The Major
Before You Declare Philosophy
If you are interested in majoring, it is a good idea to take a 1000 or 2000-level course as early as possible to get a feeling for philosophy as an academic discipline. If you are thinking about declaring a major you are encouraged to speak to the undergraduate advisor – currently Ross Cameron – who can answer questions not answered here.
Prerequisite for Major
Students must have passed at least one philosophy course (a course with the PHIL mnemonic) with a grade of C or better before declaring the philosophy major. The only exception to this policy shall be the following: if a student is currently enrolled in a philosophy course the DUP, in consultation with the instructor of said course, may allow a student to declare the major.
Declaring a Major
To declare a major in philosophy, first please read these instructions. Then simply fill out the relevant form at this link: https://college.as.virginia.edu/forms.
When you are declared you will be assigned an advisor within the Philosophy Department. You should meet with your advisor during preregistration week of each semester to plan your schedule for the coming semester.
Requirements
The major in philosophy is designed to sharpen the student's analytical and creative skills, and to enhance clarity of exposition. It also acquaints the student with some of the most important themes in the history of Western thought. In order to fulfill the requirements for a major in philosophy, a student must complete at least three credits of course work in each of the three areas of metaphysics and epistemology, logic, ethics, and at least six credits of course work in the history of philosophy, with the courses to be selected from among those listed below.
M&EPHIL 3310 (Metaphysics), PHIL 3320 (Epistemology), PHIL 3330 (Philosophy of Mind)
Logic
PHIL 2420 (Introduction to Symbolic Logic), PHIL 5420 (Symbolic Logic), PHIL 1410 (Forms of Reasoning).
NB: PHIL 1410 satisfies the logic requirement but it does not count towards the 30 credit requirement.
EthicsPHIL 3710 (Ethics), PHIL 3720 (Contemporary Ethics), PHIL 3730 (Ancient Ethical Theory), PHIL 3640 (Political Philosophy)
History
All majors must take either PHIL 2110 (History of Philosophy: Ancient and Medieval) or PHIL 2120 (History of Philosophy: Modern).
Those who take PHIL 2110 (Ancient and Medieval) must also take at least one of the following: PHIL 3140 (History of Medieval Philosophy), PHIL 3150 (17th Century Philosophy), PHIL 3160 (18th Century Philosophy), or PHIL 3170 (Kant).
Those who take PHIL 2120 (Modern) must also take at least one of the following: PHIL 3110 (Plato), PHIL 3120 (Aristotle), PHIL 3130 (Hellenistic Philosophy), PHIL 3140 (History of Medieval Philosophy).
NB: PHIL 3140 can count as either ancient or modern.
Normally, students may count up to six transfer credits in philosophy courses towards the philosophy major, but transfer credits cannot be used to satisfy any of the above requirements. Students wishing to transfer credit must consult the DUP for approval. Currently matriculated students must do so prior to taking the course(s) in question; transfer students should consult the DUP as soon as possible.
A philosophy major requires a total of 30 credits of courses numbered 2000 or higher. No more than two courses can be counted simultaneously for two non-interdisciplinary majors; an interdisciplinary major may share up to three courses with another major. Departmental approval for double counting courses is required from both departments.
Advising
Here are some sources for advice on philosophy classes and the philosophy program:
Mark Jeter, Administrative Coordinator
Mark can answer your day-to-day questions about the logistics of the classes and the program, and the requirements for the major or minor. He should be your first port of call for questions concerning your requirements for graduation
Ross Cameron, the Director of the Undergraduate Program:
Ross has overall responsibility for the undergraduate program, so can help you with academic questions or concerns you have concerning the program as a whole. If you want to use transfer credits toward the philosophy major, those need to be approved by Ross. If you have concerns about meeting the graduation requirements, Ross can help you with those. When you want to declare the major or minor, Ross is the person to contact.
Your major advisor
If you have declared a major or double major in philosophy you will have been assigned a major advisor. They are your first port of call for questions about course selection. When you have an advising hold, they are the one to contact to lift it, and they may want to meet with you or correspond with you about your plans for the next semester.
You will keep your major advisor from the time you declare the major until you graduate. If your advisor is on academic leave, they will remain your advisor during that time, but they may be less able to reply to any questions you have quickly: in that case, you can go to Mark Jeter with any questions, or to remove an advising hold, or to Ross Cameron if you have any questions or concerns about the undergraduate program.
Summer School
The Philosophy Department ordinarily offers three or four courses each summer. Because these summer courses are usually at the 1000-level, students should not expect to take summer courses to work towards completion of the requirements for the philosophy major.
Double Majors
A number of philosophy majors are double majors, and we encourage students who are interested in doing this to try it. Students who double-major must meet the same core requirements as single majors (listed above), however they are allowed to share 6 credits with their first major. No more than two courses can be counted simultaneously for two non-interdisciplinary majors; an interdisciplinary major may share up to three courses with another major. Departmental approval for double counting courses is required from both departments.
Academic Standards
Normally, courses being applied to the major must be completed with a grade of C or higher. Students who incur a C- in a Philosophy course are placed on probation as majors for the following semester. Further, students whose cumulative GPA in major courses falls below 2.0 will also be placed on probation for the following semester. Absent significant improvement in their academic performance, these students may be discontinued as a major in Philosophy.
Seminars for Majors
The seminars for majors are small seminars in which a specific philosophical problem is studied intensively. Recent seminars have been on the problem of universals, utilitarianism, skepticism, perception and selected topics in Plato and Aristotle. The majors participating in this Seminar help choose the seminar topic and are expected to present at least one seminar paper during the semester. These seminars can be extremely rewarding, offering the student an opportunity to investigate and grapple with a philosophical problem in the context of a group of equally interested inquirers.
Independent Study and the Senior Thesis
Majors who wish to do independent work with a specific instructor should either speak to the instructor or their major advisor. If the instructor agrees, the student should register for either PHIL 4993 or 4995. Both of these are 3 credit courses and count towards the major. A Senior Thesis is not required for the major. However, students who plan to go on in philosophy are strongly encouraged to consider a project of this kind. Ideally a student should begin research on the thesis topic in the sixth or seventh semester. This initial preparation should be done under the supervision of a faculty member as a 3 credit Independent Study. The actual writing of the thesis should be done during the following semester as another 3 credit course (PHIL 4999 Senior Thesis).