Critical thinking and effective argumentation skills
In our Philosophy program, you consider the relationships between the mind and the body, appearance and reality, truth and opinion, right and wrong, the individual and society, humans and nature, religion and the world, and so on. Through this contemplation, you hone your skills of critical thinking and effective argumentation. Our seaside campus provides an ideal setting for you to examine life as a philosopher. Inside our classrooms, meanwhile, you find coursework that introduces questions eminently relevant to our modern lives.
If you'd like to do more than minor in Philosophy, you can apply for a personal major.
Academics
Examples of Available Courses
- Philosophy of the Red Sox
- Philosophy of Friendship, Love, Sex, and Marriage.
Our Philosophy program also offers courses in religious studies. In these classes, you gain historical and comparative understandings of the world’s religious traditions. You examine the spiritual beliefs, practices, and rituals of various peoples to better understand the importance of religious faith in providing a source of human value and meaning.
Curriculum
The minor in Philosophy requires the completion of six (6) courses (minimum eighteen (18) credits) with the PHI prefix. At least three (3) of the six (6) courses must be numbered 300 or greater.
| Philosophy Courses | Credits |
|---|---|
| PHI 110 – Problems of Philosophy | 3 |
| PHI 120 – Living the Good Life | 3 |
| PHI 125 – Phil of Friendship, Love, Marriage, and Sex | 3 |
| PHI 150 – Critical Thinking | 3 |
| PHI 160 – Science, Pseudo-Science, and Weird Ideas | 3 |
| PHI 183 – Free Will and Determinism | 3 |
| PHI 200 – Science and Human Nature | 3 |
| PHI 201 – Bio-Medical Ethics | 3 |
| PHI 220 – Individual and Society | 3 |
| PHI 250 – Thinking Critically About Moral Problems | 3 |
| PHI 276 – Philosophy Human Trad I | 3 |
| PHI 278 – Philosophy Human Trad II | 3 |
| PHI 302 – Debating Ethics | 3 |
| PHI 304 – Social and Political Philosophy | 3 |
| PHI 307 – God, Life, and the Hereafter | 3 |
| PHI 315 – Bioethics | 3 |
| PHI 318 – Chinese Philosophy | 3 |
| PHI 320 – Readings in History and Philosophy of Science | 3 |
| PHI 325 – Topics in Philosophy | 3 |
| PHI 330 – Environmental Philosophy | 3 |
| PHI 340 – Appearance, Reality & Truth | 3 |
| PHI 350 – Ancient Philosophy | 3 |
| PHI 351 – Philosophy of Science | 3 |
| PHI 370 – Philosophy of Psychology | 3 |
| PHI 380 – Philosophy of Mind | 3 |
| PHI 401 – Directed Study in Philosophy | 1 |
| PHI 402 – Philosophy of Biology | 3 |
| PHI 408 – Theory of Knowledge | 3 |
| PHI 420 – Advanced Seminar | 3 |
| PHI 430 – What's Really Real | 3 |
Learning Outcomes
- Demonstrate the ability to identify and evaluate philosophical arguments.
- Give, orally or in writing, a philosophical argument.
- Identify and explain philosophical problems along with possible solutions.
- Identify, explain, compare and contrast the views of important philosophers.
- Explain philosophical methods.
- Give examples of how philosophy bears on their other studies and on human life in general.