Major in Philosophy

The Philosophy major requires completion of 36 units.

Course List

Code	Title	Units
Section A: Required Courses
PHIL 101	INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY	3
PHIL 111	INTRODUCTION TO LOGIC	3
Section B: Required Courses
Select three of the following:		9
PHIL 221	ANCIENT GREEK PHILOSOPHY
PHIL 312	PLATO AND HIS PREDECESSORS
PHIL 313	ARISTOTLE AND HIS SUCCESSORS
PHIL 325	TWENTIETH CENTURY PHILOSOPHY
PHIL 328	EARLY MODERN PHILOSOPHY
PHIL 329	LATE MODERN PHILOSOPHY
PHIL 333	ANALYTIC PHILOSOPHY
Section C: Required Courses
Select one of the following:		3
PHIL 301	PHILOSOPHIES OF INDIA
PHIL 302	PHILOSOPHIES OF CHINA & JAPAN
PHIL 327	AFRICAN PHILOSOPHY
Section D: Required Courses
Select two of the following:		6
PHIL 201	SOCIAL & POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY
PHIL 204	RACE, CLASS AND GENDER
PHIL 205	MASTERS OF SUSPICION: MARX, NIETZSCHE, FREUD
PHIL 255	ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS
PHIL 260	PHILOSOPHY OF THE PRISON INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX
PHIL 332	FEMINIST PHILOSOPHY
PHIL 340	PLATO'S ETHICS
PHIL 341	ETHICS
PHIL 342	WHAT MAKES US MORAL
PHIL 361	BIOMEDICAL ETHICS
Section E: Required Courses
Select two of the following:		6
PHIL 309	NIETZSCHE
PHIL 315	MIND AND CONSCIOUSNESS
PHIL 320	PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE
PHIL 321	PHILOSOPHY OF LAW
PHIL 326	AMERICAN PHILOSOPHY
PHIL 330	PHILOSOPHY AND FILM
PHIL 339	THEORIES OF KNOWLEDGE
PHIL 343	AESTHETICS
PHIL 380	PHILOSOPHICAL TOPICS
Section F: Electives
Select two of the following:		6
PHIL 417	EXISTENTIALISM
PHIL 427	KANT
PHIL 440	PHILOSOPHICAL SYSTEMS
PHIL 460	WRITNG SEMINAR IN PHILOSOPHICAL STUDIES
PHIL 470	PHILOSOPHICAL PROBLEMS
PHIL 495	RESEARCH TUTORIAL IN PHILOSOPHY
Total Units		36

Departmental Honors Program

The Department of Philosophy & Religious Studies offers a departmental honors program for students who demonstrate exemplary abilities in philosophy. Students pursuing this option are required to complete PHIL 498 with a minimum grade of A-. Completion of  PHIL 498 requires students to produce and defend a 15-20 page paper presenting substantial research in philosophy.

Applicants for departmental honors must have earned 75 units with a minimum 3.50 cumulative GPA, including 18 units in Philosophy courses. In addition, applicants must find a faculty adviser to guide the thesis research and evaluate the final paper and thesis defense. Departmental honors will be posted to the transcript shortly after the bachelor’s degree is conferred.

To apply for departmental honors, students must complete an application with the department. Students who wish to take PHIL 498 in the Fall term should apply during the previous spring by March 1st.  Students who wish to take PHIL 498 in the Spring term should apply during the previous Fall by Oct. 1st. 

Course List

Code	Title	Units
Required Coursework for Departmental Honors In Philosophy
PHIL 498	HONORS THESIS RESEARCH 1	3

¹

PHIL 498 does not count towards the Philosophy major requirements. Students pursuing departmental honors will be required to take 39 units rather than 36.

Suggested Four-Year Plan

Based on course availability and student needs and preferences, the selected sequences will probably vary from those presented below. Students should consult with their adviser to make the most appropriate elective choices.

1. Philosophically explain and discuss theories and concepts of the major thinkers of schools in Western philosophy.
2. Philosophically explain and discuss culturally diverse philosophical traditions.
3. Engage in a philosophical discussion of social and/or political and/or moral issues.
4. Think philosophically, i.e., to analyze, articulate, synthesize, and/or creatively develop arguments, concepts and theories.
5. Practice inductive and deductive reasoning, the composition of argument and demonstration, and the detection of formal and informal fallacies.