text: Jay Leno is among the famous comedians to graduate from Emerson College. 
   
   Did you hear the one about the Boston school that’s offering students an opportunity to major in comedy? 
   
   There’s no punch line here — it’s happening at Emerson College next year. 
   
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   Beginning in September 2016, undergraduates looking to brush up on their on-screen performance skills or comedy-writing abilities will be able to work toward a bachelor of fine arts degree in the “Comedic Arts.” 
   
   “This is going to be a hands-on program,” said Martie Cook, Emerson’s associate chairwoman of visual and media arts department. “If you want to be a sitcom writer, we are going to take you through sitcom writing, and you will walk out of here with several scripts in your hand that you can then show to agents and producers, so you actually have a portfolio.” 
   
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   Cook said the college’s new program will offer classes that run the gamut. Students will learn about the history of the subject, dating back to the Greeks and Romans, and how to perfect a sketch comedy performance. 
   
   “It’s not going to be just lecturing,” she said. “I think what this program offers that’s unique is that you are going to have to actually do it.” 
   
   Students will be trained in how to write jokes for both the stage and the screen, so they can find their voices as comedians. There will also be production courses, comedy editing courses, and classes geared toward students who want to study the art and theory of laughter. 
   
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   Emerson is known for churning out some of the industry’s top talents — Jay Leno, Bill Burr, Harris Wittels, and Denis Leary all attended the school — and Cook expects there to be some famous guest lecturers. 
   
   “Many of our faculty are people who have had experience in the industry, and who continue to work in the business,” she said. “The plan is that we will also be offering master classes and events with a lot of event speakers.” 
   
   Emerson will make use of both its Boston and Los Angeles campuses for the new initiative. 
   
   “This is a great moment for Emerson to bring what has become one of our distinctive strengths to the forefront,” said Doug Herzog, an Emerson alumnus and president of Viacom Music and Entertainment Group, which oversees Comedy Central, in a statement. “Some schools develop NFL quarterbacks. We develop great comedic talent.” 
   
   Last year, Emerson announced the rollout of a minor concentration called “Comedy: Writing and Performance.” Cook said the success of that program was so overwhelming that making it a major, in a time when comedy is so prevalent for millennials, was a no-brainer. 
   
   “They live in a world that’s comedy based,” she said. “Look at how they get their news: They don’t turn on network news, they go to the Daily Show and the Colbert Report, places like that. Everything is comedy driven. Comedy is just hotter than it’s ever been.” 
   
   Noah Garfinkel, who graduated from Emerson in 2006 and now writes for the Fox sitcom New Girl, starring Zooey Deschanel, said the school has long been a destination for people interested in humor. 
   
   “There are so many people who went there when I was there that went for comedy writing,” said Garfinkel, who has also written scripts for Comedy Central’s Workaholics. 
   
   He said the academic experience could be a big help, teaching students to write comedy scripts before they enter the field full time, for instance. 
   
   “I think you’re either going to be good at it or you’re not,” he said. “You’re not going to learn to be funny, but if it’s something you wanted to do or are capable of doing, this major is certainly something that will help that. It’s not the easiest career to navigate.” 
   
   Boston-bred stand-up comedian Ryan Doon, who rose to fame using Twitter’s six-second video app, Vine, said he would have pursued a comedy major if one had been available to him. 
   
   “I wish I went to Emerson in the first place,” he said. “I think if you’re a creative person and want to be in show business or in that world, I would suggest going there.” 
   
   But Doon added that aspiring stand-up comics need experience to go along with their education. 
   
   “If you want to be a stand-up comedian, don’t go to college,” he said. “Work at a Starbucks and do open mikes every single night. It’s the best way. If someone is in a position where they can pay for college and do open mikes, that would be ideal.” ||||| BOSTON (CBS) – Emerson College students will soon be able to use their comedic talents for more than just laughs. 
   
   The school announced that starting in the fall, it will allow students to register for a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Comedic Arts. 
   
   Classes in the new major will begin in the fall of 2016. 
   
   According to the college’s website, classes in the major include elements of sitcom production, modes of comedy production, comedy writing for late night, comedy editing and several others. 
   
   Last fall, Emerson launched a minor in comedy program called “Comedy: Writing and Performance.” 
   
   Emerson College officials said they expect to have more information about the new major on the school’s website during the summer months. 
   
   “Comedy is more relevant than ever,” Martie Cook, creator of the Comedic Arts major, said on the school’s website. “For Millennials and Generation Z, it’s a second language for expressing and reflecting the world as they understand it.” ||||| For those who want their studies to be a joke, Emerson College is introducing a new major: a bachelor's degree in comedic arts. 
   
   Emerson announced the news on Wednesday and says classes will begin to be offered towards the major in the fall. 
   
   “This new degree strengthens Emerson’s commitment to the study of comedy by adding academic rigor and institutional resources from faculty and industry professionals at the main Boston campus and at our Los Angeles facility,” said Emerson College President Lee Pelton. “In keeping with the college’s rich teaching tradition, the new major will combine an academic focus with hands-on opportunities.” 
   
   Course work will intertwine learning the history and theory of comedy while performing on stage. Emerson has partnered with the Upright Citizens Brigade to offer classes and performance opportunities alongside improv professionals. 
   
   Many alumni have gone onto find success through comedy including: Jay Leno, Henry Winkler, Denis Leary, Iliza Shelesinger and Doug Herzog, president of Viacom Music and Entertainment Group. 
   
   “This is a great moment for Emerson to bring what has become one of our distinctive strengths to the forefront,” Herzog said, who oversees Comedy Central. “Some schools develop NFL quarterbacks. We develop great comedic talent. With its charged creative and academic atmosphere, no one can deliver what Emerson will to this truly one-of-a-kind program. And that's no joke.”
target: – Emerson College will soon offer a degree "for those who want their studies to be a joke," cracks MassLive.com: a bachelor of fine arts in comedic arts. Thanks to the "marked rise of comedy's impact on American culture and its global influence," the Boston school will offer students a chance to learn the history and theory of comedy, traced back to Greeks and Romans, plus comedy performance, production, editing, and writing. "It's not going to be just lecturing," program creator Martie Cook tells the Boston Globe. "I think what this program offers that's unique is that you are going to have to actually do it." She notes former students of the school, including Jay Leno, Denis Leary, Bill Burr, and Henry Winkler, may even pop in as guest lecturers. Officials decided to introduce the four-year program, which begins in the fall of 2016, after offering a minor program in comedy last fall. The response was overwhelming. "Comedy is more relevant than ever," Cook says, per CBS News. "For millennials and Generation Z, it's a second language for expressing and reflecting the world as they understand it." Alum Doug Herzog, the president of Viacom Music and Entertainment Group who oversees Comedy Central, says the program has found a perfect home. "Some schools develop NFL quarterbacks," he says. "We develop great comedic talent."