Editing Mickey Mouse degrees

{{Short description|University degrees regarded as worthless}}{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}{{ntbcw|Disney College Program}}
[[File:Mickey-Mouse.png|thumb|Mickey Mouse]]
'''Mickey Mouse degrees''' (or '''Mickey Mouse courses''') is a term for [[university]] [[academic degree|degrees]] or [[course (education)|courses]] regarded as worthless or irrelevant. The term is a [[dysphemism]], originating in the common usage of [[Mickey Mouse (pejorative)|''"Mickey Mouse"'']] as a [[pejorative]]. It came to prominence in the UK after use by the country's national [[tabloid (newspaper format)|tabloids]].

==Origins==
The term was used by the [[Minister of State for Universities]] [[Margaret Hodge]], during a discussion on higher education expansion. Hodge defined a Mickey Mouse course as "one where the content is perhaps not as rigorous as one would expect and where the degree itself may not have huge relevance in the labour market"; and that, furthermore, "simply stacking up numbers on Mickey Mouse courses is not acceptable".<ref name="Hodge">"[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/2655127.stm 'Irresponsible' Hodge under fire]", BBC News, 14 January 2003. URL accessed 24 June 2006.</ref>  Hodge herself received a 3rd class degree in Economics. Similarly, many of her colleagues in the House of Commons have studied Politics Philosophy and Economics and in June 2024 [[Kay Burley]] asked the Education Minister Damian Hinds if his PPE degree from Oxford was not indeed a Mickey Mouse degree.  This opinion is often raised in the summer when exam results are released and new university courses revealed. The phrase took off in the late 1990s,{{cn|date=February 2021}} as the [[Labour Party (United Kingdom)|Labour government]] created the target of having 50% of students in [[higher education]] by 2010.<ref>Donald MacLeod, (14 July 2005) [http://education.guardian.co.uk/universityaccess/story/0,,1527877,00.html "50% higher education target doomed, says thinktank"], EducationGuardian.co.uk, accessed 24 June 2006.</ref>

==Examples==
Comedian [[Jay Leno]] quipped that “in college, [[philosophy]] majors study [[Is the glass half empty or half full?|if the glass is half full or if the glass is half empty]]. See, this prepares them for careers later as [[waiters]]."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cityam.com/lets-be-honest-university-waste-of-time/|title=Let's be honest, spending three years at university is a waste of time for too many|first=Matthew|last=Lesh|date=August 29, 2022}}</ref>

In 2000, [[Staffordshire University]] received negative press coverage when a module on the sociological importance of football which had been designed for students taking [[sociology]], [[sports science]], or [[media studies]] was portrayed as a "degree in [[David Beckham]] Studies".<ref name="beckham">"[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/694451.stm Beckham in degree course]", BBC News, 29 March 2000. URL accessed 24 June 2006.</ref> A professor for the department stressed that the course would not focus on Beckham, and that the module examines "the rise of football from its folk origins in the 17th century, to the power it's become and the central place it occupies in British culture, and indeed world culture, today".<ref name="beckham"/> In July 2015, [[UK Independence Party]] MEP [[Louise Bours]] referred to the module on ''[[Question Time (TV series)|Question Time]]'', but as though it was a full degree course.{{cn|date=February 2021}} Other degrees deemed "Mickey Mouse" include "golf management" and "surf science".<ref name="takingthemick">Emma Brockes [http://education.guardian.co.uk/students/story/0,,875003,00.html "Taking the mick"], EducationGuardian.co.uk, 15 January 2003. URL accessed 24 June 2006.</ref> [[Durham University]] designed an optional module centred around [[Harry Potter]] to examine "prejudice, citizenship and bullying in modern society" as part of a B.A. degree in Education Studies.<ref>{{cite news |title=Durham University students offered Harry Potter course |url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-wear-11011279 |work=BBC News |date=18 August 2010}}</ref>

One thing these courses share is that they are "vocational", which are perceived to be less intellectually rigorous than the traditional academic degrees.<ref name="takingthemick"/>

Defenders of these courses object that the derogatory comments made in the media rely on the low [[symbolic capital]] of new subjects and rarely discuss course contents beyond the titles.<ref name="Hodge"/> Another factor is the perception that the take up of these subjects, and the decline of more traditional academic subjects like science, engineering, or mathematics,<ref>Polly Curtis and agencies
[http://education.guardian.co.uk/alevels/story/0,,1548150,00.html "A-level pupils urged to spurn 'soft' subjects"], EducationGuardian.co.uk, 12 August 2005. URL accessed 24 June 2006.</ref> is causing [[grade inflation|annual grade rise]] in the [[United Kingdom]].

==A-level subjects and "soft options"==
The [[A-level]] in [[General Studies]] is seen as a Mickey Mouse subject,<ref name="takingthemick"/> as well as A-level Critical Thinking, with many universities not accepting it as part of the requirements for an offer.

Additionally, although not considered Mickey Mouse subjects as such, some qualifications are not preferred by top universities and are regarded as "[[GCE Advanced Level (United Kingdom)#Soft options|soft options]]".<ref>[http://www.lse.ac.uk/resources/undergraduateProspectus2009/howToApply.htm#generated-subheading5 How to apply: A level subjects]", London School of Economics. URL accessed 19 July 2008.</ref> A 2007 report stated that the sciences were more challenging than subjects such as [[Media Studies]], which might be taken by students to get higher grades for university applications.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2007/aug/12/alevels.schools|location=London|work=The Guardian|first=Anushka|last=Asthana|title=Too many pupils taking 'easy' A-levels|date=12 August 2007}}</ref> An American example is a degree in physical education. These have been issued to members of the [[college athletics|college's athletics teams]], to make them eligible to play; otherwise they would fail to pass traditional subjects.

==See also==
*[[Academic inflation]]
*[[Diploma mill]]
*''[[Jodeldiplom]]''
*[[List of Advanced Level subjects]]
*[[MRS Degree]]
*[[Scholarly method]]
*[[Underwater basket weaving]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mickey Mouse Degrees}}
[[Category:Academic degrees]]
[[Category:Academic scandals]]
[[Category:Criticism of academia]]
[[Category:Dysphemisms]]
[[Category:Mickey Mouse]]
[[Category:Pejorative terms]]