Philosophy Major

Philosophers have always been the world’s deepest thinkers, most logical analysts, most visionary futurists, best social critics, and most articulate defenders of truth and justice. Knowledge of this tradition will invest our students with the same love of wisdom that has inspired this legacy. Students who major in philosophy will, at the minimum become masters of logical argument, articulate statement of positions, critical reasoning, synthetic understanding, aesthetic and ethical judgment, and reasoning about the possibilities for change and improvement in the world. The philosophy program offers students the opportunity to study the rich intellectual and moral history of philosophy

The educational and career objectives of the program are both academic and practical. The program is designed to prepare students for graduate study (and professional employment) in the fields of ethics, philosophy, law, communications, social policy, politics, women’s studies, international relations, and human services. Through the study of the world’s intellectual heritage, students who major in philosophy will master the analytical and problem-solving skills required to understand and interpret complex cultural phenomena, and to devise practical, just, and innovative ways of answering the perennial questions faced by society. Through the specific study of philosophy, students are challenged to develop insight into the intellectual, moral, creative, and practical achievements of the great minds of the past and present; they are thereby empowered to become critically informed citizens and leaders of the future.

The Philosophy major at St. Rose requires 42 Credits in Philosophy: 30 credits in required courses and 12 credits of Philosophy electives.

Electives (12 Credits)

Students choose 12 additional credits by selecting one course from each of the following categories; Ethics, the Person, History of Philosophy, and Logic and Epistemology

Ethics: one course chosen from:(PHI 180 Applied Ethics*; RLS 128 Introduction to Christian Ethics*; PHI 203 Environmental Ethics*; RLS 340 Theology and Politics*; PHI 330 Philosophy of Law*; PHI 380 Special Topics*; RLS 421 The Holocaust)

Person: one course chosen from:(PHI 104 Yoga and Meditation; PHI 140 Women and Philosophy*; PHI 160 Women and Culture*; PHI 220 Philosophy of Art*; PHI 272 Philosophy of Horror*; PHI 281 Trash Aesthetics*; PHI 300 Philosophy and Film; PHI 380 Special Topics*)

History: one course chosen from: (PHI 230 American Philosophy*; PHI 240 Social and Political Philosophy*; PHI 260 Asian Philosophy*; PHI 310 Vedanta; PHI 315 Medieval Philosophy*; PHI 325 Radical Philosophy; PHI 350 Existentialism*; PHI 380 Special Topics*)

Logic and Epistemology: one course chosen from: (PHI 141 Critical Thinking*; PHI 142 Symbolic Logic*; PHI 227 Philosophy of Mind*; PHI 235 The Knower and the Known*; PHI 370 Philosophy of Mathematics; PHI 375 Philosophy of Science; PHI 380 Special Topics; PHI 411 Philosophy of Language)

Required Courses (30 credits)

• PHI 102 Ethics and Values
  
  
• PHI 110 Invitation to Philosophy
  
  
• RLS 121 World Religions
  
  
• PHI 210 Human Being and Being Human
  
  
• PHI 290 Ancient Philosophy
  
  
• PHI 250 Makers of the Modern Mind
  
  
• PHI 305 Philosophy of Religion or PHI 315 Medieval Philosophy
  
  
• PHI 385 Contemporary Continental Philosophy
  
  
• PHI 412 Analytical Philosophy
  
  
• PHI 498 Senior Portfolio

Meet Our Faculty
Bruce Johnston, Ph.D.,
State University of New York at Albany

Michael Brannigan, Ph.D.

University of the Louvain

Mark Ledbetter, Ph.D.

Jeff Marlett, Ph.D.
Saint Louis University

Daniel Thero, Ph.D.

University at Albany, SUNY

Laura Weed, Ph.D.
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Syracuse University

Jeanne Wiley, Ph.D
University of the Louvain