Suspicious of someone's qualifications.

[YNK]

A family member (not local to me) claims to have completed a masters in politics and economics (and later abandoned a PhD).
I did attend his degree ceremony many years ago.

He makes passive aggressive jokes and refuses to seriously engage in any meaningful way whenever a conversation touches on the subject.

I recently asked for some information only to be told "we didn't do the cold war".

Is it even possible to achieve a masters degree in this subject without covering the cold war?
I'm really trying to get my head around this and it's really bothering me.

This has really bugged me but I'm worried I'm I being a bitch for smelling a rat?

You attended his graduation. Is this a troll post? I have a masters in history and didn't cover absolutely everything that's ever happened (certainly didn't cover the cold War!)

I have a chemistry degree and struggle to help my DD with her Chem gcse homework without reading the textbook and doing some research myself first. I have forgotten everything.

DD has started doubting that I even went to uni!

Yes it is.

Also sometimes when somebody is a subject expert they can get a bit fatigued by chat about it, especially if it’s with someone that has a different knowledge base. For example, my sister has a first class economics degree, phd etc but hated talking about Brexit because people were coming at it from a media perspective rather than an academic one, so she just found it quite tiresome explaining stuff I think.

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Yes it is. The cold War gets covered in school, university don't cover the same things. He can get into university without having to have sat the subject that covers the cold War at school.

I've a degree in Geography. I get asked questions like....what's the longest river in Japan or what's what's capital of ...... just because we have a degree doesn't mean we know every single thing and university isn't there to teach this either, university teaches us to think differently and how to research.

My undergraduate degree was over 30 years ago and my MSc 28....I don't work in the field anymore and haven't for years. I also remember nothing from either!

Same except mine was pure history. Still couldn’t tell you a thing about the Cold War.

I specialised in Spanish and Russian revolutionary history.

Not really sure why you are bothered about what he studied but yes absolutely! I did a degree in history and politics and a masters in global politics - I never once in four years touched on the Cold War, WW1 or WW2… you choose what modules you take, and with those degree choices there are a lot more interesting subjects so he probably didn’t fancy it! Some universities wouldn’t even have it as a module if they don’t have any academics or professors that specialize in it either.

So you went to the degree ceremony, watched him get his degree and in a follow-up post acknowledge that you know he has a degree? Yet you are still suspicious and questioning his qualifications. Why? What's the back story?

If you want to know about the content of a masters in politics and economics you could easily look up the course on the university's website and see what topics are covered. I looked up a couple of random courses just now and it's all there. And no, cold war wasn't mentioned.

Totally possible to not cover the Cold War. For example they may have looked at political economics rather than 20th century political history, or may have specialised in a particular region or focus. Much as you can do a masters in theatre and not read any Shakespeare.

I did a Law degree which was 15 years ago. I remember very random case law which has zero relevance and nothing which would be useful and beneficial in anyway - like conveyancing law for when I bought my property, as my solicitor was useless.

Maybe she got her degree and memory from the same university as me….

I must say having worked in the political environment I am used to some people trying to provoke me into heated discussion about my areas of former campaigning. I can spot it and hopefully gently sway the conversation sideways to avoid the attempted provocation.

If I engaged every time I'd be exhausted. Maybe OP your relative utilises a similar approach.

Is it even possible to achieve a masters degree in this subject without covering the cold war?

Of course it is. I have a masters in politics and didn't cover the Cold War.

I specialised in other area. Politics is a very wide subject.

😂 seriously why do you think the cold war must be covers in a masters in polisci and economics? Its not a masters in history.

Oh my god this with bells on... Jesus wept! Who cares who may or may not have qualifications if it does not directly affect your life?

😂I swear it all literally goes out the ear the minute you get your piece of paper! Full disclosure I "only" have a lowly degree

I remember sitting my finals and thinking that my brain was like a super busy commuter train and the knowledge was the passengers. After each stop (exam) I visualised all the passengers getting off and all the new ones getting on and refilling the train.

Once those passengers disembarked, they were gone for good!

My daughter told me she was studying volcanoes and I got all excited because I studied them as part of my degree. She looked at me expectantly waiting for some fascinating facts and then I realised that all I can remember is that they are mountains that erupt

I have a PhD in English Literature. There are a million books I haven't read!

You’re not my mother and using ‘he’ as a cover are you? 😂
This could almost be me. PPE, masters in economics, abandoned phd, parents attended both graduation ceremonies and yet the other month when I referenced my degree she looked blankly and denied me ever doing one. She’s totally with it so I assume she got confused and thought I was referring specifically to the phd attempt.
Just to second, third, fourth what others have said - I know a lot about my specific field but there are vast areas of economics I know almost nothing about.

Why are you trying so hard to catch him out?

Be careful you’re not projecting something.

Of course. I have an economics degree. Ask me to tell you about game theory beyond it’s something about 1s and 2s.

I have had a couple of close friends who have top jobs- both lied about qualifications, They told me, which I was surprised about.
it doesn’t affect my life or my friendship with them both.

Some years ago I started looking at LinkedIn for potential job candidates and my then staff. What a load of tosh. One interviewee claimed he had years of database design experience ; Although he knew the words he struggled with some fairly basic questions and I terminated the interview after 20 minutes. The claims of many of my staff were pure fantasy. One got a job at a competitor on the strength of his claimed experience. He was sacked after six weeks. Sadly LinkedIn is no more reliable than Google reviews. I was once offered money to write good/bad reviews about some restaurants I had never been to. No way could I do it - my parents would have turned in their grave!

I remember a lot from my degree/post-graduate days but then I worked in the area whereas my contemporaries drifted into project and rental property management.

I have an MA in Victorian History, another MA in the History of London and a PhD in history specialising in an incredibly obscure aspect of—you guessed it—the history of Victorian London. I never covered the Cold War either.