Brains are a hit at Arts
Maybe you – just like 40,000 other people – have also seen the music video or perhaps heard gossip about a new degree programme at AU? The degree programme is called Cognitive Science and it’s taken AU's coming students by storm.
After the deadline for quota 2 applications passed, there is no doubt about the level of interest for the new degree programme. Cognitive Science has received 329 applications – and is first priority in 170 of these – making it the most popular degree programme at Arts among applicants.
Jesper Sølund Hansen, head of AU Studies Administration, Arts, says that quota 2 usually gives a strong indication of quota 1 applicant's choices. He also points out that the degree programme attracts both Danish and foreign students.
Associate Professor Kristian Tylén and Associate Professor Mikkel Wallentin from the Department of Aesthetics and Communication have worked hard to create the degree programme. At AU’s U-days they had reserved a room with space for 35 people in the Cognition and Behavior Lab at Fuglesangs Allé, and were surprised when 100 new brains showed up and packed the little room: "The success is overwhelming. This is just the first indication that there is support for Cognitive Science," explains Tylén.
Get to know the brain
At Cognitive Science the students get to know the brain better. How we make decisions, experience the outside world, and how we use language to communicate and interact with others. The students also get the chance to take a more practical approach. They learn to design and carry out studies of the brain, mind and human behaviour.
Can you use a video to brand a degree programme?
With the academic regulations approved, the next step for Kristian Tylén and Mikkel Wallentin was to reach potential students. One of the first ideas they came up with during a brainstorming was to write a song.
"There’s no big communication strategy behind this, it was just a silly idea. I wrote and recorded the song during my Christmas holidays and we spent half a day shooting the video," explains Tylén.
However, he doesn’t think the music video should get all the credit for the level of interest. He says:
"When I talked to coming students at U-days, it became clear that they had primarily found information about Cognitive Science through the usual channels."
If you missed it first time around, you can see the music video (2:49 min.)
Translated by Peter Lambourne.