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Double Major Applications

Philosophy is a fantastic second major. In addition to having flexible requirements, the wide diversity of courses offered in the philosophy department at UC San Diego means that the major can complement a wide variety of other majors, from Physics or Math to Political Science or Psychology to Literature, History, or Visual Arts. Many of our majors are also pursuing the pre-med track as either a double major or a single major.

If you are still deciding whether philosophy is something you want to pursue, a philosophy advisor would be happy to chat with you about the strengths of our department and what is generally involved with pursuing a double major.

If you are already at the point where you are feeling confident that philosophy is something you want to pursue, then prior to meeting with a philosophy advisor, familiarize yourself with the Double Major Petition process and build a draft of your double major petition and academic plan. Here is the information you need to do this:

Double Major General Policies

  • You can count lower-division courses toward both majors. Both departments must approve.
  • You can't choose two majors within a single department.
  • You must have at least a 2.50 overall GPA
  • If applicable, you must have completed a majority of the prerequisites for both majors
  • You must be able to satisfy the requirements for BOTH majors, including 10 upper-division courses (40 units) unique to each major.
  • You must be able to complete the two majors in six quarters for transfer students or twelve quarters for first-year students. Additional quarters to complete the requirements might be granted upon petition.
  • Pay attention to policies for each major. For instance, Philosophy requires that ALL philosophy courses be taken for a letter grade in order to apply to philosophy major requirements. 

How to Declare a Double Major

  1. Make sure you meet the requirements. To declare a double major, you must plan to:
  • Review the requirements for both majors.
  • Sketch out a draft of a two-year or four-year academic plan that includes the requirements for both majors, plus General Education requirements and University requirements.
  • On the academic plan, make sure to list all courses, including those completed, in progress, and proposed.
  • Connect with both departments/programs and your College to discuss the draft of your academic plan.
  1. Obtain and complete a Double Major Application
  • Write a brief Statement of Purpose explaining your reasoning for completing two majors.
  • Complete a Double Major Petition 
  • Prepare a final version of the Academic Planning Worksheet 
  • Combine all three documents into a single PDF document
    • Save your PDF application document using this naming convention: “LastName, FirstName_DMP.pdf”
  1. Submit the Double Major Application.
  • Submit the Double Major Petition, Academic Planning Worksheet, and Statement of Purpose as a single, combined PDF to major departments for review. 
  • For Philosophy, you can send the application to philadvising-g@ucsd.edu
  • Make sure both departments sign the same document.
  • If approved by both departments, submit the signed document to your college academic advising office for final review.

Tips for Filling Out Philosophy Courses on the Petition and Academic Plan

  • For the current year, use our course list here: Year At A Glance page. 
  • For the year(s) after 26-27, if applicable, just list either “UD elective,” “LD elective,” or, if you're listing a core requirement, list “UD M&P,” “UD M&E,” or “UD PS.”  
  • Make sure to include 15 courses, and only 15 courses, total for the philosophy requirements on the petition portion of the application
  • Make sure that there is a maximum of three lower-division courses (numbered between 1-99) on your petition (PHIL 10 and two lower-division electives). Keep in mind that two of your seven electives can be lower-division philosophy courses (numbered between 1 and 99), though you are welcome to take upper-division courses for all seven requirement electives..
  • One of your lower-division courses must be PHIL 10. 
  • Philosophy majors must take the History of Philosophy Core Sequence (PHIL 110, 111, 112) during their third year (students admitted as first years) or their first year (transfer students). However, flexibility on timing is sometimes extended to double majors. These courses are taken consecutively in the Fall, Winter, and Spring.
  • PHIL 120. Symbolic Logic is offered in Fall and Spring quarters. Do NOT plan to take this course in your final quarter at UC San Diego.
  • Up to three community college courses may apply to the philosophy major requirements. A Symbolic Logic course taken at a community college in California will automatically articulate to satisfy PHIL 10. Check assist.org to see if the logic course you took qualifies. Other community college philosophy courses may be petitioned to satisfy two lower-division philosophy electives. Read about the philosophy petition process here.
  • All philosophy courses must be taken for a letter grade to apply to requirements

Tips for Completing Requirements Quickly

  • Overlap: Courses that count toward your major requirements can also sometimes count towards your College’s general education requirements, as well as your University requirements, such as the DEI requirement or the Jane Teranes Climate Change Education Requirement (JTCCER).  See here for the general overlap policy.
  • DEI: Philosophy courses that satisfy the DEI requirement are: PHIL 35, PHIL 155, PHIL 156, PHIL 165, and PHIL 170
  • JTCCER: Philosophy courses that satisfy the JTCCER include: PHIL 51. Climate Ethics and PHIL 148. Philosophy and the Environment.
  • GEs: Philosophy courses satisfy GE requirements for many Colleges. It’s definitely worth taking the time to learn your College’s GE policies. For instance, ERC allows additional GE and major course overlaps for double majors.

Useful Resources to Reference When Creating Your Petition and Academic Plan

Honors Program

Students who meet the requirements and are interested should consider doing the Philosophy Honors program. While the two courses will not count toward philosophy major requirements, it is an excellent opportunity to work one-on-one with a faculty member during your final year. Read about the Philosophy Honors program here.