Rotman Commerce First Year, Explained: RSM100, RSM219, RSM230, RSM250, ECO101, ECO102 and MAT133
The shape of first year
Rotman Commerce is the undergraduate business program of the University of Toronto, run with the Rotman School of Management and housed in the Faculty of Arts & Science. First year is mostly foundations: one management course, the introductory accounting, finance and marketing courses, the two halves of principles of economics, and a full year of calculus. The Arts & Science calendar marks RSM219, RSM230 and RSM250 as courses "normally taken in first year", and RSM100 is limited to students entering U of T with an expressed interest in Rotman Commerce.
Below is what each course is, taken from the calendar, and how it is graded this term, taken from the Fall 2026 outlines Rotman Commerce publishes. Weights change from term to term and section to section, so the syllabus your instructor posts is always the authority.
RSM100: Introduction to Management
The calendar describes RSM100 as an introduction to management and its subdisciplines: business in a Canadian context, the nature of corporations, corporate governance, organizational behaviour, operations and strategy. On Rottly it is six modules: introduction to commerce, business and society, strategy, international business, organizational behaviour, and technology and the future of work.
Fall 2026 grading: quiz 5%, term test 20%, Professional Skills and Career Exploration (PACE) modules 15%, Business Plan Competition 20%, final exam 40%. Nearly half the mark comes from the two group-style components, so treat the business plan as seriously as the exam.
RSM219: Introduction to Financial Accounting
A basic introduction to financial reporting and analysis, with the emphasis on interpreting financial statements and using accounting information to prepare a basic set of them. Twelve weekly modules on Rottly, from the accounting cycle to financial statement analysis.
Fall 2026 grading: weekly assignments 10%, midterm exam 25% (Tuesday, November 3, 7:10 to 9:00 pm, subject to change), group assignment 20% across the team contract, mentor check-in and final submission, Planning for Success exercises 5%, final exam 40%. RSM219 is not eligible for CR/NCR.
RSM230: Financial Markets
An introduction to Canadian and international financial markets: institutions, securities, and the basics of valuing and trading stocks and bonds, with some derivatives. On Rottly: present value, NPV, annuities, compounding and returns, bonds and stocks, portfolios, options, investment funds, banking and market efficiency.
Fall 2026 grading: ongoing quizzes 15%, midterm test 10% (Monday, November 9), two individual essays 8% plus a reflection 2%, group project 6% across three parts, syllabus quiz, survey and video introduction 3%, and a final examination worth 45%. The final is the single largest component in any first-year Rotman course this term.
RSM250: Principles of Marketing
The basic concepts, theories and methods of contemporary marketing: market research, consumer behaviour, segmentation, product policy, pricing, distribution, communications, sales and direct marketing, built around creating a marketing plan. On Rottly the modules follow the lecture schedule, including the Bose, Ikea and Glossier cases.
Fall 2026 grading: class participation and attendance 15%, Dynamic Study Modules assignments 10%, research requirement 3%, case group presentation 10%, case group report 17%, final term exam 40%. Participation is a real 15%, which is unusual among the first-year courses.
ECO101 and ECO102: Principles of Micro- and Macroeconomics
Two half courses. ECO101 covers price determination, market structure, decision making by individuals and firms, and public policy. ECO102, which requires ECO101, covers the economy as a whole: international trade and finance, money and banking, monetary and fiscal policy. Both lean heavily on graphs; the calendar warns about "extensive use of graphical and quantitative analysis" for a reason.
Rotman does not publish outlines for ECO courses, so Rottly cannot quote a grading scheme for them. Your section's Quercus page is the only source.
MAT133: Calculus and Linear Algebra for Commerce
A full-year course (1.0 credit): mathematics of finance, matrices and linear equations, differential calculus with applications, integration and the fundamental theorem, and an introduction to partial differentiation. The calendar expects high-school calculus going in. The second-year economics courses accept MAT135 and MAT136 (or MAT137, or MAT157) in its place, so students who took Calculus I and II instead are not locked out.
How they fit together
RSM219 is the gate to RSM222 Management Accounting I, whose prerequisite is RSM219 plus completion of the Rotman Commerce Guaranteed Admission requirements. ECO101 and ECO102 (with the required minimum grades) plus a full year of calculus open ECO204, ECO209 and ECO220 in second year. None of the first-year RSM courses can be taken CR/NCR.
Studying for all of them at once
Every one of these courses on Rottly has weekly modules with quizzes and flashcards, timed practice exams for the midterm and final, and the grading scheme, deadlines and AI policy from the outline on one home screen, so the term's weights and dates sit next to the practice for them. Start with the course page for RSM219 or RSM230 to see what that looks like.