In order to attain a successful job/career, we are encouraged in school and college to go on to extended education once we reach the end of the compulsory learning cycle. Most of us assume we have to obtain excellent results and outstanding grades such as A***** to even be acknowledged by any university! However, it’s not necessarily erudite intelligence of academic subjects that is essential to receiving a place in any high class university these days, with the new courses that have been added to the degree syllabus anybody can work towards a degree. In fact, it’s more about hobbies or interests of individuals this era.
Below are some of the most obscure university degrees of our time…
Politicizing Beyonce
Ridiculous as it sounds, yes this is a real degree! Her sultry videos and lyrics now carry the potential of academic prowess thanks to New Jersey’s Rutgers University and its “Politicizing Beyonce” course. Students are expected to compare work of authors/activists Alice Walker and Sojourner Truth.
David Beckham
This 12-week sector at Staffordshire University was offered as part of the BA in Sports, Media and Culture, and included topics such as Beck’s ever-evolving hairstyles, his marriage to Posh and his status as ‘the object of many great fantasies.”
Zombie Studies
At the University of Baltimore a dedicated course allows students to “get ready for a zombie apocalypse” by writing horror scripts, watching zombie flicks and drawing storyboards of their ideal monster movies!
Simpsons and Philosophy
This two-unit class at the University of California at Berkeley examines the cartoon series through the eyes of Nietzsche, Plato and others – asking loaded questions such as what does Homer’s infamous D’oh utterance say about his existential self? And Is Marge’s volumous hair life-affirming or a symbol of the degradation of society?
Arguing With Judge Judy
If you find yourself screaming at the TV at the sheer injustice of Judge Judy, you need to enroll at the University of California, where Arguing With Judge Judy: Popular ‘Logic’ On TV Shows will help you to express your anger. This course examines popular logical fallacies on reality TV shows, examining why the small-screen audiences decide on the concepts of social justice that they do.
Harry Potter and The Age Of Illusion
The Harry Potter and the Age of Illusion module is available as part of the BA in Education Studies at Durham University and preaches a series of 22 lectures and 11 seminars looking at how JK Rowling’s novels reflect prejudice and citizenship in modern society. Students can look at topics such as ‘Muggles and magic: the escape from the treadmill and the recovery of enchantment’ and ‘Gryffindor and Slytherin: prejudice and intolerance.’
Fat Studies
This course, offered by George Washington University in the US, picks apart concepts of fatness and obesity through the realm of film, literature, anthropology and history, throwing the “cultural baggage” of overweight people firmly into the spotlight.
Star Trek
Trekkies everywhere will be beaming at the news that Georgetown University offers a course in ‘Philosophy and Star Trek’. Students can attempt to get their most pressing questions answered such as ‘Is time travel possible?’ and ‘could we go back and kill our ancestors?’
The Robin Hood Studies
Embedded within the MA in History at Nottingham University is ‘The Robin Hood Studies Pathway’. Students can learn about the tales and ballads of one of England’s most enduring medieval heroes.
Maple Syrup
Alfred University in New York offers “Maple Syrup – The Real Thing” as an honors seminar. The class looks into the profession of making maple syrup and how little has changed the production process
