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 31 credit hours in philosophy. Two courses at the 100-level may be included in the 31 credit hours. (The BA degree requires students to complete a minimum of 30 credit hours in courses at the 200-400 level.)

The following requirements must be satisfied:

Logic Requirement: Students must take either PHIL-P 150 Elementary Logic or PHIL-P 250 Introductory Symbolic Logic.

Upper-Level Course Requirements: Philosophy majors must complete the IU Southeast research writing or argumentative 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, or PHIL-P 410 Ancient Greek Philosophy.

Diversity Requirement: Students must take either PHIL-P 170 introduction to Asian Philosophy, PHIL-P 334 Buddhist Philosophy, PHIL-P 374 Early Chinese Philosophy, or PHIL-P 394 Feminist 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 237 Environmental Philosophy, PHIL-P 240 Business and Morality, 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 and Epistemology Requirement: Students must take PHIL-P 310 Topics in Metaphysics, PHIL-P 313 Theories of Knowledge, PHIL-P 320 Philosophy and Language, PHIL-P 360 Philosophy of Mind, or PHIL-X 303 Introduction to Philosophy of Science.

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 their senior year.

Philosophy Electives

Capstone

Religious Studies Track

The religious studies concentration of the philosophy major requires a minimum of 31 credit hours in philosophy and religious studies.  The following requirements must be satisfied:

Lower-level philosophy requirements:  PHIL-P 140 Introduction to Ethics and PHIL-P 150 Elementary Logic.

Upper-level philosophy requirements:  REL-P 371 Philosophy of Religion, REL-P 333 Philosophy Seminar, and PHIL-P 495  Senior Pro-seminar in Philosophy.

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, or PHIL-P 410 Ancient Greek Philosophy.

Lower-level religious studies requirements:  Students must take both REL-R 152 Jews, Christians, Muslims and REL-R 153 Religions of Asia.

Upper-level religious studies requirements:  Two courses at the 200 level or above.  (The BA degree requires students to complete a minimum of 30 credit hours in courses at the 300-400 level.)

Religious Studies Electives