Kinesiology and Health Studies
Math
Psychology
Cha Gheill & the Oil Thigh
The Oil Thigh
This combined song and dance is a distinctive Queen's tradition, performed at sporting events and most university occasions less formal than convocations (although spontaneous Oil Thighs have also been known to occur). It consists of the old song "Queen's College Colours," sung to the accompaniment of a low-kicking sort of can-can dance.
The name "Oil Thigh" comes from the chorus of the song, which begins with the Gaelic words "Oil thigh na Banrighinn a'Banrighinn gu brath" ("The college of the wife of the King forever"). At football games, it is a tradition that students perform an Oil Thigh after every touchdown.
The song "Queen's College Colours" was written in 1898 by student Alfred Lavell to inspire Queen's football team to victory after a disappointing loss to the University of Toronto. Its staying power is somewhat surprising: it was just one of countless university songs penned at a time when songwriting was a booming pastime among students, and even Lavell later described its verses as "sophomoric."
Its survival is due partly to its rousing Gaelic chorus, which was actually written separately as a university cheer in 1891, and its popular tune, stolen from the American "Battle Hymn of the Republic." But it has also prospered because most of its rivals suffered even more noticeably from over-sentimentality and clumsy rhyme.
The song's original line "So, boys, go in and win!" was changed to "So, Gaels, go in and win!" in 1985 to include Queen's women athletes.
The modern version of the Oil Thigh:
Queen's College colours we are wearing once again,
Soiled as they are by the battle and the rain,
Yet another victory to wipe away the stain!
So, Gaels, go in and win!
Chorus:
Oil thigh na Banrighinn a'Banrighinn gu brath!
Oil thigh na Banrighinn a'Banrighinn gu brath!
Oil thigh na Banrighinn a'Banrighinn gu brath!
Cha-gheill! Cha-gheill! Cha-gheill!
Varsity's not invincible, they tremble at the news
Of Queen's College Colours and are shaking in their shoes.
Yet another victory, the chance we dare not lose.
So, Gaels, go in and win!
Chorus: Oil thigh, na Banrighinn...
McGill has met defeat before, they've heard the same old tale
Of Queen's College colours, boys, the ones that seldom fail,
Remember Captain Curtis and the conquerors of Yale,
So, Gaels, go in and win!
Chorus: Oil thigh, na Banrighinn...
Western’s White and Purple have come down to Queen’s to score,
We sent them back to London as they’d ne’er been sent before.
And Queen’s again were victors as they were in days of yore,
So, Gaels, go in and win!
There may be other colours to the breezes oft unfurled,
And many another college yell by student voices hurled;
Queen's College colours are the dearest in the world,
So, Gaels, go in and win!
Cha Gheill
This Gaelic war cry, correctly pronounced "kay yi-al" and usually translated as "no surrender," is the rousing conclusion of Queen's traditional cheer (see below). The cheer is now used almost exclusively in the chorus of "Queen's College Colours," popularly known as the Oil Thigh song, but actually predates the song.
The cheer was composed in 1891 by three Gaelic-speaking students: Donald Cameron, F.A. McRae, and another called MacLean, whose first name is not known. It was incorporated into "Queen's College Colours" when the song was written in 1897.
The term "Cha Gheill" is sometimes used separately, especially between older alumni at university occasions, as a jocular equivalent of "Cheers!" or as a salutation at the end of letters.
The original cheer was:
Dearg! Gor'mus! Buidthe!
Oil Thigh na Banrighinn gu Brath!
Cha Gheill! Cha Gheill! Cha Gheill!
This translates as:
Red! Blue! Yellow!
Queen's forever!
No surrender!
It is pronounced:
Jarg! Gormoos! Boo-ee-ee-ee!
Oil Thigh na Banree gu Braw!
Kay Yi-al!