10 of the weirdest college degrees

Welcome to Beatles 101, the ultimate course for fans of the popular old-school band.

Or if the tones of John, Ringo, Paul and George don’t interest you, how about a degree in auctioneering, zombies or video gaming?

While colleges on local shores are yet to offer such esoteric qualifications, overseas tertiary institutions and universities are equipped to satisfy your every whim.

Here are 10 of the oddest courses and degrees on offer:

Enigmatology

Only one person holds this degree. Will Shortz, the puzzle editor of the New York Times, is so obsessed with puzzles that he created his own curriculum and qualified from Indiana University. A modern day Riddler, perhaps?

Cannabis Cultivation

Not sure if this one should be promoted, but nevertheless Oaksterdam University in California does so. Classes are offered in the historic, political and legal what-not of cannabis, as well as how to grow and ingest the heady weed. That course must be a drag.

Sexuality

Here’s a course designed to get your motor running. San Francisco State University ups the ante with an academic program centred on human sexuality, including its representation in art and literature and beyond. Let’s just hope the practical time is kept to a minimum…

Peace studies

For this unique degree, we cross to Kyung Hee University in Korea. For the past few years, more than 300 collegians have qualified, learning about topics such as Human Rights. The 60s would be proud.

Street Fighting Mathematics

Here’s one for Bruce Lee fans. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) offers this course, which allows students to analyse fighting by studying the mathematics of it. It is unclear if this improves one’s fighting ability.

Anime and Manga

If you need to ask what anime and manga are, you’re in the wrong place! These two words have come to represent a global culture stemming from Japan, so it should be no surprise institutions like Kyoto Seika offer courses on this seriously cool (yet sometimes seriously disturbing) style of cartoon and animation. Our flight is already booked.

Bagpipes

Your first instinct might be that this is a Scottish degree – in fact, this Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Bagpipes is on offer in the United States at the Carneige Mellon Institute in Pennsylvania. Our hope is that the classes also include a practical portion.

Elvish

Tolkien fans, here we are! The University of Wisconsin seems to be just the place for the nerds of society, considering they can learn a language of Lord of the Rings there. As Leglolas might have said, “Gi nathlam hi.”

Zombies

Thanks to popular series such as The Walking Dead, game series like Resident Evil and a range of movies from past to present, zombies have become a large part of general culture. At Columbia College in Chicago, students can learn the basics of zombie survival, while exploring zombies in popular media. After all, the apocalypse is coming.

The Beatles

Not only home to the greatest football team, Liverpool’s Hope University also pays tribute to the four Liverpudlian lads who became national icons with hit singles like Love Me Do and Hey Jude. The course also incorporates a visit to the band’s birthplace. It is a unique course, a treat for the ears.

Information sourced from the Internet and adapted. Photographs sourced from the Internet.