Bachelor of Arts, Major in Philosophy

Philosophy is for the intellectually curious. We like to analyse the concepts that underpin our world views. For example: What is justice, morality, love, knowledge, nature, freedom, identity? To help you explore these questions, we offer courses in epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, logic, political philosophy, environmental philosophy, the philosophy of religion, and the history of philosophy, among others. Our goal is to provide a nurturing, respectful, and engaging environment to help you craft well-articulated, well-defended, autonomous thought.

Apart from a major and a minor in philosophy, we also offer an honour’s program for select students. Our majors have gone on to graduate programs in philosophy at Concordia, Dalhousie, McGill, McMaster, Queen’s, Simon Fraser, Toronto, UBC, Victoria, Waterloo, and York, to name a few. Many others pursue successful law degrees. Others have pursued careers in health research, journalism, education, and business. Having a BA in philosophy tells potential employers that you are a reliable, intelligent, and effective problem solver who can work independently. Of course, the intrinsic benefit from philosophy resides in being an autonomous, authentic human – no matter where life takes you.

As with anything, the more you put into philosophy, the more you will get out of it. We love voracious readers of primary texts. We love critical, creative, and reflective thinkers. We love those who recognize that philosophical argumentation requires careful support. We especially love those who can write clearly, succinctly, and offer poignant illustrations. If these are traits you love as well, it may be time to give philosophy a whirl.