Crash course on education for the 21st century: A master's in witchcraft, magic and the occult

EXETER, England (TND) — There's an unusual new option for people who want to further their education with a master’s degree: Magic and Occult Science.

This isn’t a pre-Halloween trick or other devilry.

The University of Exeter in England says the new program will show “the history and impact of witchcraft and magic around the world on society and science.”

Students won’t be watching I Dream of Jeannie or Bewitched.

They’ll need to conjure up expertise in a wide range of subjects just to apply. Things like history, literature, philosophy, archaeology, sociology, psychology, drama, and religion.

According to Prof. Emily Selove:

Magic and the occult have been and remain an enormous part of Western culture, and it is foolish to deny this or to refuse to take it seriously.”

In fact, the degree is part of Exeter’s Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies.

We acknowledge the profound debt of Western culture and science to the Arabo-Islamic world, a history that has been erased in creating our false picture of the West as uniquely rational,” Selove said.

Among the modules to choose from: "dragons in Western literature and art, the legend of King Arthur, paleography, Islamic thought, archaeological theory and practice, the depiction of women in the Middle Ages, the book in Medieval and Early Modern Europe, gender, society and culture in Early Modern Europe and the philosophy of Psychedelics."

And what would a graduate do with this degree?

According to Exeter, "It could prepare them for careers in teaching, counseling, mentoring, heritage and museum work, work in libraries, tourism, arts organizations, the publishing industry, social justice and environmental think tanks, spiritual and wellbeing guidance, writing and media, the arts, and further research."