Requirements for a Philosophy Major at CU

• General Major
• Topically Oriented Majors
  • Law and Society
  • Values and Social Policy
• Individually Structured Major
• Distributed Major

To complete the general major in philosophy, the following is required:

1. 33-45 semester hours in philosophy.
2. 33 hours of grade C- or better in philosophy.
3. A 2.0 average GPA for all work attempted in philosophy.
4. Eighteen hours of upper division work in philosophy with grades of C- or better.
5. No more than eight hours of independent study may count toward the minimum requirements.
6. Majors must complete at least 12 hours of their upperdivision course work on the Boulder Campus
7. Completion of the following area requirements in philosophy, with a grade of C- or better.

A. HISTORY (three courses)
PHIL 3000 - History of Philosophy, Ancient and Medieval
PHIL 3010 - History of Philosophy, Modern
PHIL 4010 - Single Philosopher

B. LOGIC (one course)

One of the following courses:
PHIL 2440 - Symbolic Logic
PHIL 4440 - Math Logic

C. PHILOSOPHICAL WRITING (one course)

PHIL 3480 - Critical thinking & Writing in Philosophy

D. VALUES (two courses)

1) The following required course:
PHIL 3100 - Ethical Theory

2) One of the following additional courses:
PHIL 2140 - Environmental Justice
PHIL 2200 - Major Social Theories
PHIL 3110 - Feminist Practical Ethics
PHIL 3140 - Environmental Ethics
PHIL 3160 - Medical Ethics
PHIL 3190 - War and Morality
PHIL 3200 - Social and Political Philosophy
PHIL 3260 - International Human Rights PHIL 4110 - Contemporary Moral Theory
PHIL 4200 - Contemporary Political Philosophy

E. METAPHYSICS and EPISTEMOLOGY (two courses)

1) The following required course:
PHIL 3340 - Epistemology (Prereq. or coreq. PHIL 3480)

2) One of the following additional courses
PHIL 3600 - Philosophy of Religion
PHIL 4300 - Philosophy of Mind
PHIL 4360 - Metaphysics
PHIL 4400 - Philosophy of Science
PHIL 4490 - Philosophy of Language

F. ELECTIVES (two courses)

(includes all courses which are at the 2000 level or above,
and are not taken to satisfy any of the above requirements)

As an alternative philosophy major, there are two topically-oriented programs grounded in and coordinated by the Department of Philosophy which are interdisciplinary in nature. They are Law and Society and Values and Social Policy.

The Law and Society major provides a framework within which students interested in law may gain a broader understanding of that subject. While this program may be of special value to pre-law students, it is expected to serve the needs of other students as well.

This major requires 33-45 hours in philosophy (18 of which must be upper division) and 12 hours in allied disciplines. The 12 hours may be taken in a variety of departments, including, for example, political science, history, sociology, and economics.

The 33 hours in philosophy must include all the courses listed in Group I. Group II lists additional courses that are recommended but not required. The requirements listed below are relevant to both the general major and topical majors.

1. 33 hours of grade C- or better in philosophy.
2. A 2.0 average for all work attempted on philosophy.
3. Eighteen hours of upper division work in philosophy with grade C- or better.
4. No more thatn eight hours of independent study work may count toward the minimum requirements.
5. Majors must complete at least 12 hours of their upper-division work on the Boulder Campus.

GROUP I: REQUIRED COURSES (24 hours)

PHIL 1440 - Introductory Logic or PHIL 2440 - Symbolic Logic

PHIL 2200 - Major Social Theories
PHIL 2220 - The Nature of Law

PHIL 3000 - History of Philosophy: Ancient and Medieval

PHIL 3010 - History of Philosophy: Modern

PHIL 3100 - Ethical Theory

PHIL 3200 - Social and Political Philosophy

PHIL 4260 - Philosophy of Law

GROUP II: RECOMMENDED COURSES

PHIL 2140 - Environmental Justice

PHIL 2200 - Major Social Theories

PHIL 2290 - Philosophy and Women

PHIL 3110 - Feminist Practical Ethics

PHIL 3140 - Environmental Ethics

PHIL 3160 - Bioethics

PHIL 3260 - International Human Rights

PHIL 4110 - Contemporary Moral Theory

PHIL 4200 - Contemporary Political Philosophy

PHIL 4250 - Marxism

GROUP III: REQUIRED COURSES
 

Twelve hours of approved courses from other departments. The student is to consult with the faculty advisor as to the appropriateness of particular courses to the program.

Permissible non-philosophy courses for the Law and Society Major

CLAS 4761 - Roman Law (Classics)

ECON 4545 - Environmental Economics (economics)

HUMN 4825 - Law and Literature (Humanities)

PSCI 1970 - Legal Rights of Students (Political Science)

PSCI 2481 - Introduction to the Legal Process

PSCI 4021 - Legislatures and Legislation

PSCI 4231 - Administrative Law

PSCI 4241 - Constitutional Law

PSCI 4271 - Sex Discrimination

PSCI 4771 - Civil Rights and Liberties

PSCI 4183 - International Law

PSYC 2456 - Social Psychology of Social Problems (Psychology)

SOCIOLOGY - Virtually any course listed under criminology.

Note: this list does not claim to be exhaustive. Other sources may be permissible as well upon request.

For further information about this program, please see Professor David Boonin, Hellems 182.

The Values and Social Policy major draws on courses in a variety or departments and disciplines. This major was developed in order to prepare students for policy-oriented positions, whether in business, government, or academia. Such positions typically require some expertise in the social sciences as well as experise in the study of values. This topical major provides students with a firm foundation in philosophy as well as solid training in allied disciplines.

Students interested in this major are urged to meet with the faculty advisor as early as possible in their academic careers. The student and the advisor will develop a program together that is specially suited to the interests and career goals of the student.

The major in Values and Social Policy requires 33 hours in philosophy and 15 hours in allied disciplines approved by the policy center advisor. The 15 hours in allied disciplines can be taken in a variety of departments, including, for example, economics, political science, geography, sociology, biology, and history. The 33 hours in philosophy must include all six courses from Group I and four courses from Group II.
 
 

GROUP I: REQUIRED COURSES

PHIL 1440 - Introductory Logic or Philosophy 2440 Symbolic Logic

PHIL 2200 - Major Social Theories

PHIL 3000 - History of Philosophy: Ancient and Medieval

PHIL 3010 - History of Philosophy: Modern

PHIL 3100 - Ethics Theory

PHIL 3200 - Social and Political Theory

GROUP II: CHOOSE FOUR

PHIL 2140 - Environmental Justice

PHIL 2220 &2230 - Nature of Law I & II

PHIL 2290 - Philosophy and Women

PHIL 3110 - Feminst Practical Ethics

PHIL 3140 - Environmental Ethics

PHIL 3160 - Bioethics

PHIL 3190 - War and Morality

PHIL 3260 - International Human Rights

PHIL 4110 - Contemporary Moral Theory

PHIL 4250 - Marxism

PHIL 4200 - Contemporary Political Philosophy

PHIL 4260 - Philosophy of Law

GROUP III: REQUIRED COURSES

Fifteen hours of approved courses in allied fields. The student is required to consult with the faculty advisor as to the appropriateness of particular courses to the program.

For further information about this program, please contact Professor Claudia Mills, Hellems 190.

An individually structured major is a special program of study, proposed by a student and supervised by a three-person faculty committee, usually cross-departmental, requiring specific approval in each case by the Dean. These are considered exceptional cases, to be approved only when no existing departmental major (including topical majors or interdisciplinary major programs) will serve a legitimate educational project of the student. A senior thesis supervised by the committee chairman is required.

PLAN A: Two Area Distributed Major with Philosophy as Primary Subject

At least 30 hours in philosophy of grade C or better, including 15 upper division hours and a cumulative grade point average of 2.0 or better.

REQUIRED COURSES:

PHIL 3000 - History of Philosophy, Ancient and Medieval
PHIL 3010 - History of Philosophy, Modern
PHIL 4040 - Twentieth Century Philosophy

RECOMMENDED COURSES:

PHIL 2440 - Symbolic Logic

Secondary Subject: at least 30 hours of C- grade or better, including 15 upper division hours; and a cumulative grade-point average of 2.0.

Selection of the secondary subject should be approved by the Undergraduate Advisor in the Department of Philosophy. No first-year course in English language or foreign language may be used for the requirement of either a primary or a secondary subject.

PLAN B: Three Area Distributed Major with Philosophy as Primary Subject

At least 30 hours in philosophy of grade C- or better and a cumulative grade-point average of 2.0 or better and including 12 hours of upper-division work of grade C- or better.

REQUIRED COURSES:

PHIL 3000 - History of Philosophy, Ancient and Medieval
PHIL 30l0 - History of Philosophy, Modern
PHIL 4040 - Twentieth Century Philosophy

RECOMMENDED COURSES:

PHIL 2440 - Symbolic Logic

Secondary Subjects: at least 30 hours distributed among two departments; a single secondary subject shall consist of at least 15 hours of C- grade or better in one department including 8 hours of upper division work and a cumulative grade-point average of 2.0 in the subject. No first year courses in English language or foreign languages may be used as satisfaction of the requirements of either a primary or a secondary subject.

NOTE: Philosophy as Secondary Subject requires 30 hours of C- or better, including 15 upper division hours, and a cumulative grade-point average in philosophy of at least 2.0 (for plan A) or 15 hours of C- or better, including 8 upper division hours, and a cumulative grade-point average in philosophy of at least 2.0 (for Plan B).

All requirements implemented May 28, 1996.