Kwame Anthony Appiah: UK should adopt US-style majors system

The philosopher--not cultural critic--is remarkably unknowledgeable about both US and UK undergraduate education

"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyse a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects." — Robert Heinlein, Time Enough for Love. Well, I'm rubbish at writing poetry & have yet to demonstrate my capabilty at the last, but I do my best to make a fair fist at the rest :)

It is worth remembering that Keele was founded on the liberal education model, the aim was to undo all the harm of specialising at A Level. It was a four year course with a Foundation Year which covered everything ‘from Plato to NATO’. We also had to take courses across science, social science & the humanities. Afterwards we had to do two Principal subjects ( Combined Honours) & two Subsidiaries. The four subjects had to cover all three schools. You applied to Keele to study two subjects, usually ones taken at A Level. Most people changed one subject at Principal many two. I changed from Latin & French to Psychology & Philosophy. Unfortunately due to government funding the four year degree had to be largely dropped, but the ethos of a broad education at Keele still remains.