Twitter Majorby Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger 12 Aug 2009 07:16 PM Would it be a major deal if your child told you he planned to major in Twitter-nomics in college? Yes, that Twitter. As in: "I can't talk right now Ma; I've got to tweet my peeps, yo!" If you think I'm making this up, then you haven't seen the recent proposal made by professors at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. A group of educators there are looking to incorporate the soaring popularity of interactive technology such as Twitter and Facebook into an actual four-year bachelor's degree. "A working title has been Interactive Web Technology Management, but we're not quite happy with that," a professor of Information Systems at UW-Oshkosh told local reporters. How about this for a working title: Social Media-ology or Texting for Credits? I can see it now... 18-year-old reluctant college co-ed finds way to validate his CrackBerry addiction by majoring in tweeting. Great! Educators maintain that devoting a major to social media is not as far fetched as it sounds. "Our students use a lot of social media technologies, but not to the extent probably we'd like them to. They may be on Facebook, but don't see how Facebook may be advantageous to a business," said one UW-Oshkosh professor. The university is finalizing a curriculum even as the industry continues to develop new technology, and hopes to offer the new major by spring 2010. In the meantime, you might want to think twice before lecturing your teen about his texting habits. After all, his interest in social media could yield employment opportunities. "All over the place companies are realizing the importance of these new medias and they're trying to take advantage and we just want to make sure the students are equipped to really deal and work in this new environment," noted UW professors on the committee designing the new degree. How would you feel if your kid announced he was majoring in Twitter? Related Articles: You Know Your Kid is Obsessed with Texting When... A Lesson for Parents WithText-Crazed Kids Confessions of a Reluctant Facebook Parent Would You Allow Your Child to Live in a Co-ed Dorm Room? How NOT to Help Your Kid Get Into College Pink Haired Student Gets the Boot and College Co-eds Make the Most of Bad Weather Learn more about Michele Cheplic  Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism. Relevanteducation tags User Comments JaimeHunt (5) 13 Aug 2009 12:51 PMMichele, Thank you for taking an interest in one of the new majors coming to the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. After reading your blog, I wanted to take the opportunity to expound upon and clarify a couple of points: • Social media applications such as Facebook and Twitter are but one aspect of the new major, which also will incorporate traditional business skills and computer science to prepare students for careers that span the technology and marketing fields. • UW Oshkosh's enrollment has not declined in recent years. In fact, it is because of steady growth since 2000 and the projected growth into the next decade that state funds specifically have been allocated to hiring more faculty and to create programs that will directly benefit regional businesses. Businesses increasingly are taking advantage of social media to connect with customers and clients and to collaborate. The new major will help develop this in-demand skill set. And that's something to tweet about! Jaime Hunt Integrated Marketing and Communications University of Wisconsin Oshkosh  Michele Cheplic |
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