Corey Olsen

On 8 April 2018, Corey announced that Signum University was to be formally entered for New Hampshire state certification via the New Hampshire Department of Education. Following some days of crowdfunding they raised the $23,720 required, and later in 2018, Signum University began the ascension process. On 24 April 2018, Signum University announced that the New Hampshire Department of Education had accepted the request for Signum University to do business in New Hampshire, but (as of 17 February 2019) had yet to receive permission to grant degrees. However, a Bill passed in the Senate, which was yet to go to the house, proposing that "Signum University [will be authorised] to grant degrees in this state".

Upon graduation from Columbia University, Olsen obtained teaching positions at Temple University, Columbia University, and Nyack College. He then proceeded to his longest standing position to date, Assistant Professor of English at Washington College with a specialty on J.R.R. Tolkien, Arthurian Literature, Chaucer, and Sir Thomas Malory. It was at Washington College that Olsen was first able to teach a literary class on Tolkien. In 2013 Professor Olsen left Washington College to focus on Signum University and the Mythgard Institute, online learning websites offering classes in the work of J.R.R. Tolkien, Fantasy Literature, Latin and Creative Writing.

Corey Olsen is a professor and podcaster known as the Tolkien Professor best known for his work in new media promoting the works of J.R.R. Tolkien and Anglo Saxon literature. Formerly a professor at Washington College, Olsen now dedicates his time to Signum University, an online learning facility he founded in 2012.

In June 2009 Olsen launched the Tolkien Professor podcast. The Podcast was originally created to explore the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, primarily The Hobbit, with latter episodes focusing on The Silmarillion. The podcast achieved over a quarter of a million downloads in its first year alone. It expanded to cover the history of fairy stories and their influence on modern fantasy along with supplementary podcasts on the movie adaptations of the works of Tolkien. The supplementary podcasts, often co-hosted by former students, were recorded under the title Riddles in the Dark. Another infrequent aspect of the Tolkien Professor podcasts was the Tolkien Chat call-in shows. These shows were hosted through Skype where listeners could call in and ask Olsen questions directly. The shows were then edited and published as podcasts.

Corey Olsen obtained his B.A in English and Astrophysics from Williams College in 1996, going on to Columbia University where he obtained his M.A. in 1997, M.Phil in 2000, and his Ph.D in medieval literature in 2003.