Major: Bachelor of Arts
MajorOverview
The Philosophy undergraduate program’s mission is to train students to think clearly and critically about the deepest and broadest questions concerning the fundamental structure of reality and our place in it including how we should act in our lives. With philosophy you gain the tools needed to make arguments and exercise sound judgment about the most fundamental concerns of human life. The program introduces students to the best contemporary theories, and their historical roots, across philosophy including metaphysics and the philosophy of science (the study of the fundamental structure of reality), epistemology (theories of how we know about the world), ethics and political philosophy (how we should act and how society should be organized), and logic (what is correct reasoning). Courses in the major equip students with core skills in critical reading, analytical thinking, sound argumentation, and the clear, well-organized expression of ideas.
Philosophy is an excellent major for those planning a career in law, medicine, business, or the non-profit sector. It provides analytical skills and a breadth of perspective helpful to those called upon to make decisions about their conduct and the welfare of others. Philosophy majors have an excellent admission record to professional and graduate schools.
Instead of the standard program of the philosophy major, students can pursue two alternative, optional subplans:
History and Philosophy of Science
Philosophy and Literature
The standard program and the two subplans have the same overall structure. An introductory course in philosophy is followed by our Writing-in-the-Major (WIM) course, PHIL 80: “Mind, Matter, Meaning”. We then require a range of courses that give students breadth in different areas of philosophy. The subplans require additional depth in their relevant areas. Students then have space for elective courses that allow them to gain either greater breadth or depth across philosophy. Finally, the capstone for the major involves taking one of our special capstone undergraduate seminars.
The overall unit requirements for the philosophy major have been kept low to allow students to double major or do a minor in some other field.
For those interested in interdisciplinary work in philosophy and religious studies, there is a separate major program (not a subplan of the Philosophy major) that allows students to receive a BA degree with the title “Philosophy and Religious Studies”.
Requirements
Core Program Requirements
Introductory Course
PHIL 1
Introduction to Philosophy
PHIL 2
Introduction to Moral Philosophy
PHIL 3N
Randomness: Computational and Philosophical Approaches
PHIL 7N
Philosophy and Science Fiction
PHIL 8N
Free Will and Responsibility
PHIL 11N
Skepticism
PHIL 12N
Animal Cognition
PHIL 13
Humanities Core: Great Books, Big Ideas -- Europe, Modern
PHIL 13N
Justice across Borders
PHIL 14N
Why Games Matter: The Philosophy of Play
PHIL 15N
Thinking About Death
PHIL 16N
External World Skepticism
PHIL 20N
Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence
PHIL 22Q
Being Reasonable
PHIL 24E
The Male Gaze in Cinema: Perspectives from Feminist Philosophy
PHIL 24F
Tutorial: Free Will
PHIL 24H
Tutorial: Philosophy of Large Language Models
PHIL 24K
GRAD TUTORIAL: Principle of Sufficient Reason
PHIL 24L
Tutorial: Theories of Consciousness in Early Modern Philosophy
PHIL 24M
Grad Tutorial: Abstraction
PHIL 24R
Grad Tutorial: Plato on Punishment
PHIL 24S
Free Will & Moral Responsibility
PHIL 24T
Grad Tutorial: Reading Marx's "Capital"
PHIL 24Y
Grad Tutorial
PHIL 26S
Other People's Minds
PHIL 27S
How to Make a Decision: Ancient Greek Philosophers on Practical Rationality
PHIL 28S
Introduction to the Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence
PHIL 29S
Feminist Philosophy
PHIL 30
Democracy and Disagreement
PHIL 30S
Introduction to Political Philosophy
PHIL 34S
What makes us Human
PHIL 35S
Plato and Punishment
PHIL 36
Dangerous Ideas
PHIL 36S
Equality: For and Against
PHIL 37S
Self, Freedom and Morality
PHIL 41S
What Would Change Your Mind? Evidence and Disagreement in Everyday Life
PHIL 49
Survey of Formal Methods
PHIL 50S
Introduction to Formal Methods in Contemporary Philosophy
PHIL 60
Introduction to Philosophy of Science
PHIL 60S
Introduction to Philosophy of Science
PHIL 72
Contemporary Moral Problems
PHIL 74A
Ethics in a Human Life
PHIL 75C
Computers, Ethics, and Public Policy
PHIL 80
Mind, Matter, and Meaning
PHIL 81
Philosophy and Literature
PHIL 82
Ethics, Public Policy, and Technological Change
PHIL 86
How to Make a Moral Agent
PHIL 99
Minds and Machines
Breadth in Discipline
Contemporary Theoretical Philosophy
PHIL 180
Metaphysics
PHIL 181
Philosophy of Language
PHIL 181A
Philosophy of Language
PHIL 181B
Topics in Philosophy of Language
PHIL 181C
Linguistic Justice
PHIL 181E
External World Skepticism
PHIL 182D
Ethical Anti-theory
PHIL 182H
Truth
PHIL 182J
Theories of Consciousness
PHIL 184
Epistemology
PHIL 184B
Formal Epistemology
PHIL 184D
Collective Epistemology and Shared Inquiry
PHIL 184P
Philosophy of Probability
PHIL 185J
The Philosophy and Science of Perception
PHIL 186
Philosophy of Mind
PHIL 187
Philosophy of Action
PHIL 187B
Responsibility and the Criminal Law
PHIL 188A
Explanation
PHIL 188B
Undergrad Seminar: Striving and the Nature of Belief
PHIL 189
Reduction and Grounding
Philosophy of Science
PHIL 160
Philosophy of Science
PHIL 161C
What Makes a Good Explanation? Philosophical, Psychological and Computational Perspectives
PHIL 162
Philosophy of Mathematics
PHIL 164
Scientific Realism, Perspectivism, and Antirealism
PHIL 165
Philosophy of Physics: Space, Time and Motion
PHIL 167D
Philosophy of Neuroscience
PHIL 167E
Philosophy of Evolutionary Biology
PHIL 168R
Philosophy of Biology
Moral and Political Philosophy
Introduction to Moral Philosophy Option
PHIL 2
Introduction to Moral Philosophy
Other Moral Philosophy Course Options
PHIL 170
Ethical Theory
PHIL 170B
Metaphor
PHIL 171
Justice
PHIL 171P
Liberalism and its Critics
PHIL 172
History of Modern Moral Philosophy
PHIL 172B
The History of Early Modern Political Philosophy: Machiavelli, Hobbes, and Locke
PHIL 173
The Birth of Modern Moral Philosophy
PHIL 173A
Moral Psychology
PHIL 173B
Undergraduate Introduction to Metaethics
PHIL 174
Ethics Beyond Consequences
PHIL 174L
Justice Across Borders
PHIL 175
Philosophy of Law
PHIL 175A
Ethics and Politics of Public Service
PHIL 175W
Philosophy of Law: Protest, Punishment, and Racial Justice
All courses taken to satisfy the breadth in the discipline requirement must be taken for a minimum of 3 units and completed with a grade of C- or higher.
Electives
Elective Requirement
Students who have taken SLE may count 2 units of SLE towards the depth in discipline elective units. These units do not count for the introductory course requirement.
Any course 10 and above except for 196-199. At least nine units must be 99 and above.
Writing in the Major (WIM)
Writing in the Major (WIM)
The Writing in the Major (WIM) course for the Philosophy major, PHIL 80: "Mind, Matter, and Meaning", should be taken as soon as possible after the first introductory course in philosophy since it prepares students for the more advanced philosophy courses required for achieving breadth in the discipline.
PHIL 80
Mind, Matter, and Meaning
Capstone
Capstone Experience
The capstone experience aims to foster the integration of capacities, knowledge, and skills acquired in the student’s coursework for the major and to provide students with an opportunity to synthesize their undergraduate educational careers and to demonstrate their capacity for independent and creative philosophical work.
PHIL 194A
Capstone seminar: Imagination in Fiction and Philosophy
PHIL 194B
Capstone Seminar: Montaigne
PHIL 194C
Capstone Seminar: Consciousness and Acquaintance
PHIL 194D
Capstone Seminar: How Virtual is Reality, and Vice Versa
PHIL 194E
Capstone Seminar: When Bad People Create Beautiful Things
PHIL 194F
Capstone seminar: Beauty and Other Forms of Value
PHIL 194G
Capstone Seminar: Visual Representation and Visual Narrative
PHIL 194H
Capstone Seminar: What is Explanation?
PHIL 194J
Capstone Seminar: Other Minds
PHIL 194K
Capstone Seminar: The Metaphysics of Consciousness
PHIL 194P
Capstone Seminar: The Meaning of Life
PHIL 194T
Capstone Seminar: Practical Reason
PHIL 194W
Capstone Seminar: Imagination in Fiction and Philosophy
PHIL 194Y
Capstone seminar: Metaphilosophy
Subplans
OptionalHistory and Philosophy of Science Subplan
Subplan Overview
The Subplan in the History and Philosophy of Science enables students to combine interests in science, history, and philosophy. This field of study is declared on Axess and is printed on the transcript.
Students are required to complete a minimum of 61 units for this subplan. PHIL 196-199 do not count towards this unit requirement and no more than ten units with grades of Satisfactory (S) or Credit (CR) may count towards the 61-unit requirement.
A maximum of two transfer courses for a combined maximum of 10 units can be used for the subplan. In general, transfer courses cannot be used as substitutes for required courses.
For further information about the subplan, contact the History and Philosophy of Science Advisor.
Introductory Course
PHIL 1
Introduction to Philosophy
PHIL 2
Introduction to Moral Philosophy
PHIL 3N
Randomness: Computational and Philosophical Approaches
PHIL 7N
Philosophy and Science Fiction
PHIL 8N
Free Will and Responsibility
PHIL 11N
Skepticism
PHIL 12N
Animal Cognition
PHIL 13
Humanities Core: Great Books, Big Ideas -- Europe, Modern
PHIL 13N
Justice across Borders
PHIL 14N
Why Games Matter: The Philosophy of Play
PHIL 15N
Thinking About Death
PHIL 16N
External World Skepticism
PHIL 20N
Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence
PHIL 22Q
Being Reasonable
PHIL 24E
The Male Gaze in Cinema: Perspectives from Feminist Philosophy
PHIL 24F
Tutorial: Free Will
PHIL 24H
Tutorial: Philosophy of Large Language Models
PHIL 24K
GRAD TUTORIAL: Principle of Sufficient Reason
PHIL 24L
Tutorial: Theories of Consciousness in Early Modern Philosophy
PHIL 24M
Grad Tutorial: Abstraction
PHIL 24R
Grad Tutorial: Plato on Punishment
PHIL 24S
Free Will & Moral Responsibility
PHIL 24T
Grad Tutorial: Reading Marx's "Capital"
PHIL 24Y
Grad Tutorial
PHIL 26S
Other People's Minds
PHIL 27S
How to Make a Decision: Ancient Greek Philosophers on Practical Rationality
PHIL 28S
Introduction to the Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence
PHIL 29S
Feminist Philosophy
PHIL 30
Democracy and Disagreement
PHIL 30S
Introduction to Political Philosophy
PHIL 34S
What makes us Human
PHIL 35S
Plato and Punishment
PHIL 36
Dangerous Ideas
PHIL 36S
Equality: For and Against
PHIL 37S
Self, Freedom and Morality
PHIL 41S
What Would Change Your Mind? Evidence and Disagreement in Everyday Life
PHIL 49
Survey of Formal Methods
PHIL 50S
Introduction to Formal Methods in Contemporary Philosophy
PHIL 60
Introduction to Philosophy of Science
PHIL 60S
Introduction to Philosophy of Science
PHIL 72
Contemporary Moral Problems
PHIL 74A
Ethics in a Human Life
PHIL 75C
Computers, Ethics, and Public Policy
PHIL 80
Mind, Matter, and Meaning
PHIL 81
Philosophy and Literature
PHIL 82
Ethics, Public Policy, and Technological Change
PHIL 86
How to Make a Moral Agent
PHIL 99
Minds and Machines
Philosophy of Science
Introduction to Philosophy of Science
PHIL 160
Philosophy of Science
Other Philosophy of Science Courses
PHIL 161C
What Makes a Good Explanation? Philosophical, Psychological and Computational Perspectives
PHIL 162
Philosophy of Mathematics
PHIL 164
Scientific Realism, Perspectivism, and Antirealism
PHIL 165
Philosophy of Physics: Space, Time and Motion
PHIL 167D
Philosophy of Neuroscience
PHIL 167E
Philosophy of Evolutionary Biology
PHIL 168R
Philosophy of Biology
Must be completed with a letter grade.
Science
For 12 units.
History of Science
Depth in Subplan
To be agreed on with the History and Philosophy of Science Advisor
Capstone Experience
The capstone experience aims to foster the integration of capacities, knowledge, and skills acquired in the student’s coursework for the major and to provide students with an opportunity to synthesize their undergraduate educational careers and to demonstrate their capacity for independent and creative philosophical work.
PHIL 194A
Capstone seminar: Imagination in Fiction and Philosophy
PHIL 194B
Capstone Seminar: Montaigne
PHIL 194C
Capstone Seminar: Consciousness and Acquaintance
PHIL 194D
Capstone Seminar: How Virtual is Reality, and Vice Versa
PHIL 194E
Capstone Seminar: When Bad People Create Beautiful Things
PHIL 194F
Capstone seminar: Beauty and Other Forms of Value
PHIL 194G
Capstone Seminar: Visual Representation and Visual Narrative
PHIL 194H
Capstone Seminar: What is Explanation?
PHIL 194J
Capstone Seminar: Other Minds
PHIL 194K
Capstone Seminar: The Metaphysics of Consciousness
PHIL 194P
Capstone Seminar: The Meaning of Life
PHIL 194T
Capstone Seminar: Practical Reason
PHIL 194W
Capstone Seminar: Imagination in Fiction and Philosophy
PHIL 194Y
Capstone seminar: Metaphilosophy
Electives
Philosophy and Literary Thought Subplan
Subplan Overview
The subplan in Philosophy and Literary Thought enables students to combine their interests in philosophy and literary studies. This field of study is declared on Axess and is printed on the transcript.
Students are required to complete a minimum of 65 units for this subplan. PHIL 196-199 do not count towards this unit requirement. 2. No more than ten units with grades of Satisfactory (S) or Credit (CR) can be used to satisfy the major requirements.
A maximum of 15 transfer units may be counted toward the major, at most 10 of which may substitute for courses within Philosophy. Transfer credits may not substitute for PHIL 80: "Mind, Matter, and Meaning" or PHIL 81: "Philosophy and Literature", and are approved as substitutes for required courses only in exceptional cases.
Students who have taken SLE may count 2 units of SLE towards the depth in discipline elective units. These units do not count for the introductory course requirement.
For further information about the subplan, contact the Philosophy and Literary Thought Advisor.
Introductory course
PHIL 1
Introduction to Philosophy
PHIL 2
Introduction to Moral Philosophy
PHIL 3N
Randomness: Computational and Philosophical Approaches
PHIL 7N
Philosophy and Science Fiction
PHIL 8N
Free Will and Responsibility
PHIL 11N
Skepticism
PHIL 12N
Animal Cognition
PHIL 13
Humanities Core: Great Books, Big Ideas -- Europe, Modern
PHIL 13N
Justice across Borders
PHIL 14N
Why Games Matter: The Philosophy of Play
PHIL 15N
Thinking About Death
PHIL 16N
External World Skepticism
PHIL 20N
Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence
PHIL 22Q
Being Reasonable
PHIL 24E
The Male Gaze in Cinema: Perspectives from Feminist Philosophy
PHIL 24F
Tutorial: Free Will
PHIL 24H
Tutorial: Philosophy of Large Language Models
PHIL 24K
GRAD TUTORIAL: Principle of Sufficient Reason
PHIL 24L
Tutorial: Theories of Consciousness in Early Modern Philosophy
PHIL 24M
Grad Tutorial: Abstraction
PHIL 24R
Grad Tutorial: Plato on Punishment
PHIL 24S
Free Will & Moral Responsibility
PHIL 24T
Grad Tutorial: Reading Marx's "Capital"
PHIL 24Y
Grad Tutorial
PHIL 26S
Other People's Minds
PHIL 27S
How to Make a Decision: Ancient Greek Philosophers on Practical Rationality
PHIL 28S
Introduction to the Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence
PHIL 29S
Feminist Philosophy
PHIL 30
Democracy and Disagreement
PHIL 30S
Introduction to Political Philosophy
PHIL 34S
What makes us Human
PHIL 35S
Plato and Punishment
PHIL 36
Dangerous Ideas
PHIL 36S
Equality: For and Against
PHIL 37S
Self, Freedom and Morality
PHIL 41S
What Would Change Your Mind? Evidence and Disagreement in Everyday Life
PHIL 49
Survey of Formal Methods
PHIL 50S
Introduction to Formal Methods in Contemporary Philosophy
PHIL 60
Introduction to Philosophy of Science
PHIL 60S
Introduction to Philosophy of Science
PHIL 72
Contemporary Moral Problems
PHIL 74A
Ethics in a Human Life
PHIL 75C
Computers, Ethics, and Public Policy
PHIL 80
Mind, Matter, and Meaning
PHIL 81
Philosophy and Literature
PHIL 82
Ethics, Public Policy, and Technological Change
PHIL 86
How to Make a Moral Agent
PHIL 99
Minds and Machines
Contemporary Theoretical Philosophy
PHIL 180
Metaphysics
PHIL 181
Philosophy of Language
PHIL 181A
Philosophy of Language
PHIL 181B
Topics in Philosophy of Language
PHIL 181C
Linguistic Justice
PHIL 181E
External World Skepticism
PHIL 182D
Ethical Anti-theory
PHIL 182H
Truth
PHIL 182J
Theories of Consciousness
PHIL 184
Epistemology
PHIL 184B
Formal Epistemology
PHIL 184D
Collective Epistemology and Shared Inquiry
PHIL 184P
Philosophy of Probability
PHIL 185J
The Philosophy and Science of Perception
PHIL 186
Philosophy of Mind
PHIL 187
Philosophy of Action
PHIL 187B
Responsibility and the Criminal Law
PHIL 188A
Explanation
PHIL 188B
Undergrad Seminar: Striving and the Nature of Belief
PHIL 189
Reduction and Grounding
Must be completed with grade of C- or higher.
Philosophy of Science
PHIL 160
Philosophy of Science
PHIL 161C
What Makes a Good Explanation? Philosophical, Psychological and Computational Perspectives
PHIL 162
Philosophy of Mathematics
PHIL 164
Scientific Realism, Perspectivism, and Antirealism
PHIL 165
Philosophy of Physics: Space, Time and Motion
PHIL 167D
Philosophy of Neuroscience
PHIL 167E
Philosophy of Evolutionary Biology
PHIL 168R
Philosophy of Biology
Must be completed with a grade of C- or higher.
Moral and Political Philosophy
Introduction to Moral Philosophy Option
PHIL 2
Introduction to Moral Philosophy
Other Moral Philosophy Course Options
PHIL 170
Ethical Theory
PHIL 170B
Metaphor
PHIL 171
Justice
PHIL 171P
Liberalism and its Critics
PHIL 172
History of Modern Moral Philosophy
PHIL 172B
The History of Early Modern Political Philosophy: Machiavelli, Hobbes, and Locke
PHIL 173
The Birth of Modern Moral Philosophy
PHIL 173A
Moral Psychology
PHIL 173B
Undergraduate Introduction to Metaethics
PHIL 174
Ethics Beyond Consequences
PHIL 174L
Justice Across Borders
PHIL 175
Philosophy of Law
PHIL 175A
Ethics and Politics of Public Service
PHIL 175W
Philosophy of Law: Protest, Punishment, and Racial Justice
Must be completed with a grade of C- or higher.
Gateway Course in Philosophy and Literature
PHIL 81
Philosophy and Literature
This course should be taken as early as possible in the student’s career, generally in the sophomore year.
National Literature
This normally involves meeting the language proficiency requirements of the relevant literature program. Units devoted to meeting language requirements do not count towards the unit requirements of the subplan.
Depth in Philosophy
Advanced Depth in Philosophy and Literature
Philosophy Capstone Experience
The philosophy capstone experience aims to foster the integration of capacities, knowledge, and skills acquired in the student’s coursework for the major and to provide students with an opportunity to synthesize their undergraduate educational careers and to demonstrate their capacity for independent and creative philosophical work.
PHIL 194A
Capstone seminar: Imagination in Fiction and Philosophy
PHIL 194B
Capstone Seminar: Montaigne
PHIL 194C
Capstone Seminar: Consciousness and Acquaintance
PHIL 194D
Capstone Seminar: How Virtual is Reality, and Vice Versa
PHIL 194E
Capstone Seminar: When Bad People Create Beautiful Things
PHIL 194F
Capstone seminar: Beauty and Other Forms of Value
PHIL 194G
Capstone Seminar: Visual Representation and Visual Narrative
PHIL 194H
Capstone Seminar: What is Explanation?
PHIL 194J
Capstone Seminar: Other Minds
PHIL 194K
Capstone Seminar: The Metaphysics of Consciousness
PHIL 194P
Capstone Seminar: The Meaning of Life
PHIL 194T
Capstone Seminar: Practical Reason
PHIL 194W
Capstone Seminar: Imagination in Fiction and Philosophy
PHIL 194Y
Capstone seminar: Metaphilosophy
Philosophy and Literature Capstone Experience
Honors
OptionalHonors
Apply for Honors Program
Prospective Honors Students Seminar
PHIL 199
Seminar for Prospective Honors Students
To be taken Spring Quarter of Junior year.
Honors Tutorial
PHIL 196
Honors Tutorial, Senior Year
To be taken Autumn and/or Winter quarter of Senior year.
Submit Honors thesis
The length of the honors thesis may vary considerably depending on the problem and the approach; usually it falls somewhere between 7,500 and 12,500 words. This essay may use work from previous seminars and courses as a starting point, but it cannot be the same essay that has been used, or is being used, in some other class or seminar. It must be a substantially new and different essay reflecting work in the tutorial(s).
A completed essay draft is submitted to the advisor at the end of Winter quarter of Senior year. Any further revisions must be finished by the fifth whole week of Spring quarter, when three copies of the essay are to be given to the Student Services Officer. The honors thesis is graded by the advisor together with a second reader chosen by the advisor in consultation with the student. The student must also pass an oral thesis defense at a meeting with the advisor and second reader. The essay must receive a grade of A- or better for the student to receive honors.

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