<p>You can teach yourself theory in STEM, I agree. You can’t teach yourself lab work. You really need a hands-on experience.</p>
<p>Stanford University, course in Humanities, approximate price tag - $5,000. </p>
<p>Rock, Sex, Rebellion
Britney Spears, Nirvana, Outkast, The Who -these are names we associate with sold-out concerts and faded t-shirts, but not so much with lectures and term papers. Yet that is exactly the material that makes up the coursework of professor Mark Applebaum’s popular course “Rock, Sex, and Rebellion.”</p>
<p>I won’t go to such class unless someone would PAY ME $5,000.</p>
<p>Stanford University, course in Humanities</p>
<p>"Rock, Sex, Rebellion
Britney Spears, Nirvana, Outkast, The Who -these are names we associate with sold-out concerts and faded t-shirts, but not so much with lectures and term papers. Yet that is exactly the material that makes up the coursework of professor Mark Applebaum’s popular course “Rock, Sex, and Rebellion.”</p>
<p>Is it science? Where?</p>
<p>Ok, so californiaaa, following your logic- there is no reason to pay for a math or any other class that doesn’t have a lab component?</p>
<p>Californiaaa, NO ONE is asking you to pay for a humanities class. No one. If you don’t want to take it, don’t. There are plenty of classes that don’t appeal to many different people, but they don’t bash the whole discipline continuously.</p>
<p>“Californiaaa, NO ONE is asking you to pay for a humanities class. No one.” </p>
<p>They do. Humanities and Social Sciences are required in freshman year. The Profs in Humanities want to have classes, without students they can’t justify their salaries.</p>
<p>" there is no reason to pay for a math or any other class that doesn’t have a lab component?"</p>
<p>I understand that colleges want to make sure that students know theory before they are allowed to work in the lab. Lab equipment is expensive and often has safety issues. You can’t give an access to chemistry lab, for example, unless the student knows something about the chemicals.</p>
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<p>Yeah, but you usually have a wide selection to choose from. Some I’d recommend from my friends’ course catalog for the more hardcore STEM or conservative-leaning folks:</p>
<p>History of the Automobile</p>
<p>History of Science & Technology</p>
<p>Computers & Society</p>
<p>Various Military History Courses </p>
<p>Econ Courses (Bonus if the Prof/course is obsessed with the Chicago/Austrian Schools of Economics)</p>
<p>Greco-Roman Classics (Bonus if course is on Sparta, Roman engineering/technology*, or the Roman Imperial military forces).</p>
<p>American History/Politics/Studies (Bonus if covering subtopics such as military history, Federalism, etc). </p>
<p>etc, etc, etc.</p>
<p>Stanford University, course in Humanities, approximate price tag - $5,000. </p>
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<p>Being able to observe and comment on societal trends is an important skill with a lot of applications – market research, journalism, etc. I wouldn’t necessarily have an objection to such a class for my kids or more importantly by myself. I’d sign up for it. I’d hate to be so unsophisticated that the only thing I valued was science. </p>
<p>But let’s face it. The people who dis these types of classes are the kinds of people who don’t have nuanced thinking, who don’t have the ability to look critically at something, to deconstruct it, to add a different point of view, to come up with something no one has ever thought of. It would be the equivalent of saying - I myself cannot draw or paint, so therefore drawing and painting are silly, useless things.</p>
<p>Econ Courses, Greco-Roman Classics - yes, I agree. </p>
<p>There are often waiting lists to attend these classes.</p>
<p>There is a waiting list for the Classics at exactly which University? I would love to send them a donation to expand their course offerings! (former Classics major here.)</p>
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<p>Really? There were no waiting lists for either at my LAC nor at many colleges I know of. </p>
<p>If anything, the Greco-Roman Classics departments at some illustrious schools seem to be wanting for students as heard from undergrads/grad students majoring in those fields and my receiving multiple solicitations from UPenn and a couple of peer universities to enroll in their Classics certification programs to prepare for PhD in that field.</p>
<p>Definitely not at either of the schools I attend(ed), blossom 
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<p>Just browsed through Stanford’s Econ courses and I didn’t see really any full ones. Definitely not the intro class- there were 100+ spaces left. </p>
<p>No full classics classes either that I saw. </p>
<p>Hm…</p>
<p>blossom ,</p>
<p>At Berkley, there is a waiting list to attend Classics as a breath course.</p>
<p>Really? Not in the fall, there are none with a waitinglist that doesn’t have seats open: </p>
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<p>All open in spring:</p>
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<p>Which class are you referring to, californiaaa? I used this to search: <a href=“http://ls-breadth.berkeley.edu/search.php[/url]”>http://ls-breadth.berkeley.edu/search.php</a> so I could absolutely be looking in the wrong place. Please correct me, californiaaa :)</p>
<p>ETA: I actually looked here, too, and I don’t see any Classics that don’t have available seats and have a waiting list and there are no waiting lists for spring at all: <a href=“http://schedule.berkeley.edu/[/url]”>http://schedule.berkeley.edu/</a></p>
<p>I can assure you that certain philosophy classes at my school do have waiting lists.</p>
<p>It’s amazing how eager and hungry young minds are. :rolleyes:</p>
<p>Apologies if this has already been mentioned, but: [Betteridge’s</a> law of headlines - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betteridge’s_law_of_headlines]Betteridge’s”>Betteridge's law of headlines - Wikipedia)</p>
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<p>I intentionally stated it dramatically, but I don’t know why looking back. It’s easier to go along with what the teacher wants, but I imagine the consequence would be a lower grade.</p>
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<p>I’ve had pretty good experiences in Philosophy and Economics classes. I’ve never bothered with other humanities or social science classes. Pick a school where there are at least no specific requirements.</p>
<p>New to this thread and have not read all posts. Sorry if I am repeating things already addressed or interrupting an ongoing discussion.</p>
<p>At the college at which I teach and am an academic advisor, I find that there are many courses offered at the various colleges that often fill up because they fulfill certain general education requirements and the are known to be easy. So closed classes can mean a variety of things.</p>
<p>So “Race, Gender Class and Culture” ( African and Latino Studies), “History of Rock and Roll” ( Music) and Stress Management ( Physical Education) always close because they are easy, so I am told by students.</p>
<p>Economics courses also always closed because they are required for many majors. Economics is a social science ( H is an economist) but is sometimes housed in the business department or school. My anecdotal experience is that economists do not think of themselves as part of the business world.</p>
<p>H is currently the interim Dean of Humanities and Arts at the school at which I work. He says his departments have great programs and students and they are thriving. We (H and I )are continually attending theatrical and musical performances and art openings. The students do a wonderful job.</p>
<p>But more and more jobs require specific majors that do not include the humanities and arts. My S did not get a job interview because the job required a business or math major and he has a physics major and math minor. Really? How idiotic. But that is how it has become. So…the reason arts and humanities may be dead is because prospective employers want specific majors rather than “educated LA graduates.”</p>
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<p>Are they bothered by the large number of economics majors who are studying it as a substitute for a business major?</p>
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<p>But they’re not… they’re not dead. Really.</p>