The Philosophy Department offers a wide variety of courses in virtually all areas and kinds of philosophy. It takes pride in its historically strong commitment to undergraduate and graduate education. Virtually all of its classes are taught by regular faculty members, including many nationally and internationally known for their research and publications. The nationally recognized graduate program has offered both M.A. and Ph.D. degree programs since its inception, and recent hirings of distinguished senior faculty and outstanding junior faculty have added to their quality and depth.

The department sponsors the annual Utah Colloquium in Philosophy, which attracts leading philosophers to the campus. Recent topics have been social epistemology, partiality and impartiality in ethics, and, What is Living and Dead in Analytic Philosophy? In addition, the departmental enrichment series brings prominent philosophers to campus throughout the year to make presentations on their current research. The department is home to the Tanner Philosophy Library.

The primary orientation of the department is toward Anglo American (analytic) philosophy. However, it also offers significant opportunities for the study of continental philosophy, non-western philosophy, and the history of both western and non-western philosophy. The department has particular strengths in the areas of ethics, applied ethics, and the history of philosophy. Its faculty have many other areas of specialization and expertise. Information on those can be obtained from the faculty descriptions available on the Web or from the departmental brochure.

Undergraduate Program

Degrees. B.A., B.S.
Two programs lead to a bachelor's degree in philosophy. Program I is for students interested in technical aspects, issues, and approaches in the field of philosophy. It provides preprofessional students with the background expected of those undertaking graduate studies in philosophy. Program II is for those oriented toward the literary, historical, or ideological aspects of philosophy, or those considering graduate study in related fields such as the humanities, the history of ideas, or comparative religions. Students may transfer from one program to the other, but must complete all requirements in at least one of the two programs.

Residency Requirement. Students who transfer philosophy credits from other institutions must take PHIL 4010 Senior Seminar and at least two 4000- or 5000-level courses at the University of Utah.

Eligibility for Fulfilling Graduation Requirements under the Old Quarter System. Students should have taken at least 15 quarter hours of philosophy before Fall Semester 1998 in order to be able to qualify to finish graduation requirements of the major on the old quarter system. The primary reason for this is not to force students to retake classes; any quarter classes taken in philosophy can be applied to semester requirements. However, many changes have been made in the curriculum and in general students would not benefit by having to take semester classes to fulfill the old quarter requirements. Students may petition for special consideration if they are close to meeting this standard.
Requirements for the Major

Program I Major
Total Hours: 35

Logic Courses
Two of the following:
PHIL 2200 Deductive Logic (4)
PHIL 3210 Foundations of Probability and Statistics (3)
PHIL 5200 Symbolic Logic (4)
PHIL 5220 Topics in Foundations of Logic and Mathematics (3)

Basic Courses
Two of the following:
PHIL 3300 Theory of Knowledge (3)
PHIL 3400 Mind, Language and Reality (3)
PHIL 3500 Ethics (3)

History of Philosophy
PHIL 4110 Ancient Greek Philosophy (3)
PHIL 4120 Early Modern Philosophy (4)

Senior Capstone Course
One of the following:
PHIL 4010 Senior Seminar (3)
PHIL 4999 Individual Research Honors (3)

Upper-division Requirement
Two additional philosophy courses numbered 4130 or above, at least one of which must come from the following list:
PHIL 5200 Symbolic Logic (4)
PHIL 5300 Epistemology (3)
PHIL 5350 Philosophy of Science (3)
PHIL 5400 Advanced Topics in Metaphysics (3)
PHIL 5450 Philosophy of Mind (3)
PHIL 5480 Philosophy of Language (3)
PHIL 5500 Contemporary Ethical Theory (3)

Elective Courses
Additional philosophy courses to bring the total hours in philosophy to 35. At least one of these electives must be an upper-division course. (5-9)
Allied Work
At least 15 credit hours outside of philosophy, 12 of which must be upper-division, that are academic and intellectual in nature. These must conform to departmental guidelines (available from departmental adviser) and must be approved by the student's major adviser. (15)

Program II Major
28-32 hours in philosophy

Logic Course
One of the following:
PHIL 1250 Reasoning and Rational Decision Making (3)
PHIL 2200 Deductive Logic (4)
PHIL 3210 Foundations of Probability and Statistics (3)
PHIL 5200 Symbolic Logic (4)

Basic Course
One of the following:
PHIL 3300 Theory of Knowledge (3)
PHIL 3400 Mind, Language and Reality (3)
PHIL 3500 Ethics (3)

History of Philosophy
Two of the following, but including PHIL 4110 or PHIL 4120:
PHIL 4110 Ancient Greek Philosophy (3)
PHIL 4120 Early Modern Philosophy (4)
PHIL 4130 Nineteenth Century Philosophy (3)
PHIL 4140 History of Analytic Philosophy (3)
PHIL 4150 Twentieth Century Continental Philosophy (3)

Senior Capstone Course
One of the following:
PHIL 4010 Senior Seminar (3)
PHIL 4999 Individual Research Honors (3)

Elective Courses
At least four courses in philosophy and at least three courses from outside the Philosophy department which, in the context of courses chosen to fulfill the above requirements, present a coherent academic major focus. These courses must be approved by the Philosophy Department. Approval is based on an assessment of the student's description and explanation of the proposed major program. See a departmental adviser for details.

Allied Work
At least nine credit hours outside of philosophy, six of which must be upper-division, that are academic and intellectual in nature. These must conform to departmental guidelines (available from departmental adviser) and must be approved by the student's major adviser. (9)

Requirements for the Minor
Total Hours: 18

Logic Course
At least one of the following:
PHIL 1250 Reasoning and Rational Decision Making (3)
PHIL 2200 Deductive Logic (4)
PHIL 3210 Foundations of Probability and Statistics (3)
PHIL 5200 Symbolic Logic (4)

Basic Course
One of the following:
PHIL 3300 Theory of Knowledge (3)
PHIL 3400 Mind, Language and Reality (3)
PHIL 3500 Ethics (3)

History of Philosophy
Two of the following, but including PHIL 4110 or PHIL 4120:
PHIL 4110 Ancient Greek Philosophy (3)
PHIL 4120 Early Modern Philosophy (4)
PHIL 4130 19th-century Philosophy (3)
PHIL 4140 History of Analytic Philosophy (3)
PHIL 4150 20th-century Continental Philosophy (3)

Elective Courses
Additional courses in philosophy bringing the total hours to at least 18. At least one of these courses must be numbered 3000 or above. (4-6)

Cognitive Science Minor
An interdisciplinary program housed in the Department of Philosophy.

Required Courses
One each from computer science, linguistics, philosophy, and psychology:
CP SC 1020 Introduction to Programming (3)
LING 3020 Introduction to Syntax (3)
PHIL 3400 Mind, Language and Reality (3)
PSYCH 3120 Cognitive Psychology (3)
Capstone course, one of either:
LING 3160 Linguistics and Cognitive Science (3)
or PHIL 3440 Cognitive Science (3)
(Another course overviewing cognitive science may be substituted as a capstone in consultation with a student's undergraduate adviser and the cognitive science adviser.)

Electives
At least one elective course may be chosen from upper-division undergraduate or higher-level courses in any relevant department, subject to the approval of advisers in that department and in consultation with the undergraduate adviser for cognitive science.

Recommended electives include the following:
CP SC 5300 Artificial Intelligence; CP SC 5310 Robotics
LING 3190 Psychology of Language
PHIL 5350 Philosophy of Science; PHIL 5450 Philosophy of Mind
PSYCH 3140 Cognitive Neuropsychology; PSYCH 3150 Sensation and Perception;
PSYCH 3190 Psychology of Language

Students may select electives from a number of departments, and the above list is not exhaustive. Choice of electives must always be approved by the adviser. Entry to several of the above courses (both required and electives) is subject to completing various prerequisites. Students must consult with the host department and satisfy the department's requirements.
The minimum number of credits required for the minor is 18 semester hours; 15 of these will be satisfied by the required courses.

Graduate Program

Degrees. M.A., M.S., Ph.D. in philosophy. For additional information, see also the Graduate Information section of this catalog or the departmental Web pages.

Areas of Specialization. Ethics, applied ethics, political philosophy and political thought, feminist theory, aesthetics, philosophy of religion, philosophy of language, logic, philosophy of science, epistemology, philosophy of mind and cognitive science, metaphysics and history of philosophy are areas of graduate-degree specialization. In conjunction with the Department of Political Science, the Philosophy Department offers graduate degrees with an
emphasis in political thought.

Master's Degree. Students must have earned a bachelor's degree with a philosophy major or have equivalent undergraduate training, and must pass a qualifying examination during the first semester of study as a matriculated student.

Degree candidates must pass PHIL 6200 (or equivalent) and at least four graduate seminars (7000-level) in the department. Graduate School rules govern all students; however, each student's course of study is prepared in consultation with an adviser.

Ph.D. Degree. Before advancing to the dissertation, students take a set of written qualifying examinations in the following areas: history of philosophy, ethics, metaphysics and epistemology, and logic. Various combinations of philosophy courses may be substituted for some examinations, as prescribed by the department, but students must take at least two exams. Students must also complete at least six graduate seminars (7000-level) in the department. To advance to the dissertation, students must prepare a thesis prospectus and get it approved in advance by their committee and meet any other requirements the committee deems appropriate as preparation for that thesis topic.

PHIL Course Descriptions