Though you’d never know it by watching Jersey Shore, higher educational institutions originated in Italy. I know, right? It’s true, though. The Salerno School of Medicine was established in the 8th Century and the University of Bologna followed at the end of the 11th Century. Fast forward approximately 600 years, and Harvard University was founded as the first college in America. And now, here we are in the 21st Century with … well, a LOT more. And with the continued additions of colleges and universities and institutions of higher education comes the evolution of their focus, student populations, and more.
For instance, in the 13th Century, students could study pretty much one of three areas: Rhetoric, Logitech and Latin. Now, the options are pretty much limitless. From puppetry to enigmatology (Yep, Indiana University offers a degree in the creation and solution of puzzles), if you want a degree in something, you can probably find it. There are, of course, the popular choices, too. Top 10 degrees include biology, business, communications, computer science, criminal justice, education, marketing, nursing, psychology and political science. To this day, no one’s sure what political scientists actually do. There’s a major dedicated to the study of it. Just kidding on that last part.
Another thing that’s changed drastically is the gender breakdown of each year’s crop of college enrollments. As you might imagine, for a long time women weren’t encouraged to get education. Since the fall of 1970, though, that trend has fallen by the wayside. From just over 3,500 enrollees then to a fall 2007 total of almost 10,500, female enrollment has increased at a much higher rate than male (5,044 to 7,816 in the same date range). Girl power! And 10,000 more people enrolled in college in 2007 than in 1970.
But what about degree types? In the 13th Century, to go along with their Rhetoric, Logitech and Latin coursework, students were awarded one of three “grades” upon completion – Scholar, Bachelor or Master. A hundred years later, “Doctor” replaced “Master” even though those silly French were still using it in the 16th Century. In the 1600s, the Bachelor of Science was just an introductory public test and the Mastership of Arts was a 2-year program. Then, in the late 19th Century, Germany got all revolutionary and scrapped the Bachelor of Arts, instead using Mastership of Arts but calling it “Doctor of Philosophy.” Along that same time, America was devising their own system of degree levels, ending up with the still-intact Bachelor, Master, Doctorate hierarchy. Hey, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
Long story short, education has changed a LOT over the past 1,300 years, but has remained something we all need to have fulfilling careers we can succeed in. And with so many options, why not check something out? Maybe you already have a bunch of degrees. What’s one more? As my friend’s grandma used to say, “Once you learn something new today, you can go back to sleep.” So, I’d say it’s naptime.
Think you have researched all of the college scholarships that are out there? Think again, I bet you haven't seen some of these unusual, crazy and odd scholarships. Shout out to our friends at Dualmasters.org for compiling this list.
Michigan Llama Association Scholarship: If your folks are alumni of the Michigan Llama Association, you can send an application in this scholarship worth $500, the cool thing is that is it renewable up to 3 times. All you have to do is write an essay about your family’s involvement with llamas.
Zolp Scholarship: Here are the three criteria for this scholarship: Is your last name Zolp? Are you Roman Catholic? Do you attend Loyola? If you meet these three requisites then you can a full-tuition scholarship as Loyola.
Van Valckenburg Memorial Scholarship: If anyone can Van Valckenburg can. Win a scholarship that is if you have that last name. In fact it is good for up to $1,000 towards tuition at any college.
Tall Clubs International Scholarship: Are you really tall? If so, you can take advantage of this “higher ed” scholarship. As long as you are at least 6′2″ and male, or at least 5′10″ and you are a female, then you can enter in for a $1,000 college scholarship.
Little People of America Scholarships: If you are a little person, you can qualify for this scholarship. Preference given to those who have a medically diagnosed form of dwarfism.
National Gay Pilots Association Scholarship: If you are gay, and planning to study aviation, this scholarship might be for you. You do have to be active in the LGBT community.
Gertrude J. Deppen Scholarship: Those attending Bucknell University, and who have lived in Mount Carmel for 10 years and graduated from the public high school, can get this scholarship. Oh, and you can’t be using narcotics, tobacco or intoxicating liquor.
Carnegie Mellon Bagpipe Scholarship: If you are willing to study bagpipes from a world-famous instructor, majoring in the pipes, you can get $7,000 a year — and a discount on your kilts.
Coven of the Sacred Waters Scholarships: Do you have a talent for witchcraft? If so, you can apply for a $500 scholarship from the Coven of the Sacred Waters. You can also apply for a community service award — even if you aren’t a witch.
The Kor Memorial Scholarship: This is a scholarship offered by the Klingon Language Institute for those who have the talent of tongue. No, you don’t have to speak Klingon; but you do have to be studying language.
Starfleet Academy Scholarships: The International Star Trek Fan Association’s Starfleet offers a number of scholarships, based on different talents, including engineering, medical, performing arts, writing and business.
Excellence in Predicting the Future Award: If you are good at figuring out what the market will do, you can join in this contest to see whether you can win $400 by accurately predicting the market and increasing your account.
“Remember remember the 5th of November…” Students of Washington State University sure will. A student turned hacker, turned V from V for Vendetta, hacked the school’s academic media system which controls all the in-classroom presentations and distance learning technology. The still yet to be identified culprit(s), programmed the projector screens to automatically deploy and play the 5 minute video message every hour on the hour.
The V wannabe, brandishing a Guy Fawkes mask just like in the movie, used their 5 minute video to criticize the IT department and to encourage the student body to lead a revolt against the squirrels that live on campus grounds. “V” believes that the squirrels are freeloaders and do nothing but “eat, drink and breed”. It is unclear at this time if his message resonated with any of the students in the 12 or so classrooms that were affected. The leader of the squirrels was unavailable for comment when asked about the incident.
Darin Watkins, a spokesperson for the University stated that the school administrators were not amused, and that “Childish pranks don’t have a place anymore”. He would go onto say that “What may have been seen as cute and clever years ago, really doesn’t get that kind of reaction today.” He also believes that the perpetrator(s) would face “serious charges” once they were identified.
In the movie V for Vendetta, “V” channels his inner-Guy Fawkes to lead a revolution against the sitting British government that that ruled the public with serious fascist undertones. V’s antics, which ultimately lead to violence against the government, made school officials fear that the hackers could possibly be up to more than just hacking a dozen projectors. In the post-9/11 era, they were not going to take any chances and went into full alert to bring an end to the hack. They were able to shut it down after a few hours and one official was quoted as saying that it “was a rather sophisticated program” and at some point they just started unplugging hard drives to get the video shut down.
It seems as if most of the students that saw the video were more amused than worried. In fact, it has brought about a spirited discussion about current issues on campus. Some of those topics include tuition increases, the cutting of courses and overall university governance. Whether or not the video message will evoke any actually change to any of that listed topics is yet to be seen.
The full fallout of this escapade has yet to be realized, but rest assured, the 5th of November will always be remembered on the campus of Washington State. Or as their resident V might say, “Remember, remember the 5th of November. The media projector hack, and plot. I know of no reason why the media projector treason should ever be forgot.”
To find a college where you can experience interesting occurrences such as this one, visit AnyCollege.com.
This high school valedictorian went on to Harvard where he studied English literature and History and graduated magna cum laude. Maybe that’s why he has such a witty style of comedy. He would also go on to earn an honorary degree in Actuarial Science from Ball State University. Since then he has ruled the world of comedy and thank goodness for that!
He may act silly in about every movie he plays, but Adam actually has a degree in Fine Arts from New York University. So just because he may throw a book at you, it doesn’t mean he didn’t read it.
I bet you didn’t see this one coming. The King of Punk majored in biochemical engineering in Iowa, yes you read that right he has a degree in biochemical engineering! So he definitely has some brains behind those antics. Maybe he discovered the secret to attracting older women.
A crowd pleaser, Reese Witherspoon is just not all girl next door charm. She majored in English at UT, which I guess means she is legally blonde and well read. I am surprised she ever left Austin, have you ever been there? Why would anyone ever leave? I guess Hollywood was too tempting for her, but at least she arrived with a college education.
Don’t let the cowbell fool you, Mr. Walken is a smart man. He can dance, he can sing, he can act. He also studied English Literature for a year or so while he was at Hofstra University, but was lured away by the bright lights of Broadway.
She looks good on the silver screen and probably looked just as cute while studying Art History at the University of California (Santa Barbara). I guess Hollywood was a little too close and a little too tempting as she dropped out before finishing her degree.
Before she became a world-wide cultural icon, Madonna studied drama and dance at the University of Michigan. She actually went to school on academic scholarships due to her stellar work in the classroom when she was in high school.
Renee Zellweger - University of Texas
Just like Reese Witherspoon, Renee attended UT in Austin where she earned a degree in English. I’m not sure if she attended at the same time as Reese, but can you imagine being in the same class as those two? I bet the grades for the guys in that class would have been below average.
The prince of physics wasn’t born with all the knowledge in the known universe, he actually had to acquire some of it at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich. A few years after enrolling, he graduated with a degree in physics. A few years after that, he turned the science world upside down.
Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen - New York University
Source: FullIssue.com
These terrific twins have some brains to go along with their good looks. Mary-Kate's time at NYU was short lived due to her eating disorder, but Ashley is still attending and trying to get her degree.
Garner knows drama and chemistry? Well that’s what she studied at Dennison. She also studied drama there which probably makes her the most famous person in the world that studied those two disciplines at the same time. I wonder if she ever tutored anyone?
Natalie Portman – Harvard University
Life is good for Natalie, she can act, sing, make you laugh and psychoanalyze you too. That’s right, she majored in psychology at Harvard and as the keen ability to know everything about you in about 5 minutes. I would like to give the credit to Harvard for that, but I think it has more to do with the fact that Natalie is the type of person that people open up to.
This coms major sharpened her journalism skills at Tennessee State University where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Speech and also a degree in Drama. She would also go on to receive an Honorary Doctor of Humanities Degree from Howard University.
It’s no surprise why this Rockin’ Roll Knight rules the stage and the business world. He learned all he needed to know from the London School of Economics where he studied accounting and finance. He didn’t graduate, music was too tempting, but he left with all he needed to know to become a very successful rock star.
It’s too bad Claire didn’t play competitive sports while in school, I would have loved to see her play Natalie Portman while she was at Harvard. I am not even sure they were in school at the same time, but it’s fun to think about, I digress. I bet you didn’t think that this beautiful actress was an Ivy Leaguer did you?
He actually started his higher education at Morehouse College when he was 15 years old where he graduated with a Sociology degree. After that he attended Crozer Theological Seminary and earned a Degree in Divinity. Later in life he studied systematic theology at Boston University.
Every kid knows Dr. Suess, but they probably don’t know his real name is Theodor Seuss Geisel. His path to becoming “Dr. Seuss” started at Dartmouth College 1925. He would go on to earn credits towards his Doctorate of Philosophy in Literature at Lincoln College in Oxford, but never finished. I wonder if it was because he was writing his amazing books? If so, I am glad he dropped out. We are all thankful for it.
What would the world be like without the Simpsons? I shutter even to think about that. Matt wanted to go to Harvard but had to settle for a college closer to home. Maybe it was studying in the Pac-Northwest that allowed him to relax and not have to worry about getting into a Final Club at Harvard, that allowed him to come up with the Simpsons. If so, I am thankful he didn’t get into Harvard.
Whether you are a future celebrity, or someone looking for a college, AnyCollege.com is here to help you find your perfect school.
I came across an article recently discussing America's Most Expensive Colleges. In this article Forbes.com lays out the 10 most expensive schools in the country. It amazes me that America can be in the midst of a recession and these colleges can still recruit students to their campuses. For the amount it costs to go to some of these schools for a year, you could have paid for four years at other colleges.
Here is a peek at the Top 10:
#1 Sarah Lawrence College
Courtesy of Sarah Lawrence College
Annual cost: $57,556 Tuition and fees: $43,556 Room and board: $14,000
#2 Columbia University
Courtesy of Columbia University
Annual cost: $54,385 Tuition and fees: $43,815 Room and board: $10,572
#3 Bard College
Noah Sheldon/Bard College
Annual cost: $54,275 Tuition and fees: $42,465 Room and board: $11,810
#4 Wesleyan University
Courtesy of Wesleyan University
Annual cost: $53,976 Tuition and fees: $42,384 Room and board: $11,592
#5 Vanderbilt University
Luis Anthony Munoz
Annual cost: $53,660 Tuition and fees: $40,602 Room and board: $13,058
Click here to see the rest of the Top 10 on Forbes.com. To find a college that may be more in your price range, visit our college search engine at AnyCollege.com.
An article about the Most Legendary College Pranks of All Time was recently posted by the Huffington Post. Here are some of the pranks they uncovered and included in their list. It seems like college pranks are still around, but they are not quite as grandiose as they once were. I am guessing that has to do with the fact that you can be sued for just about anything now-a-days. Sneeze on a statue and you may be liable for destruction of private property. =)
In 1979, the student body government of University of Wisconsin was led by the infamous Pail & Shovel Party. Their platform? Use the school's budget for art projects and wacky pranks. Their masterpiece was putting a fake Statue of Liberty in the nearby (and, at the time, frozen) Lake Mendota, placing half of Lady Liberty's head and torch on top of it.
The Great Dome, Massachusettes Institute Of Technology
One of the most famous college prank schools, the Massachusetts school is famous for its history of jokes involving the MIT Dome. The most legendary case was back in 1994 when students installed an MIT campus police car on top of the dome -- which is 15 stories high. The clever pranksters built the frame of the car in pieces on top of the dome. It's now a tradition for copycats follow up the trick by putting all kinds of strange objects on top of it, like a firetruck and a piano.
In 2001, a gang of Canadian engineering students tied nylon cables to a red Volkswagen bug and pushed the bug off the eastern side of the Golden Gate bridge, leaving the car hanging 100 feet above water for more than four hours, halting both car and ship traffic. Police cut the cables before the car plunged into the bay and sank.
Pink Flamingos On Bascom Hill, University Of Wisconsin-Madison
The Pail & Shovel party struck again in 1979 by putting 1,008 fake plastic pink flamingos on the front lawn of campus landmark Bascom Hill. By afternoon, students had plucked most of the flamingos from the lawn for their own keeping. Flaming-planting soon became a tradition on campus.
In 1933, staffers from the Harvard Lampoon managed to steal the Sacred Cod, a five-foot long wooden fish that hangs from the ceiling of the Massachusetts House of Representatives. As the Museum of Hoaxes reports, the theft of the cod of was quite simple: "Three Lampoon staffers walked into the state house armed with a pair of clippers and a flower box. They waited until a discreet moment when no tourists were around. Then they quickly clipped the wires holding up the fish, tucked it away in their flower box, and disappeared." To prevent the cod from being stolen again, authorities raised it six inches higher.
To see the rest of the pranks, please check out the original article at the Huffington Post. Use AnyCollege.com to find a college where you can learn about all of their heritage and traditions.
With the rise of video games in today’s culture it was just a matter of time before they started showing up in classrooms. The New York Times recently published an article talking about this very subject. Learning by Playing: Video Games in the Classroom follows a journalist who visits a non-charter middle school in New York City that is on the forefront of this burgeoning frontier. This particular school would probably remind you of any other middle school if it weren’t for the fact that video games play a role in their everyday curriculum.
“It is a radical proposition, sure. But during an era in which just about everything is downloadable and remixable, when children are frequently more digitally savvy than the adults around them, it’s perhaps not so crazy to think that schools — or at least one school, anyway — might try to remix our assumptions about how to reach and educate those children.”
The article raises a lot of good points and concerns. It seems that this could be a powerful learning tool moving forward, but it has some evolving to do. Definitely worth checking out if you have the time. Once you have read it swing back by AnyCollege and leave your thoughts.
one’s sure what political scientists actually do. There’s a major dedicated to the study of it. Just kidding on that last part.
