Program

Overview

(Bachelor of Arts)

The study of philosophy increases our appreciation and awareness of the deep intellectual, ethical, logical, and aesthetic structure of our world. The discipline of philosophy, like mathematics, economics and chemistry, embodies formal thought, structural relationships, abstract models, symbolic languages, and deductive methods. Students who develop these skills develop a perspective which allows them to better address problems squarely, think through and devise deep and creative solutions, and better address and overcome unpredictable circumstances in life.

Philosophy students routinely score better than nearly all other majors on the Graduate Record Exam, GMAT and LSAT. This is not surprising, given that Philosophy students are taught how to read well and carefully difficult texts, how to extract and evaluate complex ideas and arguments, and how to express their own reasoning about these ideas in an articulate and detailed manner. 

The true virtue of an education in philosophy, however, extends beyond the domain of personal and academic skills.

As the global community continues to shrink and corporate America restructures, careers will increasingly demand employees who can think critically, disclose hidden assumptions and values, formulate problems clearly, and discern the impact of ideas. Philosophy students are looked upon as assets to companies and organizations in a wide array of fields, including business, health care, politics, and higher education. The mental acuity and flexibility provided by a background in philosophy prepares our students well for the career challenges of their future. 

Our undergraduate program in Philosophy is designed to complement the strengths of other programs and disciplines at UW-Green Bay.   

A degree in Philosophy should help students realize the following aims:

1. Be familiar with the history of philosophical thought and able to identify the dominant figures and issues in the ancient, medieval, early modern and modern philosophical eras.
2. Be able to articulate and think carefully through questions about the structure and nature of reality, our place within it, and how we ought to act.
3. Be able to interpret and extract an author's arguments from a text and to offer novel, substantive commentary on philosophical positions.
4. Be able to offer a balanced and fair evaluation of major philosophical figures and issues in writing and public presentation.
5. Be able to compose and deliver to an audience a clear and cogent philosophical argument in defense of their preferred position.