The Philosophy Major & Minor
Requirements for the Major and Minor in Philosophy
Requirements for the Major in Philosophy
Students majoring in philosophy must satisfactorily complete twelve units in philosophy:
(a) Five units are in the history of philosophy: Greek Philosophy (101) (or 116 – Greek Language and Philosophy), History of Modern Philosophy (201) (2 units), 20th Century Analytic Philosophy (301), and 20th Century Continental Philosophy (302).
(b) Four units are meant to demonstrate breadth in the discipline of philosophy and involve taking one course in each of the following four areas (the courses in these areas are so indicated in the catalog descriptions): Knowledge and Reality, Value Theory, Philosophical Psychology, and Comparative Philosophy. One of these area courses must be at the 300 level.
(c) The three remaining units provide both depth and a capstone experience in the major: Junior Seminar (452), Senior Essay (475), and Senior Seminar (476). Please note that the Senior Colloquium course is an optional, year-long extended format course held in conjunction with our departmental seminar series. It does not fulfill any specific departmental requirements, but it carries a full unit of academic course credit.
Independent reading courses cannot substitute for any of the above requirements without written permission from the department.
Requirements for the Minor in Philosophy
Students minoring in philosophy must satisfactorily complete six units in philosophy, including History of Modern Philosophy (201) (2 units) and at least two units of advanced work at the 300- or 400-level.