Dundee University has launched a new degree program that might finally put your encyclopedic knowledge of The Family Circus to good use.
Led by Dr. Chris Murray, a professor the BBC calls “one of the UK’s leading authorities on comics,” the new one-year Master’s degree program will “study the impact of comics on the worlds of art, literature and popular culture.”
“This is a very exciting time for comics scholarship, and I am delighted to be able to offer this postgraduate course on comics,” Dr. Murray said.
“This is a unique opportunity to give this important medium the attention it deserves, and to allow those with an interest in comics to study it in detail.”
There’s no word on what specifically will be covered in the course, though the BBC notes that the program will be built on “strong local traditions” in the comic industry. Though that doesn’t necessarily indicate a direction for the program, it does hint that the course will be less Batman, and more “weird British mirror universe Dennis the Menace.”
Still, it’s a degree in comics. If nothing else, it beats an art history degree whose only practical application is in impressing high school girls and scoring a sweet barista job. Especially since Dr. Murray cites job placement as one of the key goals of the program.
“Employability is an important consideration for any postgraduate program, and it lies at the heart of what we aim to do with this course,” Murray claims. “There will be practical advice on publishing and developing a career as a comics scholar, writer or artist, and we hope to arrange work placements for students.”
