Woman painting a fish puppet.
Computer Science, English Language and Literature, Accounting, History...Whatever, we know the drill. Most students will begin their college or university career with an undeclared degree, hoping to decide on a major within their freshman year or because parental pressure made them think there was no other choice but to be a doctor or a lawyer. But what if you got weird with it instead?
Well, you're in luck because I got weird so you don't have to. Are you unsure of what you want to major in school? How about you try something absolutely different from the norm and choose a major from this list of eight unusual but cool college degrees in Canada? If you're already enrolled in a program or are a recent graduate, you'll most likely regret not majoring in these fields because not to toot my own horn, but they're pretty dang cool.
Puppetry — Toronto School of Puppetry
Just some puppets vibing together.
Would you like to handle some little freaks? They could be made of wood, socks, or maybe even felt, as long as they're filled with pathos — or humour, if that's more your speed. Okay, so this isn't exactly a college degree, but if you're not a narc, you'll be able to see past that and revel in the opportunity to study the art, creation and design of puppets. Go out there and make some little guys move so you can move your audience to tears, be it tears of sadness or laughter.
Comedy: Writing and Performance — Humber College
Perfect your humour by enrolling in the Writing and Performance Comedy program offered at Humber College.With standup, improvisation, scriptwriting and sketch comedy courses, you'll get to polish off your funny bone. Some of you may be familiar with Kurtis Conner, an internet sensation who graduated with this Comedy degree from Humber and became best known for his Vine videos, before the platform's untimely death. And, you know, you can still be funny, even if Vine can't. Just sign up, learn from the best there are (in Toronto) and maybe you too can survive a social platform and become a YouTuber.
Jewellery Design & Metalsmithing — Nova Scotia College Of Art & Design
Don't tell me you don't want to have made this regal-looking teapot, we both know you're lying.
Olivier Le Queinec | Dreamstime
If you were the pro of arts and crafts during your childhood years, you should consider taking this program at NSCAD. You'll learn everything you need to know about jewellery making, stone setting, hollowware construction, design methodologies, computer-assisted design and manufacturing. If you don't know what hollowware construction is, look it up. Tell me you wouldn't want to make a sick ornate silver teapot to impress your tea mates with. You can lie to yourself but you can't lie to the fancy silverware.
Floral Design — Seneca College
If you're still picking he loves me, he loves me not daisies,perhaps you should get into the floral industry. A big range of skills is covered in the program's coursework, including design, management, marketing, horticulture, and distribution. You even get to practice in the college's floral laboratory — everything you need to become an expert when it comes to knowing everything about flowers.
Oceanography — Dalhousie University
The ocean is a divisive topic: is it majestic, terrifying, or just plain boring? If you fall into the first camp (as you should), you'll agree that this is a pretty cool field of study. Thanks to this program at Dalhousie, you could discover the secrets of what's under the sea, or at least the fraction of it we know about, and you could probably help figure out the rest! Specializing in marine life and ecosystems, doing ocean research, maybe seeing some whales and sharks, some cool crabs or one of those immortal jellyfish; who knows what you'll get to see if you open your heart to the open seas.
Golf Industry Management — Georgian College
Do you want to become the next Tiger Woods? Well, this won't help. But there are definitely some serious perks you can gain from this program. You get to travel, you'll probably play a considerable amount of golf and you could get the chance to meet some famous golfers, if that floats your boat. What about what happens after you get your golf degree? You could become an instructor, deal with golf operators, manage a golf course, and much more. Who wouldn't want to be known by such a prestigious title as Director of Golf or, even better, gain renown as a genuine Golf Technology Entrepreneur?
Wildlife Conservation — University Of Prince Edward Island
If you love animals and hate climate change, a BA in wildlife conservation would be the ideal major to pursue. Your program will consist of taking bio, environmental and economic courses, as well as field training in which you will directly interact with wildlife. You'll get to form both a scientific and social understanding of the impacts and strategies of conservation and maybe even do some real good for critters everywhere.
Overview of the University of Prince Edward Island's program
Advanced French Patisserie — George Brown College
Master the occult art of making macarons, go to France, get shamed about your poorly thought-out opinions on croissants — live the dream, basically. To be clear, this is a postgraduate program, but that's the price you have to pay to go hang out in French vineyards and eat some stinky fancy cheese with people that will actually be able to enjoy retirement one day.
This article has been updated since it was originally published on November 17, 2016.