Shutterstock
Ah yes, college. What a wonderful time in a person’s life. You get to finally experience life on your own, meet new people, and begin the next chapter of your life.
Either that, or you just prepare yourself mentally and physically for four (or maybe more) years of drinking, eating terribly, and attempting to hook up with that cute girl/guy you saw in that 9AM bio class.
Speaking of classes, there are your normal run of the mill courses that everyone has to take like Math, English, Science etc. Every school has its general education courses that you need to get through in order to earn that degree but there are also opportunities to take classes that you, surprise, enjoy!
What class could you possibly enjoy? We’ll tell you! Here are 12 of the coolest college courses in America, that if you actually attend one of these schools, you should definitely check out.
How To Watch Television
Shutterstock
How many times have you said to yourself, “why can’t there just be a class about Netflix? I’d ace that!” 100 times? 1000? Well, if you go to Montclair State University then you are in luck.
How to Watch Television is a course that, according to the school, is designed “for students to critically evaluate the role of television in their lives as well as in the life of the culture.” Now if you’ll excuse me I’ll be “critically evaluating” The Office for the 100th time.
South Park and Contemporary Social Issues
via Comedy Central
Sure, on the outset a class about a show that once famously did an entire episode about shoving food up your butt and pooping out of your mouth might seem a little crazy. However, for avid South Park watchers, this course actually makes some sense.
At McDaniel College, students can examine how the show approaches the social issues of the day including gay marriage, terrorism, and their now famous skewering of Scientology.
Demystifying the Hipster
Okay, so maybe that GIF is a little aggressive. However, there is no denying that hipsters are a rare and, often misunderstood, social group. Their love of craft beers, bookstores, and music by “artists you’ve never heard of” can come off of asshole-ish, so how can we get to the bottom of the hipster phenomenon?
Tufts University Experimental College –a school whose name SCREAMS hipster–has begun offering an entire course dedicated to defining what hipsters are. By the end of this course, you’ll be as much of an expert on rare books and hipster culture as any resident of Williamsburg.
Tree Climbing
NBCUniversal
Now I don’t know about you guys, but as a 28-year-old I don’t do much tree climbing these days. Then again, I also live in a city, so tree access is limited. Luckily for those of you that are looking to become avid climbers, Cornell University has begun offering a course on just that.
It teaches you how to climb, proper rope techniques, and how to boost your self-confidence. Sounds pretty good to me.
What If Harry Potter Is Real?
You might hate it but there’s no denying that the Harry Potter series has an absolutely massive impact on pop culture. The subject of intense analysis and scrutiny, the franchise has earned author J.K Rowling billions of dollars and, despite it ending years ago, still has resonance today.
Fans of it have often dreamed of getting that letter saying they had been accepted to Hogwarts and now Appalachian State University is here to discuss whether that day might actually come. Students will examine real life history as it compares to the history laid out in the Harry Potter universe and try to decide whether maybe, just maybe, magic is real.
Stupidity
Calm down, I’m not insulting you.
Even the smartest amongst us are guilty of being stupid sometimes. You can be a Rhodes Scholar and there are still moments in your life where you have to ask yourself “did I really just do that?”
Occidental College offers a course that literally examines what it means to be stupid. They aim to show that stupidity is not the absence of intelligence, but rather just another form of it.
Woah. Mind blown.
The Game of Thrones
HBO
Winter is coming and so is critical analysis.
The University of Virginia has started to offer an entire summer course dedicated to studying the massively popular HBO show. It examines how the show differs from the books, its impact on pop culture, and just general discussions of the series.
Yes, I’m saying you can earn college credit by talking about Jon Snow and Daenerys.
Death in Perspective
Yes, from the outset the title of this class sounds grim. About as grim as it gets, to be honest.
However, this course at Kean University teaches that while yes, death is inevitable, that we need to begin appreciating life. So, it’s not so much a class, as it is a way for you to take a step back and deciding how you want to live your life.
The American Vacation
Before you go into this course, taught at the University of Iowa, thinking “a class about vacations is bound to be a…wait for it…VACATION” just know that this is not the case.
It is a regular class and it’s more of a history class at that. Examining how the art of vacationing has changed over the past 100 years, it actually is a pretty interesting case study.
Surviving the Coming Zombie Apocalypse—Disasters, Catastrophes, and Human Behavior
For some still unknown reason, zombies have been a massive part of pop culture for the past decade or so. This is due in no small part to the popularity of The Walking Dead but there are also plenty of zombie movies, books, and comics out there to keep stoking that zombie fire.
Michigan State University has now officially hopped on board this train and begun offering a class in how to survive the coming zombie apocalypse. It’s an entirely online course, so you don’t even have to leave the comfort of your own home. Win-win.
Maple Syrup: The Real Thing
Maple syrup is one of those delicious add ons to food that can go on pretty much anything and taste delicious. Pancakes, waffles, bacon, etc. you put Maple Syrup on it, we’ll eat it.
At Alfred University, there is an entire course dedicated to the study of this delicious elixir, how its produced, how to preserve those precious maple trees, and even get to tap their own trees. Someone grab the pancakes.
California Here We Come: The O.C. & Self-Aware Culture of 21st Century America
Everyone’s favorite guilty pleasure of the 2000s officially has its own college course of study. Duke University allowed students to examine the impact that The O.C had an American pop culture and how it, even today, continues to shape the social dynamic of society.
Yes, you read that correct.
See? Not all college classes have to be as dull as your general education requirements. Sure, your college might not offer these particular classes, we guarantee it has some real hidden gems. Give that course handbook a second look and you’re bound to find something worth your attention.
