Optional Areas of Emphasis in the Major
Please note: The optional areas of emphasis do not carry a transcript or diploma notation.
The Department of Philosophy offers four optional areas of emphasis within the major, as described below. Students selecting an optional area of emphasis for the major must take and pass five of the courses listed under that area. Courses taken to complete an area of emphasis are counted toward the fifteen courses required for the major. Particular courses may be applied both to the completion of the area of emphasis and in fulfillment of a core requirement for the major. Students should be aware, as they plan their course of study, that only some of the courses listed for an area of emphasis will be taught in any given year.
The Department encourages students considering a philosophy major to consult with the Philosophy Undergraduate Student Affairs Advisor and the Philosophy Faculty Undergraduate Advisor to plan a program of study that is suitable to their particular interests and needs. The department web site http://philosophy.ucsd.edu provides additional information about courses falling within each area of emphasis. The optional areas of emphasis are:
This area targets the nature and source of our moral rights and obligations, the authority of the state and law, the basis of value and goodness. Several courses in this area target ethical issues in medicine, the environment, technological change, economic inequality, and matters concerning race, gender, class, ethnicity, and nationality. In this area, students will learn how moral and legal reasoning can reshape the political debates over abortion, the death penalty, privacy on the Internet, genetic testing, religious tolerance, free speech, affirmative action and other issues.
This area is excellent preparation for law school as well as for postgraduate study and careers in public policy.
125. Games and Decisions
148. Philosophy and the Environment
152. Philosophy of Social Science
160. Ethical Theory
161. Topics in the History of Ethics
162. Contemporary Moral Issues
163. Bio-medical Ethics
164. Technology and Human Values
166. Classics in Political Philosophy
167. Contemporary Political Philosophy
168. Philosophy of Law
169. Feminism and Philosophy
170. Philosophy and Race
182. Marx and Marxism
This emphasis focuses on the insights and challenges presented by science. Modern science and technologies affect our view of ourselves and of nature, introducing novel promises and problems. For instance, how do we balance technical, economic, environmental, and ethical values in making decisions concerning which technologies or drugs to develop? Modern science has also changed our understanding of nature. Quantum physics, the genetic revolution, and neuroscience (to name a few) present problems and have important implications for human life. Finally, there are questions about science itself. What are the methods of modern science? Do they vary from one science to another? Can the sciences be value free?
This area will appeal especially to those students interested in pursuing careers in philosophy, science, clinical medicine, medical research, the social sciences, science journalism and public policy.
123. Philosophy of Logic
145. Philosophy of Science
146. Philosophy of Physics
147. Philosophy of Biology
148. Philosophy and the Environment
149. Philosophy of Psychology
150. Philosophy of Cognitive Sciences
151. Philosophy of Neuroscience
152. Philosophy of Social Science
153. Philosophy of History
163. Biomedical Ethics
164. Technology and Human Values
Traditional Epistemology (the theory of how and what we know) and Philosophy of Mind (the theory of that-which-perceives-and-thinks) have recently been joined by several scientific disciplines in a collective search for illuminating theories. Psychology, Cognitive Neurobiology, Computer Science, and Sociology have all made explosive contributions to a tradition as old as Plato and Aristotle. For example, our growing understanding of the biological brain has given new life to our traditional attempts to understand the nature of the Mind. New accounts of the various mechanisms of cognition – both at the cellular and the social levels – have provided entirely new perspectives on the nature of consciousness, the self, knowledge and free will, and on the nature of science itself.
This area is excellent preparation for careers in cognitive science, neuroscience, artificial intelligence, science journalism and philosophy.
132. Epistemology
134. Philosophy of Language
136. Philosophy of Mind
138. Consciousness
139. The Nature of Representation
145. Philosophy of Science
147. Philosophy of Biology
149. Philosophy of Psychology
150. Philosophy of Cognitive Sciences
151. Philosophy of Neuroscience
180. Phenomenology
Throughout its history, philosophy has developed in a complex relationship with the natural sciences and religion. Philosophical ideas have both contributed to and challenged our understanding of nature and God, and developments in the sciences and religion have posed new challenges for philosophical thinking. The Historical Perspectives emphasis focuses on the fertile interplay between philosophy, science, and religion in several key periods: ancient Greece, the Scientific Revolution, and Enlightenment and post-Enlightenment Europe. The aim is not simply to document the history of philosophical ideas, but to use this history as a way of better understanding contemporary debates about the basic questions of human life.
This area prepares students for post-graduate work in philosophy, and for any career that requires breadth of knowledge, intellectual flexibility, as well as communicative and analytical skills.
100. Plato
101. Aristotle
102. Hellenistic Philosophy
104. The Rationalists
105. The Empiricists
106. Kant
107. Hegel
108. Nineteenth Century Philosophy
109. History of Analytic Philosophy
110. Wittgenstein
161. Topics in the History of Ethics
166. Classics in Political Philosophy
180. Phenomenology
181. Existentialism
182. Marx and Marxism
183. Topics in Continental Philosophy
Undergraduate Program–MinorThe Department of Philosophy offers a minor in philosophy. As with the major, the minor is an attractive option for a wide range of career paths, including medicine, law, research in the natural and social sciences, journalism, education and government. A minor requires a total of seven philosophy courses, at least five of which must be upper division. If choosing an area of emphasis, at least four upper-division courses must be from the chosen area of emphasis. All courses must be taken for a letter grade, C-or better.
Please note: The optional areas of emphasis do not carry a transcript or diploma notation.