so, what IS a 'Mickey Mouse' degree?

[lemonysweet]

inspired by the thread about whether youd like your child to go to uni.

go on then, what degrees do you consider 'Mickey Mouse'

[personally i would never be so throwaway about something someone had invested so much time, effort and money into, but im interested in others opinions]

Classics

I would say a 'Mickey Mouse' degree is a degree in an area which you don't need a specific degree for. So a degree in 'advertising' or 'tourism' because you could have a degree in other things, which would be respected more, or no degree to go into them. I think how intellectually challenging it is should come into it as well, but not sure you can quantify that easily. Also a degree from a really crap university, as you are basically being ripped off - I worry about kids who think that they with their 2:2 in something vague from Thames Valley is going to compete with all the Oxbridges and Russell Group degrees.

Personally having studied a combined studies degree (majoring in recreation ) and not at a top class university, I find some of these comments offensive. I spend the same hours studying and putting the hard work in. Also degrees are regulated so the institute should not affect the how they are viewed.

Anyone with a dregree should be congratulated as they are bloody hard work.

personally i would never be so throwaway about something someone had invested so much time, effort and money into

so you'll let other people do it for you.

I've got a degree in knitting! I do, I really do. I imagine most people consider it a mickey mouse degree... I might draw ears on my graduation photo...

Its all a load of patronising academic snobbery. People can study what they like - it takes all sorts

I am sure knitting has served you well

Oh I don't know. Having done an arts degree at Oxbridge and a vocational degree elsewhere, the two have been very different. However, neither was exactly a Mickey Mouse degree - and I don't think i would use that phrase. Possibly it originates from the Disneyland 'University' where they train their staff??

I don't consider any degrees to be "Mickey Mouse". However I do think they should go back to having Polytechnics, as a separate kind of higher education to Universities.

Anything Arty

Maktaitai the 2 would be different as academy degree would be different to vocational, due to the very nature of what you are learning, however both are well earned and should not be disrespected by calling them Mickey Mouse.

Good on you for having the time, energy and money to obtain 2.

Your graduation ceremony consists of you standing on a podium, kicking our legs in the air and reciting your college song about 'hot digity dogs'

quaere Just because something doesn't traditionally need a degree doesn't mean a degree doesn't still have relevance. It's not just about the piece of paper at the end, but also about what you learn. Eg. in advertising, most advertising courses include placements, which are undeniably useful to have on someone's CV.

Mickey Mouse if it's not sufficiently intellectually rigorous. One person's rigorous is another person's sloppy, of course, but the core concepts are intellect and rigour. The quality of the institution, the quality of the teaching, the quality of the assessment, the challenge of the topic all play a part in determining whether it passes this bar.

DD2 is doing a degree in Acting for Stage and Media. Some people might think that.s a Mickey Mopuse |Degree, But I don't and niether does DH. Yes she's doing something that she'll probably find hard to get a job. But that.s what she.s interested in and what she wants to do,

Oi Minxie - i did an illustration degree and it set me up for life. Art does not = waster.

TheDoodler

Essentially it's any subject that isn't seen as 'academic enough' by the purists, e.g. surfing, football, tourism, media studies/advertising etc.

However, I studied a traditional academic degree subject at a good uni and it's largely been useless. A friend of mine went to the local 'old poly' for her degree and worked a fuck load harder than I ever had to and seemed to get more out of it so

"Also degrees are regulated so the institute should not affect the how they are viewed."

They're not though. That's the point. There isnt a central body which ensures standards are the same across all UK Universities. You only have to look at the intake requirements to know that. That is why employers have strong preferences for some Universities over others. In fact, most blue chip employers have much stronger preferences re. University than re. subject studied when recruiting for grad scheme roles and students would be well advised to take this into account.

The advice I would give to people applying to Uni now would be

• If you definitely know what you want to do post-Uni, or have one outstanding talent, study that.

• If you dont know what you want to do, choose a traditional academic subject at the most well regarded Uni that you can get into. Take into account any possible careers which you would block off by not having the relevant degree (eg medicine). There are not actually very many of these- in the UK you do NOT need a degree in accounting to be a chartered accountant- it's just a waste of time as you still need to do all your professional exams and the top firms actually prefer (eg)maths/ english/ economics/ history/ classics to undergrad in accounting. Similarly, you dont need a law degree to be a lawyer- you can do a 1 year graduate conversion afterwards and most top law firms dont have a preference which you did.

• If you are thinking of an applied degree eg Journalism, media studies, travel and tourism, then do your homework and check that you wouldn't be better off either doing something more mainstream (eg many newspapers prefer English to journalism as an undergrad degree) or going straight into the workforce after school.

It's not a question of sneering at the investment people have made, more that it's a shame that so many people waste their time and effort doing degrees without researching what employers are really looking for. Ask them and they will tell you, but dont just assume that a degree in marketing is going to jetison you into (eg)Unilever's grad programme better than a degree in classics.

A good degree in something vocational (media studies, tourism, games design, screenwriting, acting etc.) will provide you with contacts, facilities, equipment, placements and experiences you can't get in the workplace though. There's really nothing wrong with one of these degrees if you know what job you want to do. A good course will put you in touch with employers and help you find a job.

My first degree is in Performance Studies from a fairly decent university. It was really what you made it. A few of the students picked all the dance modules and dodged as many essays as possible. For most people though, there was a lot of essay writing and it was fairly intellectual. I wrote a lot about philosophies of realities (Baudrillard etc.) and what separates performance from reality. I also did a lot of research into the body in performance - ideas of pain, damage, cyborgs and gender among other things. It's a wide ranging subject and as I say, it's what you make it. In practical lessons, we collaborated with a lot of contemporary performance groups and made contacts there.

Personally, I'd be sad if you said my degree was Mickey Mouse. I'm completing an MBA this year and to be honest, I found my BA more challenging intellectually.

I think that's a very good answer. There are some excellent specialist vocational courses, but you have to know a lot more about them to know whether or not they are likely to suit you, and whether or not they actually appeal to the employers that you are interested in. So they are potentially more risky.

There are some rather odd courses that could well be slagged off like brewing that are really chemistry degrees with a bit of a specialism, so still academically stretching but also very vocationally orientated and where the graduates from the very well connected universities walk pretty much into jobs in brewing. But they might well have have very little currency elsewhere just because of the title.

My university is world leading in the course that I took, but fairly average in general (although it always does well in the student surveys). As I've never worked in my field it didn't give me the best foundation I guess, but I can't say I regret it.

Personally I wouldn't describe any course as "Micky Mouse" without knowing whether or not it was just my prejudices or indeed a poor course.

xpost with Carmen. I must say I do agree with you about MBAs - not sure why they command such a premium.

B&T - that's not strictly true - the QAA (The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education) does oversee the standards of HE.

And you can't just call any old course a degree - it has to be validated by a University (and you can't call any old institution a University either) and meet the criteria set by QAA. Whether or not you feel that the QAA standards are set high enough is a matter for a different debate.

The content required for a degree ranges across more than just straight academic/intellectual ability.

I'm about to start a degree in the Horse Racing Industry!
I will be studying part-time, in addition to my full-time job, and yes I do work in horse racing.

Some people might consider this to be a Mickey Mouse degree, but as my employer is paying for the course (so I'm not a drain on the taxpayer ) I don't think it is any of their business.

When I was at college (an agricultural college) I remember that they offered full-time courses in green keeping!

my nephew has a mickey mouse degree.
he has a degree in media studies. He didn't work especially hard, the course was not especially challenging and it actually seems to e held as a negative when he applies for jobs.
The 'degree' cited on his application makes some employers discount him as over qualified but the degree itself is considered so worthless that employeees looking for graduates barely regard him as eligible.
He remains ( aged 30) unemployed
To be honest it makes me angry. He is not terribly bright but he was part of a wave of ppeople whowere encouraged to believe that being a graduate made them more likely to succeed which is simply not true.
The tragedy is that once some idiot his dad persuaded him to do it he spent most of the compenasation he received for the disabilities he developed after a car accident and it gave him nothing.
He would have been better served getting a job or trade.

Most degrees are a travesty anyway. Bloody easy too.

I'd like to know what the hell 'sports science' is for a start.