Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy

Prospective and Objectives
The Bachelor of Arts Program in Philosophy is conceived within the context of the Mission of the University, a Mission that is defined by the integration of rational inquiry with religious and spiritual values, and the Vincentian concern for social justice. The Philosophy Department is uniquely suited to serve this Mission because it operates within a realist tradition that allows for metaphysical knowledge and a normative ethics.

The primary objectives of the Program are these:

1. to provide students with a comprehensive background in the realist tradition described above
2. to provide students with a comprehensive background in the history of philosophy
3. to prepare students to do graduate work in Philosophy

Description of the Program
36 credits

All Philosophy majors are required to take the following courses:

Phi 1000c - Philosophy of the Human Person
Phi 2200c - Ethics
Phi 3000c - Metaphysics
Phi 3400 - Introduction to Logic
Phi 3500 - History of Ancient Philosophy
Phi 3510 - History of Medieval Philosophy
Phi 3520 - History of Modern Philosophy
Phi 3530 - History of Contemporary Philosophy
Phi 4990 - Seminar

Students are also required to take 3 elective courses from any other Department offering. The list of electives from which students may choose are the following:

Phi 2320 - Science and Religion
Phi 2330 - Introduction to Feminist Philosophy
Phi 3420 - Informal Logic
Phi 3540 - American Philosophy
Phi 3550 - Existentialism
Phi 3560 - Themes in the Philosophy of Aquinas
Phi 3570 - Personalism
Phi 3580 - Major Women Philosophers of the 20th Century
Phi 3590 - Confucianism and Taoism
Phi 3600 - Problem of God
Phi 3610 - Philosophy of Religion
Phi 3630 - Epistemology
Phi 3640 - Aesthetics
Phi 3650 - Philosophy of Law
Phi 3660 - Political Philosophy
Phi 3700 - Contemporary Moral Problems
Phi 3710 - Medical Ethics
Phi 3720 - Environmental Ethics
Phi 3740 - Social Justice
Phi 3800 - Philosophy of Science
Phi 3810 - Philosophy of the Physical Sciences
Phi 3820 - Philosophical Issues in Biology
Phi 3900 - Philosophy of Literature:  The Catholic Novel
Phi 3910 - Philosophy of Language

In the Senior Seminar students are required to take a Comprehensive Exam.