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Humanities & Teacher Education

Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy

The philosophy major is designed to offer students a broad education in historical and contemporary philosophical explorations of various regions of human experience, including the nature of knowledge and reality, the theoretical foundations of morality and ethics, and the distinction between cogent and fallacious reasoning. Philosophy examines the fundamental assumptions and problems implicit in the framework of human experience, critically assesses those assumptions, and seeks to articulate and defend alternatives for their improvement. Consequently, the philosophy major offers students a valuable educational background for the pursuit of careers in law, journalism, government, public service, and business.

Course Requirements

Two lower-division and seven upper-division four-unit courses are required for the philosophy major. An upper-division course from another program or division may count toward the philosophy major if the course is pertinent to the philosophy major and if it has been approved by the philosophy faculty and the chairperson of the Humanities and Teacher Education Division. Students who have completed the Great Books sequence (GS 121, GS 122, GS 123, and GS 324) will have satisfied the distribution requirement of PHIL 200 and may opt to take another philosophy course in its place.

Philosophy Course Requirements - 36 Units

Course IDCourse NameUnits
Lower-Division Courses - 8 units
PHIL 200 Introduction to Philosophy 4
PHIL 290 Logic 4
Upper-Division Courses - 16 units
PHIL 300 Ancient Philosophy 4
PHIL 310 Modern Philosophy 4
PHIL 320 Ethics 4
PHIL 580 Major Philosophical Problems Seminar 4
Choose twelve units of upper-division philosophy electives to bring the total number of courses to nine. 12

Freshman Year Program

PHIL 200 as well as other general education courses should be completed during the first two years. Students planning to study in Europe during their sophomore year should take PHIL 200 as well as the recommended general education courses during their freshman year.

Business Emphasis for Philosophy Majors

Philosophy majors interested in pursuing business careers should take certain business-related courses in addition to their major. These courses should assist them in entering MBA programs or in finding employment upon graduation.