Michigan State University Begins Offering College Class On Zombie Survival (VIDEO)

Students at Michigan State University will soon learn how to deal with a zombie invasion.

MSU is offering a seven week course over the summer about how human behavior changes during catastrophes, both historical and hypothetical -- including zombie epidemics.

"Though the topic is serious and worthy of academic study, the challenges presented in surviving a hypothetical zombie pandemic have real-world applications," Glenn Stutzky, the creator of the course told WXYZ. "After all, zombies make everything more interesting.”

The course will study aspects of anthropology, sociology and geology, and is worth two credits.

Stutzky has already created a video and YouTube channel for the class.

Check out what other colleges are teaching students about the living dead:

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• Southeast Community College

  Southeast Community College <a href="http://www.kmtv.com/news/local/131814683.html" target="_hplink">offered</a> Zombie Preparedness 101 in October 2011. It was only a four-hour course on a weekend and was initially limited to 25 people. However, instructor Lawrence Hernandez said there might be a benefit to having more people in the class as "zombies come in hordes."

• University of Baltimore

  In 2010, the University of Baltimore <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-11219411" target="_hplink">started</a> a Zombie 101 English course. The class was taught by Arnold Blumberg, who wrote <em>Zombiemania</em>. The students watched zombie movies, and wrote a zombie movie script instead of an end-of-year term paper. Photo Credit: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ubacademicctr.jpg" target="_hplink">M Chambers</a>

• A Harvard Prof And 'The Zombie Autopsies'

  Harvard prof Dr. Steven Schlozman may not be teaching a class on zombies, but he did <a href="http://suvudu.com/2011/03/an-interview-with-steven-schlozman-md-the-zombie-doctor.html" target="_hplink">write </a> a book entitled <em>The Zombie Autopsies</em>. The book follows "Dr. Stanley Blum," a doctor studying the neuroscience of the undead during a zombie apocalypse.

• Columbia College Chicago

  At Columbia College in Chicago, you can take <a href="http://www2.colum.edu/course_descriptions/52-2725J.html" target="_hplink">Zombies in Popular Media</a>. The course "explores the history, significance, and representation of the zombie as a figure in horror and fantasy texts." Be warned: there's apparently an intense schedule! Photo <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:1104swabash.jpg" target="_hplink">Credit</a>

• George Mason University

  In 2010 Jeffrey Mantz, an assistant professor at GMU, taught an <a href="http://spirit.gmu.edu/2010/09/brains-brains-a-zombie-class-wants-to-fill-students-brains/" target="_hplink">anthropology class</a> on Zombies. Students read Zombie literature and viewed Zombie films. In the syllabus, Mantz wrote: "Though [zombies] devour us and are rapacious in their intent to exterminate us from existence, in some ways we need them just as much as they need us. This course thus proceeds with the premise that you must learn to admire and appreciate them, before you bash their skulls in with well-fashioned blunt instruments." <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:LibertySquare2008.JPG" target="_hplink">Credit</a>

Comments

[Luke Young]

10:15 PM on 03/28/2012

wow... do they offer online classes?! That is so freaking cool. What i want is a zombie shelter building class so I can be a bad*ss like this dude: /www.ebaumsworld.com/video/watch/82411486/

[Zariana]

07:09 PM on 03/09/2012

I think it's brilliant, along the lines of the CDC zombie apocalypse blog post.

It's an entertaining way to engage people--who might otherwise not pay attention--on disaster preparedness and thinking about safety.

[Rachel Powell]

06:21 PM on 03/08/2012

http://cetl.ucdavis.edu/trc/freshSem/Spr12/mcdonnell.html

UC Davis has a freshman seminar on zombies :oD

[Quis Custodiet]

10:46 AM on 03/11/2012

I think that has more to do with dealing with the morning after walk of shame though.

[mados123]

03:33 PM on 03/08/2012

Perfect timing now that Doomsday Bunkers is on the Discovery Channel. {wth is going on here}

[Candide33]

03:31 PM on 03/08/2012

My now grown children and I have been playing a game for years that we call zombie apocalypse ... the object of the game is to think of all the things that you would need to know to survive and take turns learning how to do the things then share what we learned. We have made gardens, made jelly, canned foods (tomatoes are hard to can, they all float to the top) made lye to make soap and paper with ... we are making a little house now that will be solar and wind powered. If it turns out good we will sell it. We learn some of the stuff from Renaissance festivals .... it is really fun and informative.

We have been doing this with them since they were teens, it was a fun way to get them interested in things that they would not have thought of trying.

[BewilderingBeing]

03:04 PM on 03/08/2012

It's easier to just watch Fox News all day

[melanielpc]

01:55 PM on 03/08/2012

And the cost of a college education is well worth it.

[WalrusInc]

02:41 PM on 03/08/2012

Said the zombie chow.

[melanielpc]

02:47 PM on 03/08/2012

Braaaiiiiinnnnzzzzzz