Puppets, Pop Culture: 5 bizarre degrees offered this fall at sky-high tuition rates
From puppets to sexual identity, universities are cashing in on ideologically driven or impractical degrees that leave students with debt and little direction.
As American students face steep tuition price tags this fall semester, many universities are peddling impractical studies or political activism instead of career-ready degrees.
From puppets to sexual identity, universities are cashing in on ideologically driven or downright bizarre degrees that leave students with debt and little direction. And since most of these programs require four years in school, the total cost can soar well into six figures for a diploma with questionable job prospects.
Here are five activist-oriented or impractical programs offered at American colleges or universities this fall semester, along with their price tags:
1. Ivy League Sex Studies
For students who want to learn about drag queens and sex work, Harvard University offers a major and minor in “Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies.”
Courses include “Black Religion and Sexuality,” “RuPaulitics: Drag, Race, and Power,” and “Feminism in Arts and Sciences.”
Harvard advertises that its Women, Gender, and Sexuality studies courses are “characterized by a strong commitment to critical thinking and problem solving, preparing students for a variety of careers and post-graduate degrees.”
Harvard’s estimated cost of attendance for the 2025-26 academic year is $87,000.
2. Pop Culture
For those who want to major in television and celebrity gossip, Bowling Green State University (BGSU) in Ohio offers bachelor’s and master’s degrees in “Popular Culture.”
Courses include “Introduction to Popular Music,” “Television Studies,” and “Intersections of Race, Gender, and Culture.”
Estimated undergraduate fees are $25,000 for Ohio residents and $33,000 for out-of-state students.
BGSU’s Department of Pop Culture says the course offerings allow students to “apply critical analysis to the popular culture environment” and analyze “how popular culture shapes/reflects diversity in a multicultural society.”
3. Puppets
Campus Reform has reported on the rise of furry clubs on campus, but it looks like furries have hit the classroom. The University of Connecticut (UConn) offers bachelor’s and master’s degrees in “Puppet Arts.”
Courses include “Toy Theater,” “Hand Puppetry,” and “Puppetry in Television.”
An undergraduate degree at UConn comes at a price tag of nearly $40,000 for in-state students and more than $60,000 for out-of-state students.
“Our faculty and staff encourage Puppet Arts students to develop a vivid imagination, curiosity for human relationships and a fearless approach toward creative expression resulting in groundbreaking productions,” the course description reads.
4. Social Justice and Racism
At Arizona State University (ASU), social justice isn’t just an activist hobby, it’s a career path.
ASU offers a bachelor’s degree in “Justice Studies,” where students examine “current and historical social justice issues” through the lenses of “inequality, race, [and] gender.” The university also offers a bachelor’s degree in “Social Justice and Human Rights.”
Tuition averages $14,000 for in-state students and nearly $40,000 for out-of-state students.
5. Queer and Trans
At the University of Colorado Boulder (UC Boulder), students can learn about pronouns and transgenderism for college credit.
UC Boulder offers a minor in “Queer and Trans Studies,” which the school says allows students to “critically examine non-normative sexual and gender identities” and “deepen their understanding of queer and trans issues in their academic, professional, and personal lives.”
Courses include “Queer Theory,” “Critical Inquiries in Transgender Studies,” and “Introduction to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Studies.”
According to the university, tuition and fees for the 2025-26 school year may exceed $40,000 for in-state students and $68,000 for out-of-state students.
