uwloo

GBDA 303Data and Society

Units
0.50
Faculty
Arts
Subject
Global Business and Digital Arts

When it runs

  1. F24
  2. W25
  3. S25
  4. F25
  5. W26
  6. S26
  7. F26
  8. W27
  9. S27

Ran in 2 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: scheduled, 3 lecture sections. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.

In this course students will examine different digital phenomena, such as big data, open data, data-driven innovation, the personal information industry, the sharing economy, and the Internet of Things. Students will also become familiar with national and international principles of privacy protection.

Prerequisites

Antirequisites

None listed.

Leads to

No course lists it as a requisite.

Winter 2027 sections

Enrolment from UW Open Data, which can trail Quest by up to two days. Instructors and rooms: Schedule of Classes.
SectionClassEnrolledMeets
LEC 001790142 / 42W 09:00–11:50
LEC 002790240 / 42W 13:30–16:20
LEC 70181220 / 9999Online or by arrangement

Reviewed on UW Flow

71% liked it64% easy71% useful

From 14 ratings and 3 comments on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.

  • the content and work in this course was actually kind of interesting if you cared enough. i honestly enjoyed learning more about data, collection and there was a slight historical aspect to the lectures. the quizzes weren't too bad. the confusing part was the course being taught by two profs, Jessica Thompson and Judy Peng, who would swap every week based on the content for the week. this eventually led to problems, in my opinion, later on because literally no one was on the same page. the profs and TAs would all be saying different things to students. another problem I had was how feedback was giving by TAs and mostly Judy. Genuinely no filter sometimes and they would tear into some…

    Nov 2024 · didn’t like itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • It was very easy. It was basically composed of weekly quizzes and assignments ( plus two quick presentations). The professor was very easygoing and an amazing marker; even incomplete things, she would rate pretty highly. I ended with a mark in the high 80s, and that's saying something because I didn't go to class and didn't do a presentation worth 10%. Basically, your mark is based on the assignments/quizzes, and she walks you through how to do almost all of it.

    Sep 2024 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • The course focused mainly on big data and privacy, with a big focus on current events. It ended up being really interesting but you have to do the readings beforehand since the course is seminar based. We did a group video project and an individual final essay examining how a particular company handles data and privacy, which was really interesting also. A good course overall.

    Nov 2016 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

Discussed on r/uwaterloo

One post or comment in 1 thread mentions GBDA 303, October 2017 to December 2024. Quoted word for word, newest first; each reply sits under the post and the comment that started its branch. Search r/uwaterloo for newer posts.

Fall 2017

Any way to disable UWCourseLinker from posting? 16 points, 26 comments

“posting a reply to my comment I find the bot annoying.”

u/Jackhofmann: “PSYCH 483 PSYCH 484 PSYCH 485 PSYCH 486 PSYCH 490R PSYCH 499A PSYCH 499B PSYCH 499C PSYCH 621 PSYCH 630 PSYCH 677A PSYCH 704A PSYCH 704B PSYCH 707 PSYCH 710 PSYCH 714 PSYCH 717 PSYCH 720A PSYCH 721A …”

u/Jackhofmann: “… FR 605 FR 606 FR 611 FR 681 FR 687 GBDA 101 GBDA 103 GBDA 201 GBDA 203 GBDA 229 GBDA 301 GBDA 303 GBDA 304 GBDA 401 GBDA 403 GBDA 465 GEMCC 601 GEMCC 602 GEMCC 603 GENE 119 GENE 121 GENE 199 GENE 21C GENE 21K GENE 22C GENE 22D GENE 23S GENE 302 GENE 303 GENE 315 GENE 395 GENE …”

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Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026

Calendar versions

Undergraduate Calendar