Taking a degree in a 'soft subject' doesn't mean you aren't clever

Obviously to even get to university stage you must have some brains. I find it degrading when people on here bash degrees that are deemed 'Mickey Mouse' when they haven't even done it themselves. If you think it's a waste of time then why bother voicing your opinion when it won't affect the person doing the degree?

All degrees are hard. A degree
in film production doesn't just require theory work, it's also practical and if you haven't got the right vision then it'll be tough just like any other degree out there.

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Reply 1

username1799249

Original post by Rhythmical

All degrees are hard. Posted from TSR Mobile

Not true. All degrees are easy. Only some are easier than others. :smile:

Reply 2

Butterfly92xo

When I first started university, my friend and I said it was too easy and it felt like we was on a 'dummy' course (her words, not mine). Little did I know, as soon as the assignments and exam preparations started coming in all at once, the stress was so much to bear that some of the students actually left the course!

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Reply 3

JRM3PM

stem degree>no degree>humanities degree

Spoiler

Reply 4

Ephilas

I do agree that soft subjects get bad press for no reason, however my view is that maybe there are other ways of learning than doing a degree. Like for film production, surely it could be better to do an apprenticeship and learn from people who have been doing it for years, in the proper environment? (The same could apply to other subjects too, not just "soft" subjects, for example civil engineering etc)

I'm not saying that the degree is "Mickey Mouse", far from it, I'm just saying that there are other ways of learning about things that could be better suited to the subject. :smile:

Reply 5

somethingbeautiful

Original post by ByEeek

Not true. All degrees are easy. Only some are easier than others. :smile:

I certainly wouldn't describe deadlines, essays, exams, presentations, dissertation, supervisor meetings, lectures, seminars, days in the library etc as 'easy'. It's not easy at all regardless of the content of a degree. All degrees have deadlines and pressures which is not 'easy' so even before we've discussed specific degree subjects your statement is nonsense.

Reply 6

russellsteapot

The idea of 'mickey mouse' degrees on TSR tends to be used by insecure kids doing a particular degree who are likely at the bottom of their cohort, and need something to make themselves feel better, in the absence of being able to excel amongst their peers. Attacking someone else's degree is a perfect escape for them.

I think some degrees teach more useful work skills, or more useful life skills, etc. But for practical purposes there's no reason for perceiving a difference in 'difficulty' between, say, film studies and history. Or x and y comparing many other degrees. The mark schemes are the same, the research requirement is equal, the quality of argument/discussion has to be the same. You can't write a **** essay and get a good grade in either. Too many people still have an inexplicable respect for the 'traditional' in education when, in almost every other walk of life, the 'traditional' is growing increasingly irrelevant (especially in employment situations).

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 7

Ezme39

All degrees are hard in their own way, because you are learning :smile:

but some are more demanding than others

Reply 8

Mpagtches

Original post by ByEeek

Not true. All degrees are easy. Only some are easier than others. :smile:

So a PhD in quantum theory is easy then. Go try it.

Reply 9

VannR

Original post by Mpagtches

So a PhD in quantum theory is easy then. Go try it.

Undergraduate degree != PhD.

Having said that, it is pretty obvious that he is being tongue-in-cheek.

Reply 10

Maker

I think people doing mickey mouse degrees are quite clever because its easier to get a good grade with an easy subject than a hard one.

A 2.1 in media is better than a 2.2 in history if applying for grad schemes.

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 11

richpanda

Because gender studies is as hard as astrophysics...

Reply 12

username1799249

Original post by somethingbeautiful

I think you are missing the point. What is the difference between the two following statements:

1. All degrees are hard. Some are harder than others.
2. All degrees are easy. Some are easier than others.

Strewth!

I did Electronics and Computing. It was moderately hard on reflection. However, if I had approached it like a 9-5 job, I would have aced it, it would have been easy and all my evenings and weekends would have been free to enjoy the student experience. Alas, if only one had hindsight at the time.

Reply 13

letsgetphysical

I'm pretty sure oOxford offer fine art, right.

Reply 14

username1862217

I think it's less the fact that "mickey mouse" degrees are easy and more the fact that graduates in them have a hard time finding work compared to more desirable degrees.

Reply 15

username1494226

What does it matter anyway. Most grads end up either unemployed or scraping by in non degree demanding jobs. Its just a pretty piece of paper you can plaque onto your wall:

Reply 16

weirdnessandcoffee

The question is:

Will a 2.2 in law be looked on more favourably than a first in media studies?

Reply 17

Magnus Taylor

Degrees such as History and Law should be seen in the same light as STEM.

Reply 18

callum_law

Original post by russellsteapot

I think some degrees teach more useful work skills, or more useful life skills, etc. But for practical purposes there's no reason for perceiving a difference in 'difficulty' between, say, film studies and history. Or x and y comparing many other degrees. The mark schemes are the same, the research requirement is equal, the quality of argument/discussion has to be the same. You can't write a **** essay and get a good grade in either. Too many people still have an inexplicable respect for the 'traditional' in education when, in almost every other walk of life, the 'traditional' is growing increasingly irrelevant (especially in employment situations).

What a load of nonsense. There absolutely is a difference, for if one course is taking in bright but average students with ABB and one course is taking in bright and above average students with AAA, the course with AAA is going to set higher academic standards—whether explicitly or implicitly. You probably say that there is no difference in grades amongst different unis as well.

Also if markers on the film studies and history course both reject the same essay and give it a fail grade (for the essay is ****), that does not mean there is a reflection in how each marker would offer grades for higher than fail. That's like saying that under gravitational pull 100 times stronger than the earth's, you and I could not jump. Therefore, where gravitational pull is equal to earth's, we have equal jumping power. No, I could be Stephen Hawking and you could be Usain Bolt. Just because you share a baseline does not mean you share characteristics beyond that.