Signum University is a non-profit, online

graduate school Postgraduate education, graduate education, or graduate school consists of academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications usually pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachel ...

based in

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

, granting the degree of

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

in Language and Literature. Its founder and president is Corey Olsen. Signum's

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

program has four areas of concentration:

Classic Literature A classic is an outstanding example of a particular style; something of lasting worth or with a timeless quality; of the first or highest quality, class, or rank – something that exemplifies its class. The word can be an adjective (a ''c ...

Tolkien Studies The works of J. R. R. Tolkien have generated a body of research covering many aspects of his High fantasy, fantasy writings. These encompass ''The Lord of the Rings'' and ''The Silmarillion'', along with Tolkien's legendarium, his legendarium t ...

Germanic Philology Germanic philology is the philology, philological study of the Germanic languages, particularly from a Comparative method, comparative or historical perspective. The beginnings of research into the Germanic languages began in the 16th century, wi ...

, and Imaginative Literature. Instruction is done entirely via the Internet, with a combination of the use of

webinar Web conferencing is used as an umbrella term for various types of online conference, conferencing and collaborative services including webinars (web seminars), webcasts, and web meetings. Sometimes it may be used also in the more narrow sense of ...

s, live and pre-recorded lectures, Google Classroom, and

Google Groups Google Groups is a service from Google that provides discussion groups for people sharing common interests. Until February 2024, the Groups service also provided a gateway to Usenet newsgroups, both reading and posting to them, via a shared user ...

. Signum is one of the few universities to offer multiple courses in Tolkien Studies. In addition to founder Corey Olsen, the university also draws from other notable Tolkien scholars such as

Tom Shippey Thomas Alan Shippey (born 9 September 1943) is a British medievalist, a retired scholar of Middle and Old English literature as well as of modern fantasy and science fiction. He is considered one of the world's leading academic experts on the ...

, Verlyn Flieger, Douglas A. Anderson, John Garth, Michael D. C. Drout, and Dimitra Fimi. The Germanic philology program is also robust and growing.

History

Signum's beginning was with the launch of the "Tolkien Professor" podcast in 2009 by Corey Olsen, who was teaching at

Washington College Washington College is a private liberal arts college in Chestertown, Maryland. Maryland granted Washington College its charter in 1782. George Washington supported the founding of the college by consenting to have the "College at Chester" name ...

at the time. In 2011 its first credit classes were offered, and in 2012 the university was founded. In 2018, Olsen announced that Signum University was to be formally entered for state certification via the

New Hampshire Department of Education The New Hampshire Department of Education is the state education agency of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. It is headquartered in Concord. Frank Edelblut has led the department as commissioner since February 16, 2017. History New Hampshire ...

. Following some days of crowdfunding, they raised the $23,720 required, and later in 2018, it began the ascension process, announcing that the New Hampshire Department of Education had accepted the request for Signum University to do business in the state after facing a difficult vote in the New Hampshire legislature. In 2021, Signum received authorization from the State of New Hampshire to grant the Master of Arts degree.

References

External links

* {{Official, signumuniversity.org Universities and colleges in New Hampshire Tolkien studies