Mission/Vision Statement

When Socrates exclaimed to his incredulous accusers, ‘‘I know you won’t believe me, but I truly believe the highest human excellence is to question oneself and others,’’ he captured the spirit of all philosophical effort. Although philosophy has undergone profound changes since his time, it still seeks to come to terms with the questions and issues provoked by every phase of life, and it produces arguments and accounts bearing on every subject worthy of disciplined reflection. Majoring in philosophy offers a student the opportunity to gain skills in critical thinking, writing, and reading not afforded by many other disciplines. These are vital skills if one is to succeed in a rapidly changing work world. For those students who intend to pursue an advanced professional degree (for example, in medicine or law), the philosophy major provides the analytic training and intellectual studies that make for a well-rounded, qualified, and attractive candidate. Further, the B.A. with a major in philosophy (or a double major including philosophy) is an excellent degree for those who intend to study for an advanced degree, even if the advanced degree will not be in philosophy. Finally, those whose main goal in pursuing an undergraduate degree is to gain a deeper understanding of the world in which we live would do well to consider a major in philosophy. For more information, see our web site at ius.edu/philosophy/.

Student Learning Goals

Critical Thinking:

Through the study of Philosophy at IUS, students should be able to comprehend, interpret and evaluate the different philosophical positions to which they are exposed. Students should be able to understand and restate accurately positions or arguments, as well as make reasoned judgments and present cogent arguments to support their judgments.

 Ethical Reasoning:

Students should improve their skills in making responsible, rational judgments on issues of moral rightness and wrongness as well as on matters of moral character.   Students should be able to make use of classical ethical theories in formulating these judgments.

Improving Communication Skills:

Students should develop the ability to present comprehensive interpretations and arguments clearly, accurately, and without prejudice in both written and oral forms.

Openness to New Ideas:

Students should increase their ability to reflect upon their own views and consider whether other positions are stronger. They should be able to make modifications when their own careful thinking indicates that this is appropriate. Such openness requires that students appreciate the variety of philosophical positions that have been developed both across different periods in Philosophy as well as within a given period. Given the impact that cognate fields such as social and political theory, science, and religion have had on the development of philosophical ideas, students should also reflect on relevant ideas from these fields as well.

Gaining Knowledge of the Philosophical Tradition:

Students should have an awareness and understanding of issues and positions that have been prominent in the philosophical tradition. Students should have a strong grounding in the major philosophies of the ancient and modern periods of Western Philosophy, as well as exposure to non-Western schools of thought.

Degree Requirements

See “General Requirements for Undergraduate Degrees at IU Southeast” and “General Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts Degree.”

General Education Component

Note: This is not a re-statement of the University’s General Education Requirement but a list of specific General Education courses which are also requirements or pre-requisites for course work in the school/major.

Traditional Track

Major Specific Requirements 

The traditional track of the philosophy major requires a minimum of 37 credit hours in philosophy. Three courses at the 100-level may be included in the 37 credit hours.

The following requirements must be satisfied:

Logic Requirement: Students must take PHIL-P 250 Introductory Symbolic Logic.

Upper-Level Course Requirements: Philosophy majors must complete the IU Southeast research writing requirement before taking a third upper-level course in philosophy.

History of Philosophy Requirement: Philosophy majors must take at least two courses chosen from PHIL- P 302 Medieval Philosophy, PHIL-P 304 Nineteenth-Century Philosophy, PHIL-P 314 Modern Philosophy, and PHIL-P 410 Ancient Greek Philosophy.

Non-Western Requirement: Students must take either PHIL-P 170 Introduction to Asian Philosophy, PHIL- P 334 Buddhist Philosophy, or PHIL-P 374 Early Chinese Philosophy.

Twentieth-Century Philosophy Requirement: Philosophy majors must take at least one course chosen from PHIL-P 316 Twentieth Century Philosophy, PHIL-P 319 American Pragmatism, PHIL-P 335 Phenomenology and Existentialism, and PHIL-P 336 Analytic Philosophy.

Social and Political Philosophy and Ethics Requirement:  Philosophy majors must take one course in social and political philosophy or ethics at the 200 level or above (e.g., PHIL-P 340 Classics in Ethics, PHIL-P 342 Problems of Ethics, PHIL-P 343 Classics in Social and Political Philosophy, or PHIL-P 345 Problems in Social and Political Philosophy).

Metaphysics Requirement: Students must take PHIL-P 310 Topics in Metaphysics.

Epistemology Requirement: Students must take PHIL-P 313 Theories of Knowledge.

Philosophy Seminar Requirement: Philosophy majors must take at least one philosophy seminar (PHIL-P 333). (The philosophy seminar is offered every spring semester and may be repeated for credit.)

Senior Proseminar Requirement: Philosophy majors must take at least one credit (up to four) in PHIL-P 495 Senior Proseminar in Philosophy during senior year. 

Philosophy Electives

Capstone

Religious Studies Track

The religious studies concentration of the philosophy major requires a minimum of 39 credit hours in philosophy and religious studies.  The following requirements must be satisfied:

Lower-level philosophy requirements:  PHIL-P 100 Introduction to Philosophy; PHIL-P 140 Introduction to Ethics; PHIL-P 150 Elementary Logic or PHIL-P 250 Introductory Symbolic Logic.

Lower-level religious studies requirements:  REL-R 152 Jews, Christians, Muslims; REL-R 153 Religions of Asia.

Upper-level philosophy requirements:  REL-P 371 Philosophy of Religion; REL-P 333 Philosophy Seminar.

Two courses in the History of Philosophy selected from: PHIL-P 302 Medieval Philosophy; PHIL-P 304 Nineteenth-Century Philosophy; PHIL-P 314 Modern Philosophy; and PHIL-P 410 Ancient Greek Philosophy.

Upper-level Religious Studies Requirements:

Two courses in world religions selected from REL-R 210 Introduction to Old Testament/Hebrew Bible; REL-R 220 Introduction to New Testament; REL-R 245 Introduction to Judaism; REL-R 257 Introduction to Islam; REL-R 354 Buddhism; and REL-R 358 Introduction to Hinduism.

One course in religious history selected from REL-R 327 Origins of Christianity; REL-R 331 Christianity 1500-2000;   REL-R 335 Religion in the United States, 1600-1850; REL-R 336 Religion in the United States, 1850-Present; and REL-R 345 Religious Issues in Contemporary Judaism.

One course in religion and culture selected from R 362 Religion in Literature; R 364 Topics in Gender and Western Religion; and R 371 Religion, Ethics, and the Environment.

Religious Studies Electives