25 Unique Majors You Did Not Know Existed
“What is you major?” is definitely one of the most common questions every college or university student gets asked countless times during hi...
“What is you major?” is definitely one of the most common questions every college or university student gets asked countless times during his or her academic career. In the past, the choice of majors was quite limited with most students picking college mainstays such as history, literature, law, accounting, or business related fields. These days, however, the range of majors that students can choose from is much wider. With thousands of different majors available at hundreds of colleges and universities all over the world, it comes as no surprise that there are also some unique and unusual majors. In fact, there are many bizarre majors that you might have never heard of at all. To show you some of the most unusual majors you can actually study, we plunged into the most remote corners of the academic world to compile a list with 25 unique majors you might not know about. If you are bored of traditional majors and look for something original to study, you might pick one of these 25 Unique Majors You Did Not Know Existed. From wizardry and poultry science to packaging and ethical hacking, these 25 majors are anything but ordinary.
The Beatles
Source: hope.ac.uk, image: commons.wikimedia.org
Fans of the legendary English band can earn a M.A. in a major officially known as “The Beatles, Popular Music & Society.” The major is available at the Liverpool Hope University in Liverpool (The Beatles’ birthplace), where it was established in 2009. The program deals with the influence of the Beatles on music, culture, and other industries.
Wizardry
Source and image: en.wikipedia.org
Founded by its present headmaster Oberon Zell-Ravenheart, the Grey School of Wizardry is a school specializing in occult magic, operating primarily online and as a non-profit educational institution in California. Offering over 450 classes in 16 departments, the school was reported to be, “the first wizard school to be officially recognized as an academic establishment.”
Packaging
Source: packaging.msu.edu, image: creaticivity103 via flickr.com
Available at Michigan State University, the School of Packaging is the first academic program of its kind in the science of packaging. The school has a substantial track record of providing high quality undergraduate, graduate, and continuing education, while also conducting research that advances the science and technology of packaging.
Adventure
Source: plymouth.edu, image: Stefanos Nikologianis via flickr.com
A degree in Adventure Education from the Plymouth State University will teach you how to use the Great Outdoors to expose children, adults, and at-risk populations to challenging adventures, personal growth, and self-discovery. Through a combination of classroom work, internships, and field experiences, the program also focuses on safety, challenge, and leadership.
Turfgrass Management
Source: psm.msu.edu, image: commons.wikimedia.org
Another unusual major offered by Michigan State University, the Turfgrass Management program develops scientists for the rapidly expanding area of urban agriculture. Graduates have career opportunities in the industries involved with lawn management, athletic fields, golf courses, and park and grounds maintenance.
Digital and Social Media
Source: leedstrinity.ac.uk, image: pixabay.com
Established at the Leeds Trinity University in Leeds, UK in 2013, Digital and Social Media is designed to prepare students for their futures careers in the digital and social media sector and help them understand the cultural, social, ethical, and technological aspects of digital and social media.
Decision Sciences
Source: kelley.iu.edu, image: pixabay.com
Offered by Kelley’s Department of Operations and Decision Technologies under Indiana University, Decision Sciences is a program that deals with quantitative methods used to aid decision making in business. Students learn how to solve problems in areas such as marketing, IT, finance, management etc. by using a number of mathematical techniques, including optimization methods, computer simulation, decision analysis, artificial intelligence and more.
Surf Science
Source: cornwall.ac.uk, image: pixabay.com
Offered by Cornwall College, England, the Surf Science and Technology is a 2-year program for students who want a thorough grounding in areas of Science, Technology, and Social Sciences related to the sport of surfing. In the course, students learn about the history and development of the sport as well as practical modules in how to surf.
Bagpiping
Source: cmu.edu, image: pixabay.com
In 1990, the Carnegie Mellon University in Pennsylvania instituted the world’s first bagpipe degree, a major – complete with a designated need-based scholarship – focusing on both studio performance as well as the history and culture behind bagpiping.
Meat Cutting
Source: collegeatlas.org, image: pixabay.com
Yes, even butchers can get their degree. Surprisingly, there is not just one but several colleges that offer a major focused on meat cutting. Designed to prepare students to receive, cut, and package animal meat products and to function as licensed meat cutters/butchers, the program can be studied – among others – at the Bay de Noc Community College in Michigan, the Hinds Community College in Mississippi, or Eastern Oklahoma State College.
Viking Studies
Source: telegraph.co.uk, image: en.wikipedia.org
Available at University College London, Viking Studies is a major that teaches you everything from Scandinavian language to Old Norse. It looks at runology and language history, as well as an introduction to contemporary Scandinavian, Danish, and Icelandic culture. The third year of the program is spent at a university in Scandinavia.
Bowling
Source: indianapublicmedia.org, image: pexels.com
When Vincennes University in Indiana launched their bowling program in the 1970’s, its primary purpose was to teach students how to operate pin-setters. Over the course of time, however, it developed, and the university added management, customer service, marketing, and budgeting to the curriculum. Today, the full name of the program is “Bowling Industry Management and Technology.”
Mortuary Science
Source: cc.udc.edu, image: Alisha Vargas via flickr.com
Available at the University of the District of Columbia Community College, Mortuary Science is a program whose mission is to provide its students with a comprehensive education in mortuary science and prepare graduates to enter the funeral service profession as competent funeral service practitioners.
Professional Nanny
Source: sullivan.edu, image: Gonzalo Malpartida via flickr.com
In 1988, Sullivan University’s Early Childhood Education department launched their Professional Nanny program that was designed to prepare students for their professional babysitting career. Now also available online, the course requires 180 clock hours of externship that provide experiential learning with guided supervision, practical observation, assessment, and reflections of individual learning and growth.
Poultry Science
Source: bulletin.auburn.edu, image: pixabay.com
In this major taught at Auburn University in Alabama, students learn about the food system from poultry production on the farm to the conceptualization and manufacturing of food products for the consumer. Principles of chemistry and biology are used within this unusual field of study.
Ethical Hacking
Source: abertay.ac.uk, image: commons.wikimedia.org
Created in 2006 at Abertay University in Dundee, Scotland, Ethical Hacking was the first undergraduate degree in the world with the word ‘hacking’ in the title. This course aims to provide students with the knowledge and skills required to understand the mechanics behind hacking attacks and develop appropriate countermeasures.
Cannabis
Source: oaksterdamuniversity.com, image: publicdomainpictures.net
Nicknamed the “THC University,” Oaksterdam University in California offers a number of majors that deal with cannabis. Students can choose from a variety of fields of study such as Cooking with Cannabis, Careers in Cannabis, History of Marijuana, Methods of Ingestion, and much more.
Caribbean Studies
Source: collegedegreesearch.net, image: publicdomainpictures.net
The Caribbean is usually associated with summer vacation, but the biggest fans of this sunny region can also get a degree in it. Offered by several colleges and universities such as Pitzer College in California, Dartmouth College in New Hampshire or Columbia University in New York, Caribbean studies are dedicated to the history, culture, society, and economics of the Caribbean countries. Needless to say, an internship in this major must be fun.
Holocaust and Genocide Studies
Source: keene.edu, image: pixabay.com
Offered by Keene State College in New Hampshire, the Holocaust and Genocide Studies program prepares students to support curriculum development in the social studies and history, helps them start careers in social and governmental service, and enables them to get a teaching certificate in elementary or special education.
Reiki
Source: collegeatlas.org, image: pixabay.com
If you do not know what Reiki is, let us tell you it is a form of alternative medicine based on palm-healing that was developed in 1922 by Japanese Buddhist Mikao Usui. Reiki can be studied as a major within Health Professions & Clinical Sciences at Goddard College in Vermont.
Midwifery
Source: bastyr.edu, image: en.wikipedia.org
Available at Bastyr University in Washington, Midwifery is a 3-year program that prepares students for a career of a certified professional midwife, licensed midwife, or registered midwife. Graduates of this major will be able to care for pregnant women before, during, and after the birth.
Comic Art
Source: mcad.edu, image: commons.wikimedia.org
If you dream about a career in the comic book industry, the Comic Art major offered by the Minneapolis College of Art and Design in Minnesota is the right choice for you. The program will teach you to experiment with conventional and experimental aspects of comic storytelling, gain foundational skills in a variety of creative media, explore traditional and digital comic formats, and acquire the skills and knowledge for a professional career in comics.
Bakery Science
Source: k-state.edu, image: commons.wikimedia.org
Fans of baking can get their degree at Kansas State University, which offers a major called Bakery Science. The program trains students for administrative, research, production, and executive positions in the baking industry. Students can choose to focus primarily on either production management (a business-oriented approach) or cereal chemistry (quality control or research and development).
Citrus
Source: flsouthern.edu, image: commons.wikimedia.org
The only degree program in citrus can be studied at Florida Southern College. The program provides the perfect combination of hands-on experiences (both on campus and off) and a broad-based education, as well as the industry connections students need to excel in this field.
Puppetry
Source: drama.uconn.edu, image: simple.wikipedia.org
Classes in puppetry were first taught at the University of Connecticut in 1964, but the demand for the courses grew drastically over the following years, so the department had to actually limit enrollment in the classes. These days, graduates of the puppetry program perform and design for many theaters around the world.
Interested in more unique things you can learn in college? Take a look at 25 Extremely Strange And Bizarre College Courses.
Source: TheList25