6 Universities Where You Can Take a Class on the Beatles

The Beatles by Richardjo53 licensed by CC BY-SA 2.0

If you’re a college student who also happens to be a Beatles fan, then you’re going to love this article. There are actually a number of colleges in the United States that offer courses on the Beatles. Every now and then, colleges will offer fun electives that will lighten up your course load and fulfill your graduation requirements. Now, that’s not to say that these Beatles courses are easy, but I’m sure they won’t be as difficult as physics, organic chemistry, or any other notoriously hard class. So, if you’re on the lookout for a fun, music-inspired elective to take, then you might be in luck - one of these six schools on the list may be your own!

1. Illinois Wesleyan University: The Beatles and Their World

Located in Bloomington, IL, students at Illinois Wesleyan University have the option to take “The Beatles and Their World” as one of their history courses. In this class, they will learn about the impact that the band had on the world. The class also examines how the Beatles influenced attitudes toward fashion, drug use, and war.

2. The University of Alaska Anchorage: Honors Beatles Seminar

UAA is Alaska’s largest university, and for the students enrolled in the honors program, they have the option to take a course on the Beatles. The class is listed as “Honors Beatles Seminar” and fulfills an humanities credit while teaching the students about the band and its legacy.

3. Skidmore College: The Beatles: An Introduction

Skidmore College is a liberal arts school in Saratoga Springs, NY and offers a music course on the Beatles. The students who take this course learn about the band’s development, from the beginning to their final days together as “The Beatles.”

4. The University of Southern California: The Beatles: Their Music and Their Times

USC has been offering MUSC 422 - The Beatles: Their Music and Their Times to its students for the past 20 years. Being a music course, the students will get to study the music, lyrics, production techniques, and more in this upper-level class.

5. Berklee College of Music: Multiple

As a school that focuses on music, Berklee College of Music offers multiple courses on the Beatles, including “The Music of the Beatles” and “The Solo Careers of the Beatles.” Depending on which course they take, students will get the chance to recreate the band’s music and analyze the songs in-depth to learn about the harmonies, melody construction, and more.

6. Indiana University: The Music of the Beatles

Indiana University has been offering its Z401: The Music of The Beatles course since 1982! Students who choose to take the course will get to look into the songs and the lives of the band members.