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Philosophy Dissertation Topics

Published by Grace Graffin at January 9th, 2023 , Revised On January 9, 2023

Introduction

The choice of dissertation topic is crucial for research as it will facilitate the process and makes it an exciting and manageable process. Several dissertation ideas exist in philosophy, including metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, logic, aesthetics, deontology, absurdum, and existentialism. Philosophy dissertations can be based on either primary research or secondary research.

Primary data dissertations incorporate the collection and analysis of data obtained through questionnaires and surveys. On the other hand, secondary data dissertations make use of existing literature to test the research hypothesis . To help you get started with philosophy topic selection for your dissertation, a list is developed by our experts.

These philosophy dissertation topics have been developed by PhD qualified writers of our team , so you can trust to use these topics for drafting your dissertation.

You may also want to start your dissertation by requesting a brief research proposal from our writers on any of these topics, which includes an introduction to the topic, research question , aim and objectives , literature review along with the proposed methodology of research to be conducted. Let us know if you need any help in getting started.

Check our dissertation examples to get an idea of how to structure your dissertation .

Review the full list of dissertation topics for 2022 here.

Philosophy Dissertation Topics of Research

Topic 1: an examination of women's perspective on feminist philosophy..

Research Aim: This study aims to look into the importance of feminism in a philosophical context. It will also identify the factors that lead to postmodernism and liberal feminism from women’s perspectives and will also focus on the impact of feminist philosophy on the development of modern society.

Topic 2: Sociological Functionalism- Investigating the Development and Beliefs

Research Aim: This research study will focus on new types of functionalism and get a deeper understanding of inner and outer circumstances in which different approaches take place. This study will also investigate how the researchers use social theory to acquire a better understanding of the environment in which these concepts are used. It will also promote sociology through informing and inspiring practices and research.

Topic 3: Assessing the History and Development of Philosophical Work from the 15th to 21st Century.

Research Aim: This study aims to find the history and development of philosophical work from the 15th and 21st Centuries. It will examine the theoretical foundations of the practice, applications, and social consequences. This study will also focus on different factors of how philosophy has evolved in these centuries and what changes have occurred.

Topic 4: A Comprehensive View of Social Development of Loneliness.

Research Aim: This study will comprehend how various theoretical points of view are connected or linked r to loneliness. This study will also present an argument for an interpretative social point of view by dissembling the sense of loneliness into key components. It will also focus on the problems and different behaviours of people.

Topic 5: What does it mean to live in an Ideal Society- Discuss using Plato's Philosophies.

Research Aim: Plato is well known for his monologue known as the Republic; he was also the classical political philosopher whose views influenced future political thoughts. Plato’s ideal society was created during a time when Plato was exceedingly optimistic about human nature and its ability to absorb knowledge. This study will conduct a deep analysis of Plato’s ideologies and his views and their impact on the western political world.

Topic 2: Should people always obey the rules? A closer look at the line between breaking rules and rebellion.

Research Aim: Rules are developed to maintain a balance in society and ensure discipline, which helps an individual in every sphere of their lives. But specific rules are created only for serving a group and not for the whole society’s best interest. This research aims at finding pieces of evidence where rule-breaking is a rebellion and for the upliftment of humanity and not in personal interest.

Topic 3: Loneliness: Reconstructing its meaning

Research Aim: This research aims at finding the meaning of loneliness, what it is to feel lonely, why some people are reclusive, isolate themselves. Loneliness is not always related to sadness, and some people feel better in isolation due to their bitter experiences of life.

Topic 4: Understanding why religion is paramount above anything else for many people around the globe.

Research Aim: Religion forms the basis of life and way of living for many people around the globe. People often get confused with religion and spiritualism, and the grandeur associated with religion becomes more important. The lack of knowledge and education forces blind faith. This research aims to find the reason for dependency on religion and how it negatively affects human lives.

Topic 5: What is the best way to boost a person’s creativity?

Research Aim: This research aims at finding the best possible way to boost a person’s creativity. The most important way is to motivate, inspire, and support them in their process of exploring innovative ideas. Recognition of talent can be the most effective method, which the research will investigate.

Topic 6: Morality and religion: Why are they different, yet they talk about the same thing?

Research Aim: The fundamental essence of religion is compassion and empathy for humans and ensures morality and ethics as a way of life. This research emphasises the primary aim of a religion and how people are getting disoriented and making rituals of religion the prime concern.

Topic 7: Wealth: Is it possible to be rich without having a lot of money?

Research Aim: Wealth and money are co-related as lots of money gives the power to buy anything. But a wealth of human life lies in their moral values, love, affection, proper health and wellbeing, and money cannot accept them. This research topic will speak about becoming wealthy, even with limited monetary wealth.

Topic 8: How can the custom of dowry be eliminated from people’s minds?

Research Aim: Dowry is a social parasite, and it is now a punishable offence by the law. But rules alone cannot change society. The research aims at eradicating the practice of dowry from people’s minds in the light of education.

Topic 9: To love or to be loved: Which is more important?

Research Aim: Love is the feeling of intense desire or deep affection. The most beautiful feeling gives a sense of satisfaction and grows through exchange between two individuals. To love and be loved are two co-related aspects as human expects love in return. The research focuses on the more critical dilemma, being on the giving or receiving side of love.

Topic 10: Why social behaviour and ethics cannot be separated?

Research Aim: The research aims to evaluate the importance of ethics in social behaviour and why they cannot be separated. An ethical society is a proper place to thrive for every individual.

Topic 11: A more in-depth look at things that make human life meaningful.

Research Aim: Money, power does not always buy happiness. The research lays the foundation for the importance of care, compassion, empathy. Love and affection as the more essential aspects that make human life meaningful.

Topic 12: Is it possible to create an ideal society?

Research Aim: An ideal society is free from any crime and economic disparities where everyone is treated equally. This research will discuss whether a perfect community is attainable; it is practically possible or not.

Topic 13: A closer look at modern life values.

Research Aim: The research aims to focus on the change in values in modern times. The research’s primary purpose is to provide a comparative study of how modern people’s mindset has changed over time.

Topic 14: Euthanasia: Is it ethical?

Research Aim: A long time debate exists regarding the ethical side of euthanasia. Ending someone’s life can be considered unlawful as we do not have the right to end something we did not create. This research aims at providing evidence in favour of euthanasia and also the negative aspects.

Topic 15: What is the value of truth? Are there instances when lying is good?

Research Aim: The research aims to provide evidence where lying is not unethical. The study will give an example from Bhagwat Gita, where Lord Krishna lied to safeguard humanity.

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161 Great Philosophy Thesis Topics: Take A Look!

Philosophy is one of the most interesting areas of study because it deals with fundamental questions that arise in everyday life. These questions concern reality and further extend to other disciplines. The goal of philosophy is not to simply master facts, but to think through them. This means you critically analyze, discern hidden arguments, and construct logical arguments. What an interesting niche!

As a PhD student, your last step is to write a thesis. This is the last paper that demonstrates you are ready to venture into your philosophy career. To write a great philosophy PhD thesis, the first step is picking the right topic.

In this post, we are going to take a closer look at writing a philosophy PhD thesis to help you identify the best topics. We will demonstrate the main areas of philosophy where you can derive good topics and provide a comprehensive philosophy topics list.

Main Areas to Consider for Your Philosophy PhD Thesis

Before picking the most popular thesis topics for your study, it is important to understand the different areas of philosophy. This will help you narrow down to the area of interest and write a great thesis:

Epistemology : This is one of the top areas to base your philosophy PhD thesis topics. Epistemology deals with questions about belief and knowledge. Some of the questions that epistemology seeks to answer include what is the difference between believing something and knowing something? What determines whether a belief is rational or not?
Metaphysics : This is an area of philosophy that focuses on what reality is. In this area of study, you will seek to answer questions on ontology, nature, persons, objects, modality, time, space, and laws of nature, among others. According to Plato, in addition to what is observable, there is an additional realm of eternal entities such as beauty, justice, and goodness.
Logic : Logic in philosophy, is the study of inference patterns. Unlike in psychology, logic in philosophy is about questions of exploring when a specific claim is supported by other claims. Logical validity is closely connected to concepts such as if, and, or, not, some, and then.
Political philosophy : This is a branch of philosophy that involves concepts and values related to political matters. Other areas you can base your philosophy thesis topics include moral philosophy and history of philosophy.

How To Select the Best Topics of Philosophy for Your Thesis

When it comes to picking a thesis topic, no effort should be spared to make sure you select the best. Here are some of the main reasons why you should go for good philosophy topics.

Picking a great philosophy thesis topic allows you to identify and fill areas that are lacking. This is an opportunity to leave a mark in the field of philosophy.

Unlike other assignments where the tutor provides you with the topics to work on, the philosophy thesis is one case when you have the opportunity to choose. Therefore, go ahead and pick what pleases you.

The topic you select determines the ease of writing your PhD thesis. For example, a topic with ample resources is easy to work on compared to the one that has none.

With good philosophy research topics, defending your thesis becomes easy.

Interesting Philosophy Topics for Your Dissertation

Now that we have looked at the top areas, you can base your philosophy PhD thesis on; we are going to list popular topics that you can consider. Note that most of the topics take the form of a question because philosophy is all about questioning and seeking logical answers.

Why we should stop capital punishment and adopt permanent solutions to help solve crimes.
Can a person be happy without a family?
A vacation or well-paid job: What would you take?
Should people always obey the rules? A closer look at the line between breaking rules and rebellion.
A closer look at modern life values.
What makes people commit crimes even when they know that they will face capital punishment?
Is there life after death?
Loneliness: Reconstructing its meaning.
Wealth: Is it possible to be rich without having a lot of money?
The main characters that define a person: Is it possible to change them?
Understanding why religion is important above anything else for a lot of people around the globe.
Reasons why we cannot declare humanity as a supreme religion.
Evaluating life existence: Are humans the only living organisms?
What makes people kill in the name of religion?
Morality and religion: Why are they different, yet they talk about the same thing?
What makes women to be considered less strong physically as compared to men?
How can the custom of dowry be eliminated from people’s minds?
To love or to be loved: Which is more important?
What is the value of truth? Are there instances when lying is good?
What is the perfect life? What prevents people from living it?
Is it possible for parents to be the best friends to their children in real sense?
Evaluating how the age of maturity and age of marriage are defined by society.
Why social behavior and ethics cannot be separated.
What is the best way to boost a person’s creativity?

Good Philosophy Thesis Topics

Are animals different from people?
A deeper look at things that make human life meaningful.
What are the pros and cons of total control?
Is it possible to create an ideal society?
What are the best ways to reach peace in the world?
Exploring the roles of good and evil.
Should the church be involved in politics?
Euthanasia: Is it ethical?
Evaluating the relationship between war and peace.
Social media: A deeper look at how it has affected people’s moral behavior.
Analyzing the impact of beauty on human development.
Is it possible to always think positively?
Should parents be held responsible for the actions of their children?
A deeper look at supernatural: Is there any proof?
Suicide: What are the associated pros and cons?
Can animal experiments be justified?
What are the pros and cons of communism?
What are the pros and cons of utilitarianism?
Evaluating the pros and cons of artificial intelligence.
Ethics: Can we justify the experiments on human beings?
Can we connect traditions supported by science and force people to follow them as customs?
Is there a moral obligation to be honest?

Philosophy Thesis Topics For Seniors

Do developed nations have a moral obligation to address issues such as famine in developing countries?
Circus in zoos: Are they ethical?
Exploring the ethics of cryptocurrencies: A case study of Bitcoin.
Should incarcerated criminals be allowed to have children?
What are the pros and cons of marriage?
Dog and cat: Which is more superior?
Should human beings claim a stake in other planets such as moon and mars?
What are the pros and cons of genetically modified objects?
What are the pros and cons of childless families?
Elderly health: Who should decide whether to take the elderly to care centers: the elderly, their children, or healthcare professionals?
Steroids in sports: Is it ethical to use steroids to enhance results outcome in athletics?
Machiavelli ideas: Exploring the negative and positive features.
Why is cloning banned in most countries?
Can torture be justified?

Philosophy Thesis Topics on Human Sciences

A critique of the global assumptions and practices of human behavior
In what ways do the constructions of human nature affect our lineation and associations?
Adopting positivism in a world always awash with negative news
A systematic approach to the natural behavior of man
Greek philosophers’ role in shaping human sciences
The origin of existential phenomenology in Europe
The American infusionism into cultures of the world: its impact

Philosophy Topics for Research Paper

Evil persons and evil actions: a philosophical perspective
The effect of the ideology of Darwinism on natural selection
Intervention vs. information: distinguishing the differences
Melancholia in teenagers: a psychological analysis
Relating depression to interactive children
The logic behind madness in dreams
The Modern Virtue Theory: the relationship between value, dignity, and human virtue: their relationship
Sex and sexuality in the 21st century

Philosophy Research Paper Topics for Undergraduate Students

Monistic modern science vs. pluralistic modern science
The influence of moral philosophy in our understanding of folk psychology
The impossibility of escaping mental externalism
How has the emergence of technology in the 21st century
Empathy and morality in developing fiction stories and folklores
When is voluntary suicide justified?
Fate, destiny, and free will: evaluating the relationship between them

Philosophy Research Topics on Renaissance

Scientific revolution: its impact on the renaissance period
Rome vs. Northern Europe: comparing the High Renaissance
Some godfathers of the Renaissance: their contributions
Sexuality and eroticism in the 16th century renaissance art
The Great migration: its impact on literature and art
Early Renaissance: its impact on medical innovations
Technological advancements in renaissance culture and art
Naturalistic beauty in the renaissance period

Philosophical Research Topics for Masters’ Thesis

The impacts and benefits of the renaissance period on man
Are people good or evil by nature?
The limitations to free will in personal decision making
Utilitarianism: a detailed argument for or against
How are morals relevant to culture and(or) society
Aesops’ fables: how have they contributed to human philosophy?
What roles do group selection and altruism play?
What role has Bolzano’s mathematical knowledge played in human philosophy?

Buddhist Philosophy Topics List

Buddhism vs. Hinduism: the view of sin and punishment
Evaluating misconceptions regarding sexuality in the Buddhist religion
The relationship between Buddhism and Shinto with China
The four noble truths of Buddhism: a thorough analysis
The confluence of Hinduism and Buddhism in India: an in-depth study
What role did Mahatma Gandhi play in advancing Buddhism ideologies and practices?
What are the elements of the Buddhism religion that makes it sacred?

Fun Philosophy Paper Topics

What role do aesthetics play in the study of philosophy?
What role do ethics play in the survivability of a society?
In what way has logic been crucial in helping man make rational decisions?
A thorough analysis of the philosophy of mind with fundamental tenets
The African philosophy: what are the major revolutions?
Western philosophy vs. others: why does it have a greater acceptance?
For what reasons do post-classical and medieval philosophies have a place in the contemporary world?

Topics in Philosophy on Epistemology

Evaluating the concept of skepticism among different categories of readers
Knowledge and justification: the internalist account vs. externalist account
Factors contributing to contexualism in epistemology
What are the impacts of certain alternative accounts of knowledge?
The epistemology of lotteries: what are the pros and cons?
The different positions in epistemology: their pros and cons
The concept of Shoemaker’s self-blindness
How is the epistemology of attitudes different from other mental states?

Philosophy Term Paper Topics

The concept of happiness
Why is egoism considered a negative trait in man?
Understanding the motive behind the acts of charity
Past generations vs. the current generation: which is more affectionate?
Understanding the concept of true friendship
What role does technology play in the absence of emotions in some people?
Time management in campus students vs. time management in high school students
Can obsession ever replace true love?

Interesting Philosophy Topics for Research Paper

Can there be true love among teenagers?
What impact do religious beliefs have on science?
Testing the viability of the concept “You Only Live Once”
What are some fundamental flaws in various epistemological theories?
The unique characteristics of classical philosophy
What are the major revolutions of the African philosophy
An in-depth analysis of the limitations of metaphysics as a philosophy branch
Nature: is there an inherent order or it’s all chaos and chance?
Did the age of technology make us less happy?

Top-Notch Philosophy Topics to Write a Research Paper on

Perfection: why do we strive for it if it is unattainable?
What role does proper management play in making our lives meaningful?
To be liked or to be respected: which is more important?
The absolute way of attaining a happy mind
The possibility of having happiness without sadness
A critical look at a world without reliance on modern technology
The chances of robots taking over the world in the future
Parallel universes: do they exist or are they just fables?
What role do parents play in instilling morals in their children?
In what ways is man different from animals?
Top reasons why we should care about our neighbors
The judicial system: is it truly serving justice?
Can a woman be the head of the home?
The effect of knowing your purpose in life on behavior
Where do shooting stars fall?
The possibility of loving more than two people

Easy Topics for Philosophy Research Paper

Does fate exist in the modern world?
What are the chances of achieving an ideal society?
Why should you work when you will still die?
What are the components of the human consciousness?
Reasons why it is easier to do bad than to do good
Feminism: is it overhyped?
Foundationalism and Coherentism
The concept of anger in the Buddhism religion and how to manage it

Your Philosophy PhD Thesis Simplified – Nothing but Fun!

From the above philosophy thesis examples, go ahead, and select your preferred option. But this is just the beginning. Actually, you have just started scratching the surface. After selecting the best topics of philosophy, the bigger task of writing a bachelor thesis lays ahead. And you know what? You should not wait; the time to start is now! You have a huge task of crafting the thesis structure and professionally writing your thesis within the stipulated time.

At this moment, we are not going to lie; the task of crafting a winning thesis is monumental. Even those who have some writing skills feel inadequate to embark on it. Well, you do not want to pick a great philosophy thesis topic only to fail because of poor writing. The solution is seeking thesis writing help.

Thesis writing help is offered by experts who have been in the industry for years and done similar philosophy dissertations for other learners. They not only have the right skills but are willing to walk with you to ensure you go through successfully. They will craft the best structure, chapters, and complete the thesis on time. This will give you ample time to seek clarifications, learn, and prepare for defense. What a cheap and easy way to craft a winning dissertation?

If you are in a philosophy class, do not let the dissertation give you stress. You can select any of the above topics, and use writing help to make thesis writing professional and fun.

Make PhD experience your own

Department of Linguistics and Philosophy

Ph.d. program.

The program of studies leading to the doctorate in philosophy provides subjects and seminars in such traditional areas as logic, ethics, metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of science, philosophy of language, philosophy of mind, aesthetics, social and political philosophy, and history of philosophy. Interest in philosophical problems arising from other disciplines, such as linguistics, psychology, mathematics and physics, is also encouraged.

Before beginning dissertation research, students are required to take two years of coursework, including a proseminar in contemporary philosophy that all students must complete in their first year of graduate study. Students are also required to pass general examinations and demonstrate competence in the following areas: value theory, logic and the history of philosophy.

Interdisciplinary study is encouraged, and candidates for the doctorate may take a minor in a field other than philosophy. There is no general language requirement for the doctorate, except in those cases in which competence in one or more foreign language is needed to carry on research for the dissertation.

Below is a detailed description of the philosophy Ph.D. program. For information about applying, see our admissions page ; we have also compiled data on placement , retention, and average completion times .

1. Your Advisor

When you join the Department you will be assigned a faculty advisor who will supervise your course of study. Your advisor must approve your program at the beginning of each term, and you should keep them abreast of your progress and problems. When forming a Fifth Term Paper committee the chair of your committee becomes your advisor. Similarly, when you form a dissertation committee.

Your teachers will write comments on your performance in subjects which you complete. These comments will be placed in your file in the Department office (your file is open to you), and they will be discussed at a meeting of the faculty at the end of each term. You should see your advisor at the end of each term to review your progress.

You may change your advisor at any time. Similarly you may change the composition of your fifth year paper and dissertation committees, as well as adjust the topics of those projects. To make a change first ask the relevant faculty if they are willing, then notify the Chair of the Committee on Graduate Students (COGS).

The current composition of COGS is: Brad Skow (Chief Cog), Kieran Setiya , and Roger White .

2. Requirements

2.1 overall course requirements.

Students must pass (with a grade of C or higher) at least 10 graduate subjects in philosophy (unless you earn a minor, in which case see section 4 below ). At least 7 must be subjects at MIT.

Students may petition COGS to use undergraduate subjects at MIT to satisfy the overall course requirement (except: in the case of an undergraduate logic subject more advanced than 24.241, no petition is needed).

Students must take at least 2 subjects in philosophy at MIT during each term of their first year, and at least 1 subject in philosophy at MIT during each term of their second year. Normally, students take 4 subjects during their second year.

2.2 Teaching Requirement

All graduate students must acquire some teaching experience. This requirement is normally satisfied by serving as a Teaching Assistant in an undergraduate subject in philosophy at MIT.

2.3 Logic Requirement

The Department has a standing committee which is charged with administering the logic requirement; the requirement may be satisfied in one of the following ways:

(a) by auditing Logic I and completing the work (Logic I may not be taken for graduate credit); (b) by successfully completing a logic assessment set by the committee; (c) by successfully completing an alternative or more advanced subject in logic at MIT (for example, modal logic or Logic II) approved by the committee. (d) by being exempted from the requirement by COGS. Such exemption does not affect the overall course requirements (2.1 above).

The level of knowledge of logic expected for exemption, or tested on the examination, is what is covered in Logic I at MIT: proof procedure and semantics for first-order predicate logic with identity, and some acquaintance with standard metalogical results (for example, those concerning completeness, incompleteness and decidability).

Students are normally expected to satisfy the logic requirement by the beginning of their second year.

2.4 Distribution Requirement

2.4.1 proseminar.

All first-year students are required to complete the two-semester sequence 24.400-24.401, Proseminar in Philosophy. The first semester is an intensive seminar on the foundations of analytic philosophy from Frege to roughly 1960. The second semester is an intensive seminar on highlights of analytic philosophy from roughly 1960 to the present. The two-semester sequence counts as two subjects.

2.4.2 History of Philosophy

Students must complete two graduate subjects in the history of philosophy. For the purposes of this requirement, the history of philosophy means philosophers or philosophical schools that flourished before 1879.

A subject that spends a substantial part of, but not all of, its time on history counts toward this requirement provided the student’s term paper focuses on the history part. If there is doubt about whether a subject qualifies, consult COGS.

History subjects designed for a mixture of graduate and undergraduate students, like 100-level courses at Harvard, also count.

COGS permission is required in order to satisfy this requirement by taking two subjects on the same philosopher. (COGS will likely reject using two subjects on Descartes’ Meditations to fulfill the history requirement; COGS will likely approve using two subjects on Kant, one focused on ethics, the other on metaphysics and epistemology.)

Students wishing to fulfill this requirement by some other means should contact COGS.

2.4.3 Value Theory

Students must complete one graduate subject in ethics or political philosophy or aesthetics.

2.4.4 Dissertation Seminar

Students must complete the year-long dissertation seminar. Normally this is done in the third year. Students wishing to delay it until their fourth year may do so with permission of the instructor.

2.5 Fifth Term Paper Requirement

By the end of a student’s third term (usually fall of the second year) the student should select a paper topic for their Fifth Term Paper and form a committee to advise them on their work. The committee will consist of two faculty members (a supervisor and a second reader). The proposed topic and names of committee members should be submitted to COGS before the end-of-term meeting.

During the student’s fourth term, the student, in consultation with the committee, should assemble a reading list on the chosen topic. As a guideline, the reading list might consist of roughly twenty papers or the equivalent; the faculty recognizes that lengths of lists will vary. The final list must be approved by the committee and submitted to COGS by the end-of-term meeting.

During the fifth term, the student will write a polished paper on the chosen topic, roughly 25 pages long, in consultation with their committee. After submitting a final version of the paper that the committee deems satisfactory, the student will sit for an oral examination with the committee on both the paper and, more generally, the paper’s topic, as defined by the reading list.

The fifth term paper project is graded pass-fail. Students must pass the oral exam by the end-of-term meeting of their fifth term. After a student passes the exam their committee will write a report on the project to be given to the student and placed in the student’s file. Successfully completing this project constitutes passing the written and oral general examination requirements imposed by MIT’s Graduate School.

2.6 Petitions

A student may petition COGS to waive a requirement in light of their special circumstances.

3. Independent Studies

While in the normal case a student’s 10 graduate subjects will be seminars, students may also take an independent study with a faculty member. Students wishing to register for 24.891 or 24.892 must obtain permission from the Chief COG. After talking with the faculty member they wish to supervise their independent study, the student should write a proposal describing how often they will meet, how long the meetings will last, a tentative list of readings, and the amount of writing they will do. The Chief COG will approve an independent study only if the amount of work proposed equals or exceeds the usual amount of work in a seminar.

Students can minor in a field outside philosophy of their choosing (for example, linguistics, psychology, science technology and society, physics, feminist theory…). To earn a minor in field X a student must (i) pass 3 graduate subjects in field X, (ii) pass one graduate philosophy subject on a topic related to field X, and (iii) obtain COGS approval. (It is best to seek approval before all 4 subjects have been taken.) A student may receive no more than two minors; in the case of two minors, a single philosophy subject may (in rare cases) be used to satisfy clause (ii) for both minors.

Students who earn a minor need only pass 8, rather than 10, graduate philosophy subjects (7 must be taken at MIT). The subject used to satisfy (ii) counts as one of these 8.

Our faculty uses pluses and minuses, but the grades on your official transcript will be straight letter grades. Here are the meanings that MIT assigns to the grades:

A Exceptionally good performance, demonstrating a superior understanding of the subject matter, a foundation of extensive knowledge, and a skillful use of concepts and/or materials.

B Good performance, demonstrating capacity to use the appropriate concepts, a good understanding of the subject matter, and an ability to handle the problems and material encountered in the subject.

C Adequate performance, demonstrating an adequate understandingof the subject matter, an ability to handle relatively simpleproblems, and adequate preparation for moving on to more advanced work in the field.

D Minimally acceptable performance.

When the faculty determines the status of a student in the program, it does so on the basis of a review of the student’s total performance, which includes weighing the strengths and weaknesses of the student’s whole record. Thus it is in principle possible to redeem a weakness in one area by excellence in others.

An Incomplete (a grade of I) indicates that a minor part of the subject requirements has not been fulfilled and that a passing grade is to be expected when the work is completed. The grade I for the term remains permanently on the student’s record even when the subject is completed. In subjects in which the major work is a term paper, students may earn an I for the subject only if they submit a draft to the instructor(s) by midnight on the day before the end of term meeting. If a student does not hand in a draft by midnight on the day before the end of term meeting, the instructor is required to give the student an F. (The end of term meeting is shortly after the beginning of exam week.)

Any uncompleted incompletes on registration day of the following term will be converted to an F.

6. Ph.D. Thesis

A student is normally not allowed to begin work on a Ph.D. thesis until they have completed all of the requirements listed above. Students must complete all of those requirements by the end of their fifth term; exceptions will be made only after petition to COGS.

Once a student has completed the requirements listed above, there is the option of taking a terminal Master’s Degree instead of the Ph.D. This requires completing a Master’s thesis — students should consult COGS for more details.

The Ph.D. thesis is a substantial piece of original and independent research that displays mastery of an area of philosophy. A student may plan to write a sustained piece of work on one topic; they may instead plan to write three or more papers on connected topics. By the second month of the student’s sixth term they will submit to COGS a short (three to five pages) description of the projected thesis.

When the plan is approved, COGS will appoint a thesis committee consisting of a thesis supervisor and two additional readers, who shall be members of the philosophy faculty chosen by the student and willing to undertake the responsibility. The student will then meet with the members of the thesis committee for discussion of the material to be dealt with in the thesis. COGS approval is required if the student wants to include a non-MIT professor, or an MIT professor who is not on the philosophy faculty, on the committee. COGS approval is also required for a committee whose members include fewer than two MIT philosophy faculty (and this will be approved only in exceptional circumstances).

The student will meet regularly with their thesis supervisor throughout the writing of the thesis, and will provide all members of the thesis committee with written work by the end of each term. This requirement holds for nonresident as well as resident students.

The following rules govern completion of the thesis.

6.1 Final Term

The student will meet with their thesis committee during the first week of the term to assess the feasibility of completing the thesis during that term. The student and the committee will agree on a table of contents for the thesis, and on a schedule of dates for meeting the following requirements; a copy of the contents and the schedule should be given to COGS.

6.1.1 MIT Deadline

MIT requires that the completed thesis be delivered to the Department office by a date set by the Registrar for all Departments. (Early in January for February degrees, early in May for June degrees.) The Department regards this requirement as met by delivery to the thesis committee by that date of what the student regards as the final draft of their thesis.

6.1.2 Thesis Defense

The student will meet privately with their thesis committee to defend the thesis and to discuss any needed revisions. This meeting constitutes the official oral examination of the thesis.

The private defense must be scheduled for a date which will leave time for the student to make revisions before the MIT deadline. Once a student has completed the oral examination, and made any requested revisions, the decision whether to recommend award of the PhD is made by unanimous vote of the thesis committee.

6.1.3 Public Defense

The public defense is open to all members of the Department and their guests; it is chaired by the thesis supervisor, and normally runs for an hour, starting with a twenty-minute presentation by the student of the main results of the thesis. The public defense is the one occasion on which the entire Department has an opportunity to learn about and participate in the student’s work, and is a central part of the Ph.D. program.

The public defense is to be held after the student’s committee has voted to recommend awarding the PhD. One week before the public defense, the student should email the revised version to the chief COG, to be made available to members of the Department. A copy of the abstract should be emailed to the Academic Administrator for distribution when announcing the public defense to the Department.

6.1.4 Final Library Copy

The final library copy must be given to the Departmental representative to MIT’s Committee on Graduate School Policy (CGSP) by the day before that committee’s end-of-term meeting at which it approves the final degree list.

6.2 September Degrees

Students who will be unable to complete their theses during the spring term may wish to petition COGS for consideration for award of the degree in September. Such petitions will be granted on condition that an appropriate thesis committee can be constituted to work with the student during the summer. A schedule analogous to that described under 6.1 — including the scheduling of private and public defenses — must be given to COGS by the end of the spring term. The final library copy of the thesis must be given to the Departmental representative to CGSP by the day before that committee’s September meeting at which it approves the September degree list.

7. Policies on Satisfactory Progress and Good Standing

A student is in good standing so long as they have not fallen behind on any deadline mentioned in this document. The most salient of these is the deadline for the 5th term paper.

If a student is not in good standing, they will be unable to use their travel funds. If a student is not in good standing or has received a grade of B or lower in two classes in the previous semester, they are at risk of failing to make satisfactory academic progress.

If a student is at risk of failing to make satisfactory academic progress, the faculty will discuss the matter at the next end of term of meeting. (If any of the student’s advisors are not present at the meeting, they will be consulted before any action is taken.) The faculty will consider the work the student has produced, or failed to produce, so far, and the progress it represents. If there are serious doubts about the student’s prospects of completing the PhD, which includes writing a thesis that meets the conditions in section 6 , the student’s academic progress will be deemed unsatisfactory, and they will be issued a written notice from the Chief COG. The notice will explain how the student’s progress is unsatisfactory, what the student should accomplish in the following semester in order to avoid an official warning from the Vice Chancellor, and what steps the faculty will take to help the student accomplish these things. If a student fails to meet the conditions of the notice by the end of the following semester, as determined by the faculty, the student will receive an official warning from the Vice Chancellor. This warning will explain why the student’s progress continues to be unsatisfactory, what the student should accomplish in the following semester in order to continue in the program, and what steps the faculty will take to help the student accomplish these things. If the student is in a position to receive a terminal Master’s Degree, the conditions for doing so will be detailed. If the student fails to meet the conditions of the warning by the end of the semester, as determined by the faculty, the student will be denied permission to continue in the program.

Doctoral Program

Stanford's Ph.D. program is among the world's best. Our graduate students receive their training in a lively community of philosophers engaged in a wide range of philosophical projects. Our Ph.D. program trains students in traditional core areas of philosophy and provides them with opportunities to explore many subfields such as the philosophy of literature, nineteenth-century German philosophy, and medieval philosophy.

Among other areas, we are exceptionally strong in Kant studies, the philosophy of action, ancient philosophy, logic, and the philosophy of science. We attract some of the best students from around the world and we turn them into accomplished philosophers ready to compete for the best jobs in a very tight job market.

The most up-to-date requirements are listed in t he Bulletin .

CHECK PHD REQUIREMENTS

From the 2020-2021 edition of Explore Degrees:

Doctor of Philosophy in Philosophy

Prospective graduate students should see the Office of Graduate Admissions web site for information and application materials.

The University's basic requirements for the Ph.D. degree including candidacy, residence, dissertation, and examination are discussed in the " Graduate Degrees " section of this bulletin.

University candidacy requirements, published in the " Candidacy " section of this bulletin, apply to all Ph.D. students. Admission to a doctoral degree program is preliminary to, and distinct from, admission to candidacy. Admission to candidacy for the doctoral degree is a judgment by the faculty in the department or school of the student's potential to successfully complete the requirements of the degree program. Students are expected to complete department qualifying procedures and apply for candidacy at the beginning of the seventh academic quarter, normally the Autumn Quarter of the student's third year.

Admission to candidacy for the doctoral degree is granted by the major department following a student's successful completion of qualifying procedures as determined by the department. Departmental policy determines procedures for subsequent attempts to become advanced to candidacy in the event that the student does not successfully complete the procedures. Failure to advance to candidacy results in the dismissal of the student from the doctoral program; see the " Guidelines for Dismissal of Graduate Students for Academic Reasons " section of this bulletin.

The requirements detailed here are department requirements. These requirements are meant to balance structure and flexibility in allowing students, in consultation with their advisors , to take a path through the program that gives them a rigorous and broad philosophical education, with room to focus on areas of particular interest, and with an eye to completing the degree with an excellent dissertation and a solid preparation for a career in academic philosophy.

Normally, all courses used to satisfy the distribution requirements for the Philosophy Ph.D. are Stanford courses taken as part of a student's graduate program. In special circumstances, a student may petition to use a very small number of graduate-level courses taken at other institutions to satisfy a distribution requirement. To be approved for this purpose, the student’s work in such a graduate-level course would need to involve an appropriate subject matter and would need to be judged by the department to be at the level of an 'A' in a corresponding graduate-level course at Stanford.

Courses used to satisfy any course requirement in Philosophy (except Teaching Methods and the summer Dissertation Development Seminar) must be passed with a letter grade of 'B-' or better (no satisfactory/no credit), except in the case of a course/seminar used to satisfy the third-year course/seminar requirement and taken for only 2 units. Such a reduced-unit third-year course/seminar must be taken credit/no credit.

At the end of each year, the department reviews the progress of each student to determine whether the student is making satisfactory progress, and on that basis to make decisions about probationary status and termination from the program where appropriate.

Any student in one of the Ph.D. programs may apply for the M.A. when all University and department requirements have been met.

Proficiency Requirements

First-year Ph.D. Proseminar : a one quarter, topically focused seminar offered in Autumn Quarter, and required of all first-year students.
two courses in value theory including ethics, aesthetics, political philosophy, social philosophy, philosophy of law. At least one of the courses satisfying this distribution requirement must be in ethics or political philosophy.
Two courses in language, mind, and action. One course satisfying this requirement must be drawn from the language related courses, and one from mind and action related courses.
two courses in metaphysics and epistemology (including metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of science). At least one of the courses satisfying this requirement must be drawn from either metaphysics or epistemology.
Instructors indicate which courses may satisfy particular requirements. If a course potentially satisfies more than one requirement the student may use it for only one of those area requirements; no units may be double-counted. Students must develop broad competencies in all these areas. Those without strong backgrounds in these areas would normally satisfy these distribution requirements by taking more basic courses rather than highly specialized and focused courses. Students should consult with their advisor in making these course decisions, and be prepared to explain these decisions when reviewed for candidacy; see requirement 6 below.
Logic requirement: PHIL 150 Mathematical Logic or equivalent.
History/logic requirement. One approved course each in ancient and modern philosophy, plus either another approved history of philosophy course or PHIL 151 Metalogic.
Students should normally take at least 64 graduate level units at Stanford during their first six quarters (in many cases students would take more units than that) and of those total units, at least 49 units of course work are to be in the Philosophy department. These courses must be numbered above 110, but not including Teaching Methods ( PHIL 239 Teaching Methods in Philosophy) or affiliated courses. Units of Individual Directed Reading are normally not to be counted toward this 49-unit requirement unless there is special permission from the student's advisor and the Director of Graduate Studies.
Prior to candidacy, at least 3 units of work must be taken with each of four Stanford faculty members.

Writing Requirement: Second Year Paper

The second year paper should demonstrate good scholarship and argumentative rigor, and be a polished piece of writing approximately 8000 words in length. The second year paper need not bear any specific relationship to the dissertation. It may be a version of a prospective dissertation chapter, but this is not required. The final version must be turned in on the last class of the Second Year Paper Development Seminar in Summer Quarter of the second year. Extensions of this deadline require the consent of the instructor of the Second Year Paper Development Seminar and the Director of Graduate Studies and are only granted in exceptional cases (e.g., documented illness, family crisis). The final paper is read by a committee of two faculty members and it is an important consideration in the department’s decision on the student’s candidacy.

Teaching Assistancy

A minimum of five quarters of teaching assistancy are required for the Ph.D. Normally one of these quarters is as a teaching assistant for the Philosophy Department's Writing in the Major course, PHIL 80 Mind, Matter, and Meaning. It is expected that students not teach in their first year and that they teach no more than two quarters in their second year. Students are required to take PHIL 239 Teaching Methods in Philosophy during Spring Quarter of their first year and during Autumn Quarter of their second year. Teaching is an important part of students’ preparation to be professional philosophers.

Review at the End of the Second Year for Advancement to Candidacy

The faculty's review of each student includes a review of the student's record, an assessment of the second year paper, and an assessment of the student's preparation for work in her/his intended area of specialization, as well as recommendations of additional preparation, if necessary.

To continue in the Ph.D. program, each student must apply for candidacy at the beginning of the sixth academic quarter, normally the Spring Quarter of the student's second year. Students may be approved for or denied candidacy by the end of that quarter by the department. In some cases, where there are only one or two outstanding deficiencies, the department may defer the candidacy decision and require the student to re-apply for candidacy in a subsequent quarter. In such cases, definite conditions for the candidacy re-application must be specified, and the student must work with the advisor and the DGS to meet those conditions in a timely fashion. A failure to maintain timely progress in satisfying the specified conditions constitutes grounds for withholding travel and discretionary funds and for a denial of advancement to candidacy.

Writing Seminar : In the Summer Quarter after the second year, students are required to attend the Second Year Paper Development Seminar. The seminar is intended to help students complete their second year papers.
Upon completion of the summer writing seminar, students must sign up for independent study credit, PHIL 240 Individual Work for Graduate Students, with their respective advisors each quarter. A plan at the beginning, and a report at the end, of each quarter must be signed by both student and advisor and submitted to the graduate administrator for inclusion in the student's file. This is the process every quarter until the completion of the departmental oral.
In Autumn and Winter quarters of the third year, students register in and satisfactorily complete PHIL 301 Dissertation Development Proseminar. Students meet to present their work in progress and discuss their thesis project. Participation in these seminars is required.
During the third and fourth years in the program, a student should complete at least three graduate-level courses/seminars, at least two of them in philosophy (a course outside philosophy can be approved by the advisor), and at least two of them in the third year. The three seminars can be taken credit/no-credit for reduced (2) units. Courses required for candidacy are not counted toward satisfaction of this requirement. This light load of courses allows students to deepen their philosophical training while keeping time free for thesis research.

Dissertation Work and Defense

The third and following years are devoted to dissertation work. The few requirements in this segment of the program are milestones to encourage students and advisors to ensure that the project is on track.

Dissertation Proposal— By Spring Quarter of the third year, students should have selected a dissertation topic and committee. A proposal sketching the topic, status, and plan for the thesis project, as well as an annotated bibliography or literature review indicating familiarity with the relevant literature, must be received by the committee one week before the meeting on graduate student progress late in Spring Quarter. The dissertation proposal and the reading committee's report on it will constitute a substantial portion of the third year review.
Departmental Oral— During Autumn Quarter of the fourth year, students take an oral examination based on at least 30 pages of written work, in addition to the proposal. The aim of the exam is to help the student arrive at an acceptable plan for the dissertation and to make sure that student, thesis topic, and advisors make a reasonable fit. It is an important chance for the student to clarify their goals and intentions with the entire committee present.
Fourth-Year Colloquium— No later than Spring Quarter of the fourth year, students present a research paper in a 60-minute seminar open to the entire department. This paper should be on an aspect of the student's dissertation research. This is an opportunity for the student to make their work known to the wider department, and to explain their ideas to a general philosophical audience.
University Oral Exam— Ph.D. students must submit a completed draft of the dissertation to the reading committee at least one month before the student expects to defend the thesis in the University oral exam. If the student is given consent to go forward, the University oral can take place approximately two weeks later. A portion of the exam consists of a student presentation based on the dissertation and is open to the public. A closed question period follows. If the draft is ready by Autumn Quarter of the fourth year, the student may request that the University oral count as the department oral.

Below are yearly lists of courses which the faculty have approved to fulfill distribution requirements in these areas: value theory (including ethics, aesthetics, political philosophy, social philosophy, philosophy of law); language; mind and action; metaphysics and epistemology (including metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of science); logic; ancient philosophy; modern philosophy.

The most up-to-date requirements are listed in t he Bulletin .

Ph.D. Minor in Philosophy

To obtain a Ph.D. minor in Philosophy, students must follow these procedures:

Consult with the Director of Graduate Study to establish eligibility, and select a suitable advisor .
30 units of courses in the Department of Philosophy with a letter grade of 'B-' or better in each course. No more than 3 units of directed reading may be counted in the 30-unit requirement.
Philosophy of science
Ethics, value theory, and moral and political philosophy
Metaphysics and epistemology
Language, mind and action
History of philosophy
Two additional courses numbered over 199 to be taken in one of those (b) six areas.
A faculty member from the Department of Philosophy (usually the student's advisor) serves on the student's doctoral oral examination committee and may request that up to one third of this examination be devoted to the minor subject.
Paperwork for the minor must be submitted to the department office before beginning the program.

Interdisciplinary Study

The department supports interdisciplinary study. Courses in Stanford's other departments and programs may be counted towards the degree, and course requirements in Philosophy are designed to allow students considerable freedom in taking such courses. Dissertation committees may include members from other departments. Where special needs arise, the department is committed to making it possible for students to obtain a philosophical education and to meet their interdisciplinary goals. Students are advised to consult their advisors and the department's student services office for assistance.

Graduate Program in Cognitive Science

Philosophy participates with the departments of Computer Science, Linguistics, and Psychology in an interdisciplinary program in Cognitive Science. It is intended to provide an interdisciplinary education, as well as a deeper concentration in philosophy, and is open to doctoral students. Students who complete the requirements within Philosophy and the Cognitive Science requirements receive a special designation in Cognitive Science along with the Ph.D. in Philosophy. To receive this field designation, students must complete 30 units of approved courses, 18 of which must be taken in two disciplines outside of philosophy. The list of approved courses can be obtained from the Cognitive Science program located in the Department of Psychology.

Special Track in Philosophy and Symbolic Systems

Students interested in interdisciplinary work relating philosophy to artificial intelligence, cognitive science, computer science, linguistics, or logic may pursue a degree in this program.

Prerequisites—Admitted students should have covered the equivalent of the core of the undergraduate Symbolic Systems Program requirements as described in the " Symbolic Systems " section of the Stanford Bulletin, including courses in artificial intelligence (AI), cognitive science, linguistics, logic, and philosophy. The graduate program is designed with this background in mind. Students missing part of this background may need additional course work. In addition to the required course work listed in the bulletin, the Ph.D. requirements are the same as for the regular program, with the exception that one course in value theory and one course in history may be omitted.

Joint Program in Ancient Philosophy

This program is jointly administered by the Departments of Classics and Philosophy and is overseen by a joint committee composed of members of both departments:

Christopher Bobonich , Philosophy (Ancient Greek Philosophy, Ethics)
Alan Code , Philosophy, Philosophy (Ancient Greek Philosophy, Metaphysics)
Reviel Netz , Classics (History of Greek and Pre-Modern Mathematics)
Andrea Nightingale , Classics, (Greek and Roman Philosophy and Literature)
Josh Ober , Classics and Political Science (Greek Political Thought, Democratic Theory)

It provides students with the training, specialist skills, and knowledge needed for research and teaching in ancient philosophy while producing scholars who are fully trained as either philosophers with a strong specialization in ancient languages and philology, or classicists with a concentration in philosophy.

Students are admitted to the program by either department. Graduate students admitted by the Philosophy department receive their Ph.D. from the Philosophy department; those admitted by the Classics department receive their Ph.D. from the Classics department. For Philosophy graduate students, this program provides training in classical languages, literature, culture, and history. For Classics graduate students, this program provides training in the history of philosophy and in contemporary philosophy.

Each student in the program is advised by a committee consisting of one professor in each department.

Requirements for Philosophy Graduate Students: These are the same as the proficiency requirements for the Ph.D. in Philosophy.

One year of Greek is a requirement for admission to the program. If students have had a year of Latin, they are required to take 3 courses in second- or third-year Greek or Latin, at least one of which must be in Latin. If they have not had a year of Latin, they are then required to complete a year of Latin, and take two courses in second- or third-year Greek or Latin.

Students are also required to take at least three courses in ancient philosophy at the 200 level or above, one of which must be in the Classics department and two of which must be in the Philosophy department.

Ph.D. Subplan in History and Philosophy of Science

Graduate students in the Philosophy Ph.D. program may pursue a Ph.D. subplan in History and Philosophy of Science. The subplan is declared in Axess and subplan designations appear on the official transcript, but are not printed on the diploma.

1. Attendance at the HPS colloquium series. 2. Philosophy of Science courses. Select one of the following:

PHIL 263 Significant Figures in Philosophy of Science: Einstein
PHIL 264: Central Topics in the Philosophy of Science: Theory and Evidence
PHIL 264A: Central Topics in Philosophy of Science: Causation
PHIL 265: Philosophy of Physics: Space and Time
PHIL 265C: Philosophy of Physics: Probability and Relativity
PHIL 266: Probability: Ten Great Ideas About Chance
PHIL 267A: Philosophy of Biology
PHIL 267B: Philosophy, Biology, and Behavior

3. One elective seminar in the history of science. 4. One elective seminar (in addition to the course satisfying requirement 2) in philosophy of science.

The PhD program provide 5 years of financial support . We also try to provide support for our sixth year students and beyond though we cannot guarantee such support. In addition to covering tuition, providing a stipend, and covering Stanford's health insurance, we provide additional funds for books, computer equipment, and conference travel expenses. Some of the financial support is provided through requiring you to teach; however, our teaching requirement is quite low and we believe that this is a significant advantage of our program.

Stanford Support Programs

Additional support, such as advances, medical and emergency grants for Grad Students are available through the Financial Aid Office. The University has created the following programs specifically for graduate students dealing with challenging financial situations.

Graduate Financial Aid homepage :

https://financialaid.stanford.edu/grad/funding/

Cash Advance: https://sfs.stanford.edu/gradcashadvance

Emergency grant-in-aid : https://financialaid.stanford.edu/pdf/emergencygrant-in-aid.pdf, family grants: https://financialaid.stanford.edu/pdf/gradfamilygrant2021.pdf, housing loans: https://financialaid.stanford.edu/loans/other/gradhousing.html, program characteristics.

Our program is well known for its small size, streamlined teaching requirements, and low average time to degree.

The program regulations are designed to efficiently provide students with a broad base in their first two years. In the third year students transition to working on their dissertations. During the summer prior to the third year, students are required to attend a dissertation development seminar. This seminar introduces students to what is involved in writing a dissertation. During the third year the course load drops to just under one course per quarter.

The rest of the time is spent working closely with a faculty member, or a couple of faculty members, on the student's area of research interest. The goal of the third year is that this process of intensive research and one-on-one interaction will generate a topic and proposal for the dissertation. During the fourth and fifth year the student is not required to take any courses and he or she focusses exclusively on research and writing on the dissertation.

Stanford University

Being a part of Stanford University means that students have access to one of the premier education institutions in the world. Stanford is replete with top departments in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. In addition, our professional schools, such as the Stanford Law School , are among the best. The range of research in a variety of areas, many of which touch on or relate to philosophical issues, is simply astounding. Students have the freedom to take courses across the university. Graduate students also regularly earn joint degrees with other programs.

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As a PhD student in the Harvard philosophy program, you’ll have the opportunity to develop your ideas, knowledge, and abilities. You'll work with other doctoral students, our faculty, and visiting scholars, all in a stimulating and supportive environment. The program has strengths across a broad range of topics and areas, so you'll be able to pursue your interests wherever they may lead, especially in moral and political philosophy, aesthetics, epistemology, philosophy of logic, philosophy of language, the history of analytic philosophy, ancient philosophy, Immanuel Kant, and Ludwig Wittgenstein. In addition, students can pursue joint degrees with classics, Harvard Law School, and in Indian philosophy.

Incoming cohorts consist of five to eight students per year. You will have substantial access to our renowned faculty and all the resources that Harvard makes available. This relatively small size also gives students a sense of intellectual community.

The curriculum is structured to help you make your way towards a dissertation: graduate-level coursework, a second-year research paper, a prospectus to help you identify a dissertation topic, and then the dissertation itself. Past dissertations in the department have addressed a broad range of topics: Aristotle, Kant, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau; contemporary moral and political philosophy; metaphysics; epistemology; and logic.

In addition to your research, you will also have the opportunity to develop your teaching skills in many different settings across the University.

You can find graduates of the PhD program in many universities. Some of our students have gone on to faculty positions at Yale University, Princeton University, Brown University, and Stanford University. Other graduates have gone on to diverse careers in, among others, the arts, the law, secondary education, and technology.

In addition to the standard PhD in philosophy, the department offers a PhD in classical philosophy in collaboration with the Department of the Classics and a coordinated JD/PhD program in conjunction with Harvard Law School.

Additional information on the graduate program is available from the Department of Philosophy and requirements for the degree are detailed in Policies .

Areas of Study

Philosophy | Classical Philosophy | Indian Philosophy

For information please consult the Department webpage on the graduate program overview .

Admissions Requirements

Please review admissions requirements and other information before applying. You can find degree program specific admissions requirements below and access additional guidance on applying from the Department of Philosophy .

Academic Background

Applicants to the program in Philosophy are required to have a solid undergraduate background in philosophy, indicating that they have a good grounding in the history of philosophy, as well as familiarity with contemporary work in ethics, epistemology and metaphysics, and logic.

Standardized Tests

GRE General: Optional

Writing Sample

A writing sample is required as part of the application and should be between 12 to 30 pages long. The sample must address a substantial philosophical problem, whether it is an evaluation or presentation of an argument, or a serious attempt to interpret a difficult text. The upload of the writing sample should be formatted for 8.5-inch x 11-inch paper, 1-inch margins, with double-spaced text in a common 12-point font, such as Times New Roman.

Applicants seeking admission to the coordinated JD/PhD program must apply to and be separately admitted to Harvard Law School and the Department of Philosophy.

Theses & Dissertations

Theses & Dissertations for Philosophy

See list of Philosophy faculty

APPLICATION DEADLINE

Questions about the program.

Philosophy Ph.D. Program

Approved by Graduate Council and Graduate Division, Nov. 10, 2008. These requirements apply prospectively beginning with those admitted for Fall 2009. Students who entered the program under the old requirements may choose either to continue under that regime or to adopt the requirements below.

The Ph.D. program is designed to provide students with a broad knowledge of the field of philosophy, while giving them opportunities to work intensively on the issues that interest them the most. During the first stage of their graduate education, students meet the Department's course distribution requirements and prepare to take the qualifying examination. This examination assesses the student's strengths in areas chosen by the student in consultation with supervising faculty. After passing the exam, students advance to candidacy and begin writing the Ph.D. thesis. A detailed explanation of the requirements for the Ph.D. in Philosophy follows.

Before Advancing to Candidacy

During the first stage of the program, students are expected to acquire a broad background in philosophy and develop their philosophical abilities by fulfilling the following requirements:

First Year Seminar

A one-semester seminar for first-year graduate students only, conducted by two faculty members, on some central area of philosophy.

Logic Requirement

The Logic Requirement has two components:

Completion of Philosophy 12A or its equivalent, with a grade of B+ or better.
Completion of 140A or 140B with a grade of B+ or better. Courses with a comparable formal component including, in most cases, courses in the 140 series may satisfy this requirement, with the approval of the Graduate Advisor.

Both parts of the requirement may be fulfilled by successful completion of equivalent logic courses before arriving at Berkeley. Whether taken at Berkeley or elsewhere, courses taken in fulfillment of the logic requirement do not count towards the eight-course distribution requirement.

Course Distribution Requirement

Before taking the Qualifying Exam the student must complete eight courses at the 100- or 200-level completed with a grade of A- or higher. At least four of the eight courses must be graduate seminars. The eight courses must satisfy the following distribution requirements:

Two of the eight courses must be in the history of philosophy: one in ancient philosophy and one in modern philosophy. The courses may be on any individual philosopher or group of philosophers drawn from the following lists:

Ancient: Plato, Aristotle
Modern: Descartes, Hobbes, Locke, Berkeley, Hume, Spinoza, Leibniz, Kant, Hegel

Four of the eight courses must be in the following areas, with at least one course from each area:

Area 1: Philosophical logic, philosophy of language, philosophy of science, and philosophy of mathematics.
Area 2: Metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of mind, and philosophy of action
Area 3: Ethics, political, social and legal philosophy, and aesthetics

A seventh course may be any Philosophy course in the 100 or 200 series except for 100, 195-199, 200, 250, 251 and 299.

An eighth course may be either any Philosophy course as specified above or a course from another Department which has been approved by the Graduate Advisor.

In exceptional cases, students may, at the discretion of the Graduate Advisor, meet one distribution requirement by presenting work done as a graduate student elsewhere: typically a graduate thesis or work done in a graduate-level course. Meeting a distribution requirement in this way will not count as meeting any part of the four-seminar requirement.

Language Requirement

Revised requirement approved April 4, 2022 by Graduate Council, for all graduate students who have not already passed the foreign language requirement.

Before taking the Qualifying Examination, the candidate must pass a departmental examination in a foreign language requiring the translation of 300 words in 90 minutes with the use of a dictionary. The language can be any foreign language containing a significant philosophical literature, provided that a faculty member qualified to administer the examination is available. An examination in an approved language may be waived upon approval of the Graduate Division if native ability in the language can be demonstrated through secondary school or university transcripts. A course sequence of four semesters (or six quarters), whether taken at UC or elsewhere, will be accepted in lieu of the language examination if the sequence was completed within four years of admission to Berkeley and the student earned an average grade of C or better.

The Qualifying Examination

Students should aim to take the qualifying examination by the end of the fifth enrolled semester and they must take it by the end of the sixth enrolled semester.

In order to take the examination the student must have fulfilled the department's course requirements and must have passed the language requirement.

The qualifying examination is administered by a committee of three faculty members from the department and one faculty member of another department. The members of this committee are nominated to the Graduate Division by the Graduate Advisor in consultation with the candidate.

Soon after assembling an examination committee, the candidate should, in consultation with this committee, write a 300-word description and compile a list of readings for each of three proposed topics for examination. Each topic should be centered on a major philosophical problem or question. Together the topics should reflect a balance of breadth and depth, and the Graduate Advisor must approve that they meet these criteria.

A week before the qualifying examination, the candidate should submit an overview essay of 1500-3000 words for each topic, which expands on the initial description. The essay should aim to lay out the central problem or question, to explain its importance, and to evaluate critically the attempts to resolve or answer it, with an eye to forming a view within, or about, the debate.

The qualifying examination itself will be a three-hour oral exam administered by the committee. The candidate's essays are meant to serve as a springboard for discussion in the exam. The purpose of the examination is to test the student's general mastery of philosophy. Students are expected to draw on the information, skills and understanding acquired in their graduate study and to demonstrate sufficient breadth and depth of philosophical comprehension and ability to provide a basis for proceeding toward a Ph.D.

If a student fails the qualifying examination, the examining committee may or may not recommend that a second examination be administered by the same committee. The second examination must be administered no sooner than three months and no later than six months following the first attempt. Failure on the second attempt will result in the student being automatically dismissed from the graduate program. (See Section F2.7 of the Guide to Graduate Policy .)

Students should advance to candidacy as soon as possible and they must do so no later than a year after passing the qualifying examination or the end of their sixth semester in the program, whichever comes first, to maintain satisfactory progress in the program. (An exception to the above policy will be made for those students who, having failed the qualifying exam in their sixth semester, may be granted the possibility to take it a second time in their seventh semester. In the case of a successful retake, the student must advance to candidacy by the end of the seventh semester.)

Before advancement to candidacy the student must constitute a dissertation committee consisting of two faculty members from the department and an outside faculty member from another department.

Prospectus Stage

In the semester after passing the qualifying examination the student must take two individual study courses of 4 units each with the two inside members of his or her dissertation committee for the purpose of preparing a dissertation prospectus.

The dissertation prospectus should be submitted both to the inside members of the committee and to the Graduate Advisor by the end of that semester. It should consist of about fifteen pages and outline plans for the dissertation. Alternatively, the prospectus may consist of parts of a possible chapter of the dissertation together with a short sketch of the dissertation project.

Following submission of the prospectus, the candidate will meet with the inside members of the committee for an informal discussion of the candidate's proposed research.

The Doctoral Completion Fellowship

The Doctoral Completion Fellowship (DCF) is a one-year fellowship available to graduate students who have advanced to candidacy and meet several additional conditions. Students are advised to review the eligibility requirements for the DCF .

Additional Requirements

Each student for the Ph.D. degree is expected to serve as a graduate student instructor for at least two semesters.

Dissertation seminar

Students in the first two years after declaring candidacy must register for the dissertation seminar (Philosophy 295) for at least one semester each year, during which they must present a piece of work in progress, and are expected to attend the seminar all year. (The seminar meets every other week.) All students working on dissertations are encouraged to attend the seminar.

Annual Meetings

At the end of each academic year, there will be a meeting of the student and both co-chairs of his or her dissertation committee to discuss the student’s progress over the year and his or her plans for the following year.

Doctor of Philosophy in Education

Ph.D. Commencement robing Martin West and Christopher Cleveland

Additional Information

Download the Doctoral Viewbook
Admissions & Aid

The Harvard Ph.D. in Education trains cutting-edge researchers who work across disciplines to generate knowledge and translate discoveries into transformative policy and practice.

Offered jointly by the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, the Ph.D. in Education provides you with full access to the extraordinary resources of Harvard University and prepares you to assume meaningful roles as university faculty, researchers, senior-level education leaders, and policymakers.

As a Ph.D. candidate, you will collaborate with scholars across all Harvard graduate schools on original interdisciplinary research. In the process, you will help forge new fields of inquiry that will impact the way we teach and learn. The program’s required coursework will develop your knowledge of education and your expertise in a range of quantitative and qualitative methods needed to conduct high-quality research. Guided by the goal of making a transformative impact on education research, policy, and practice, you will focus on independent research in various domains, including human development, learning and teaching, policy analysis and evaluation, institutions and society, and instructional practice.

Curriculum Information

The Ph.D. in Education requires five years of full-time study to complete. You will choose your individual coursework and design your original research in close consultation with your HGSE faculty adviser and dissertation committee. The requirements listed below include the three Ph.D. concentrations: Culture, Institutions, and Society; Education Policy and Program Evaluation; and Human Development, Learning and Teaching .

We invite you to review an example course list, which is provided in two formats — one as the full list by course number and one by broad course category . These lists are subject to modification.

Ph.D. Concentrations and Examples

Summary of Ph.D. Program

Doctoral Colloquia In year one and two you are required to attend. The colloquia convenes weekly and features presentations of work-in-progress and completed work by Harvard faculty, faculty and researchers from outside Harvard, and Harvard doctoral students. Ph.D. students present once in the colloquia over the course of their career.

Research Apprenticeship The Research Apprenticeship is designed to provide ongoing training and mentoring to develop your research skills throughout the entire program.

Teaching Fellowships The Teaching Fellowship is an opportunity to enhance students' teaching skills, promote learning consolidation, and provide opportunities to collaborate with faculty on pedagogical development.

Comprehensive Exams The Written Exam (year 2, spring) tests you on both general and concentration-specific knowledge. The Oral Exam (year 3, fall/winter) tests your command of your chosen field of study and your ability to design, develop, and implement an original research project.

Dissertation Based on your original research, the dissertation process consists of three parts: the Dissertation Proposal, the writing, and an oral defense before the members of your dissertation committee.

Culture, Institutions, and Society (CIS) Concentration

In CIS, you will examine the broader cultural, institutional, organizational, and social contexts relevant to education across the lifespan. What is the value and purpose of education? How do cultural, institutional, and social factors shape educational processes and outcomes? How effective are social movements and community action in education reform? How do we measure stratification and institutional inequality? In CIS, your work will be informed by theories and methods from sociology, history, political science, organizational behavior and management, philosophy, and anthropology. You can examine contexts as diverse as classrooms, families, neighborhoods, schools, colleges and universities, religious institutions, nonprofits, government agencies, and more.

Education Policy and Program Evaluation (EPPE) Concentration

In EPPE, you will research the design, implementation, and evaluation of education policy affecting early childhood, K–12, and postsecondary education in the U.S. and internationally. You will evaluate and assess individual programs and policies related to critical issues like access to education, teacher effectiveness, school finance, testing and accountability systems, school choice, financial aid, college enrollment and persistence, and more. Your work will be informed by theories and methods from economics, political science, public policy, and sociology, history, philosophy, and statistics. This concentration shares some themes with CIS, but your work with EPPE will focus on public policy and large-scale reforms.

Human Development, Learning and Teaching (HDLT) Concentration

In HDLT, you will work to advance the role of scientific research in education policy, reform, and practice. New discoveries in the science of learning and development — the integration of biological, cognitive, and social processes; the relationships between technology and learning; or the factors that influence individual variations in learning — are transforming the practice of teaching and learning in both formal and informal settings. Whether studying behavioral, cognitive, or social-emotional development in children or the design of learning technologies to maximize understanding, you will gain a strong background in human development, the science of learning, and sociocultural factors that explain variation in learning and developmental pathways. Your research will be informed by theories and methods from psychology, cognitive science, sociology and linguistics, philosophy, the biological sciences and mathematics, and organizational behavior.

Program Faculty

The most remarkable thing about the Ph.D. in Education is open access to faculty from all Harvard graduate and professional schools, including the Harvard Graduate School of Education, the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, the Harvard Kennedy School, the Harvard Law School, Harvard Medical School, and the Harvard School of Public Health. Learn about the full Ph.D. Faculty.

Jarvis R. Givens

Jarvis Givens studies the history of American education, African American history, and the relationship between race and power in schools.

Paul L. Harris

Paul Harris is interested in the early development of cognition, emotion, and imagination in children.

Meira Levinson

Meira Levinson is a normative political philosopher who works at the intersection of civic education, youth empowerment, racial justice, and educational ethics.

Luke W. Miratrix

Luke Miratrix is a statistician who explores how to best use modern statistical methods in applied social science contexts.

Eric Taylor

Eric Taylor studies the economics of education, with a particular interest in employer-employee interactions between schools and teachers hiring and firing decisions, job design, training, and performance evaluation.

Paola Uccelli

Paola Ucelli studies socio-cultural and individual differences in the language development of multilingual and monolingual students.

View Ph.D. Faculty

Dissertations.

The following is a complete listing of successful Ph.D. in Education dissertations to-date. Dissertations from November 2014 onward are publicly available in the Digital Access to Scholarship at Harvard (DASH) , the online repository for Harvard scholarship.

2022 Graduate Dissertations (265 KB pdf)
2021 Graduate Dissertations (177 KB pdf)
2020 Graduate Dissertations (121 KB pdf)
2019 Graduate Dissertations (68.3 KB pdf)

Student Directory

An opt-in listing of current Ph.D. students with information about their interests, research, personal web pages, and contact information:

Doctor of Philosophy in Education Student Directory

Introduce Yourself

Tell us about yourself so that we can tailor our communication to best fit your interests and provide you with relevant information about our programs, events, and other opportunities to connect with us.

Program Highlights

Explore examples of the Doctor of Philosophy in Education experience and the impact its community is making on the field:

Improving the Teacher Workforce

With her research work, doctoral marshal Mary Laski, Ph.D.'24, is trying to make teaching in K–12 schools more sustainable and attractive

Building The ‘Bridge’ Between Research and Practice

Marshal Doug Mosher, Ph.D.'24, reflects on his journey to the Ed. School and the lessons — musical and teaching — learned along the way

Utility Menu

Department Intranet

Program Overview

The Department of Philosophy offers programs covering a wide range of fields in philosophy. The department’s graduate program is primarily a PhD program. In addition to the standard PhD in Philosophy, the department offers a PhD in Classical Philosophy in collaboration with the Department of the Classics, a PhD in Indian Philosophy in collaboration with the Department of South Asian Studies, and a joint JD/PhD program in conjunction with the Harvard Law School. Below you will find a list of the requirements for each program. The department does not admit applicants who wish to study only for the master’s (AM) degree. The AM may be taken as a step toward the PhD after a minimum of two terms in residence.

PhD in Philosophy

Graduate advising.

The department’s arrangement for advising students is structured to correspond to four stages of a student’s progress toward the PhD. These stages include the first year, the second-year paper, reading and research toward a dissertation topic, and work on the dissertation.

The director of graduate studies is assigned as an advisor to all first-year students and continues to meet with all students at the beginning of each term and sign their study cards throughout their time in the program. Their advising role is particularly important during the coursework stage (generally through the second year), because they have principal responsibility for monitoring the student’s progress toward fulfilling the general requirements for the degree: the preliminary requirement, and the distribution requirement. In addition, each first-year student is assigned an informal faculty advisor.
At the end of the first year, students should arrange with a member of the faculty to supervise the student’s second-year paper. That faculty member will be the student’s advisor during the second year. If necessary, the director of graduate studies is available to assist a student in finding a suitable faculty member.
At the beginning of the third year, after the second year paper is completed, a student arranges for a faculty member to be their advisor during the process of exploring areas for a possible dissertation and formulating a topic and a prospectus. This advisor may be the same person as the second-year paper advisor but need not be. Normally, a student will continue with this advisor until the topical examination, but change is possible by arrangement among the parties involved.
When a prospectus is well along, the student should discuss the formation of a dissertation committee with the advisor, the director of graduate studies, and possible committee members. Normally, this committee has three members, two of whom must be Harvard faculty as members; however, the committee may consist of only two members at the time of the topical examination. Committees may have a fourth member, who may be, with permission of the DGS, a faculty member in another Harvard department or at another institution. This committee conducts the topical examination and, after a successful topical, will continue supervising the student’s work on the dissertation. Normally it conducts the dissertation defense when the dissertation is completed.
During work on the dissertation, change is possible by arrangement with the parties involved and with the approval of the director of graduate studies. At this stage, one member of the committee will be designated as the student’s advisor. The significance of this will vary as the supervision of dissertations is more collective in philosophy, for example, than in many other fields. In some cases, the advisor will be the principal supervisor, in others the role of the committee members will be close to equal and the choice of one advisor is a matter of convenience.

Preliminary Requirement

Candidates must pass at least twelve approved philosophy courses or seminars. The norm is that these course are completed during the first four terms in the department. Courses numbered 301 or above do not count toward this preliminary requirement, save that the two required terms of Philosophy 300, the First Year Colloquium, may be counted as two of the twelve. Independent Studies (Philosophy 305) may also be used to satisfy distribution requirements but not the preliminary requirement with the prior approval of the DGS. For a letter-graded course philosophy course to be considered satisfactory, the candidate’s grade in the course must be B or higher. The average grade for all letter-graded philosophy courses taken during the candidate’s time in the program must be at least B+.

Courses taken to meet the preliminary requirement must be approved in advance by the department’s director of graduate studies. Students must take and complete Philosophy 300a plus two letter-graded courses or seminars during their first term and Philosophy 300b plus three letter-graded courses or seminars more in their second term, thus completing five letter-graded courses during the first two terms of residence.

These courses, like the rest of the twelve, should be among those designated “For Undergraduates and Graduates” or “Primarily for Graduates” in the course catalogue. At least ten of the courses must be taught by members of the Department of Philosophy (including visiting and emeritus members). This requirement can be modified for students specializing in Classical or Indian Philosophy.

All graduate students must complete two semesters of the Pedagogy seminar, Philosophy 315hf. Normally this is done during a student's third year in the program, when students begin functioning as teaching fellows. Exceptions to taking 315hf in the third year must be approved in advance by the DGS.

Students who have done graduate work elsewhere may petition the DGS to obtain credit for up to three courses, which may be counted toward the preliminary requirement. If they are in philosophy (as would normally be the case), such courses will be regarded as equivalent to those taught by members of the department.

Distribution Requirement

This requirement, intended to ensure a broad background in philosophy, is met by completing eight distribution units of work, normally before the beginning of the fourth year of graduate study. A distribution unit may be fulfilled (i) by completing an approved course or seminar (which may also be counted toward the preliminary requirement), or (ii) by writing a paper under the guidance of a faculty member, with the approval of the director of graduate studies. In the latter case the work does not count toward the preliminary requirement.

The units are to be distributed as follows:

Contemporary Theoretical Philosophy: Three units in core areas of twentieth- and twenty-first century metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of science, philosophy of mind, philosophy of language, philosophy of mathematics, and the like.
Practical Philosophy: Two units in contemporary or historical ethics, political philosophy, aesthetics, and the like.
History of Philosophy: The distribution requirement in history is intended to assure that students have knowledge of the philosophical tradition out of which contemporary Anglo-American philosophy has grown, as well as an ability to work though texts whose philosophical presuppositions are different enough from those of contemporary Anglo-American philosophy that careful historical and philosophical analysis is required to bring them to light.

Three sorts of courses satisfy the requirement: A. Courses in ancient Greek, Roman, or medieval philosophy. B. Courses in early modern European philosophy up to and including Kant. C. Courses on the foundations of philosophical traditions other than contemporary Anglo-American philosophy. These might include courses on traditional South Asian or East Asian philosophy, 19th century Continental European philosophy, early 20th century work of Heidegger, and so on. A student must take three history courses to satisfy the requirement; at most one of these may be in practical philosophy. Save in the most exceptional circumstances (and with the approval of the DGS), at least one of these courses must be of category A and at least one must be of category B. Students should verify (with the DGS) in advance of taking a course to satisfy the requirement that the course will in fact satisfy it.

The First-Year Colloquium (Philosophy 300a and 300b) may not be used to fulfill any part of the distribution requirement. Philosophy 299hf, the second-year paper, may be used to fulfill a distribution requirement.

Logic Requirement

Candidates for the Ph.D. are expected to have mastered the fundamentals of logic and to have an understanding of the elements of logic’s metatheory. Normally, this requirement is satisfied by successfully completing one of the Department’s 100-level courses in logic: 140 (Introduction to Mathematical Logic), 144 (Logic and Philosophy), or 145 (Modal Logic). It can also be satisfied by taking an appropriate mathematics course (for example, Mathematics 143, 144a, or 145b). The requirement may also be satisfied by an examination set by the DGS in consultation with appropriate Department members or by serving as a TF in a Department logic course.

Second-Year Paper

Students are required at the end of their second year in residence to submit a paper whose length is between 7,500 and 12,000 words including footnotes.

The expectation is not that the second-year paper should constitute a kind of Master’s Thesis; a better model is that of a journal article: i.e., an essay that sets out a focused philosophical problem, articulates its significance, and makes a significant contribution rather than a mere intervention. Given this goal, the second-year paper may under no circumstances be over 12,000 words, and generally will be significantly shorter. Students must annotate the paper with an accurate word count.

By the end of the first year, students need to have a faculty advisor who will supervise the second year paper. Together the advisor and advisee will write a plan of study for the summer and the first term of the second year, and submit it to the DGS. This plan of study will specify a schedule for submitting work and receiving feedback, and will also specify a benchmark to be met before the beginning of the second semester.

A preliminary draft of the second-year paper is to be submitted by the end of the spring vacation of the second semester, and a final draft is due by June 1st. Under extraordinary circumstances and with the written approval of both advisor and the DGS, the final version of the paper may be submitted after June 1st, but no later than August 1st.

Once the second-year paper is submitted to the advisor, the advisor forwards the paper to the DGS, who selects a faculty member to act as the paper’s reader. The author, advisor, and reader meet in a timely manner to discuss the paper, after which the examiner in consultation with the advisor awards the paper a grade. This grade will be recorded as the student’s grade for their two semesters of 299hf.

Normally, a student is not allowed to participate in a dissertation workshop until they have submitted their second-year paper.

The Third Year

In a successful third year, graduate students do two things: they acquire pedagogical skills and confidence as teachers; they make enough progress on isolating a dissertation topic that they are able, at the end of that year or by the end of the first term of the fourth year, to write a prospectus and have a successful topical exam.

Normally, at the end of a student's second year, the student's 2YP advisor and the DGS consult and then assign a pre-prospective advisor to the student. The pre-prospectus advisor need not, and often will not, be someone who specializes in the area in which a student expects to write a dissertation. Rather, the advisor is someone with whom the student is comfortable discussing philosophy and who can advise about directions of research. In many cases the pre-prospectus advisor may be the 2YP advisor, since the student has formed a working relationship with that faculty member.

The student and pre-prospectus advisor should meet before the end of spring exams. The meeting's purpose is to discuss the student's general area(s) of interest for a dissertation and, if the student is ready, to devise a tentative list of articles or books which the student will read and reflect on over the next twelve months.

G3s meet with their pre-prospectus advisor in the first days of the fall term. The aim of this meeting is to give the student a manageable set of concrete tasks to complete toward settling on a prospectus topic. In this meeting, advisor and student should decide on: a collection of at least six articles or book chapters to discuss at meetings; a schedule for meetings during the fall (the norm being a meeting roughly every two weeks); the written work the student commits to doing in advance of each meeting. This work need not be elaborate --it might, for example, be a few pages of critical summary and discussion of the reading for the meeting.

Until a successful defense of a prospectus, students register of that section of Philosophy 333 associated with their pre-prospectus advisor.

The norm is that in the fall term of year 3 students do research in the area in which they expect to write so that they can fashion a fairly specific topic for the prospectus; spring term is then devoted to writing a prospectus. Students normally aim at having a prospectus and a topical before the beginning of classes in the fourth year; the expectation is that students have done a topical by the end of the first term of their fourth year.

Students who have completed their second year paper are required to enroll each term in one of the two dissertation workshops, Philosophy 311, Workshop in Moral and Political Philosophy or Philosophy 312, Workshop in Metaphysics and Epistemology. In an academic year in which a student is actively seeking post Ph.D. employment, they are not required to enroll in a workshop.

This a requirement for the Ph.D.; it is only in unusual personal circumstances that students may fail to enroll in a workshop. Permission not to enroll in a Workshop must be granted by the director of graduate studies. G3s are not required to present more than once a year in a workshop, and it is understood that their presentations may consist of such things as (constrained) literature reviews, overviews of the particular area in a sub-discipline, or drafts or presentations of a prospectus.

Prospectus and Topical Examination

When the prospectus is complete, a candidate must pass an oral topical examination on the prospectus. The examining committee consists of at least two Philosophy Department faculty members. If the topical examination is not passed, it must be taken again and passed by the beginning of the winter recess in the year immediately following. Normally students have a successful topical by the end of their fourth year in the program.

Requirements for a prospectus are set by a student's dissertation committee and may vary with committee membership. That said, in many cases a good default model for a prospectus will simply be a list of clear, straightforward answers to the following five questions: (1) What question(s) do you intend your dissertation to answer? (2) Why do you consider these questions to be important? (3) What is a good summary of what you consider to be the most important contributions to these questions in the literature? (4) Why, in your view, do these contributions leave more work to be done? (5) What is your tentative plan of attack (including a list of sources you anticipate using)? Think of your answers to these questions as building a case for why your dissertation project needs to be done , along with a sketch of how you in particular plan to do it. Finally, limit yourself to about 5000 words.

Although called an examination, a topical (which is approximately ninety minutes in length) is in fact a conference on the dissertation topic, not an occasion on which the candidate is expected to produce a complete outline of arguments and conclusions. The conference is intended to determine the acceptability of the topic on which the candidate wishes to write a dissertation, the candidate’s fitness to undertake such a dissertation, and the candidate’s command of relevant issues in related areas of philosophy. A dissertation on the proposed topic may be submitted only if the topical examination is passed.

Application to take the topical examination must be made to the director of graduate studies at least two weeks in advance. At the same time, the candidate must submit copies of a dissertation prospectus to the director of graduate studies and members of the student’s prospective committee.

Financial Support, Travel and Research Funding, and Teaching

Beyond tuition remission, Ph.D. students receive the following financial support from the Graduate School.

· A stipend for their first two years. During this period, students do not teach.

· Financial support via guaranteed teaching in the third and fourth year . During this period, students are hired as teaching fellows; the normal workload for a teaching fellow is two sections a term.

· A dissertation completion fellowship. This includes a full stipend for one academic year.

In addition, various university fellowships (for example: Term Time and Merit Fellowships, Fellowships at the Safra Center) are available on a competitive basis.

The Department also grants each Philosophy graduate student one academic term of stipend support through Philosophy Department Fellowships and also a total of $5500 in fellowships for professional development. For details see: Funding | Department of Philosophy (harvard.edu)

Dissertation and Dissertation Defense

Once the topical exam is passed, the examining committee (which must consist of at least two faculty members of the Philosophy Department) normally becomes the dissertation advisory committee. One member of the committee is the dissertation’s primary advisor (aka, the dissertation director). It is expected that a student will have a committee of at least three members within a few months of the defense; the committee must have three members at the time of the defense. It is possible, with the approval of the primary advisor and the DGS, to add a faculty member from another institution. Normally a dissertation committee has no more than four members; larger committees must be approved by primary advisor and the DGS.

The primary advisor has primary responsibility for supervision for the dissertation. The norm is that the student and the dissertation committee set out in advance how often students will meet with and receive feedback from advisors. The expectation is that the committee and the student will meet as a body once a term to discuss progress on the dissertation.

At least three months before a final defense of the dissertation can be scheduled, the candidate must submit a draft of the dissertation or at least a substantial part of it to the committee. Until this is done, a defense of the dissertation cannot be scheduled. Assuming the committee approves scheduling a defense, the candidate completes a draft and circulates it to the committee. While it is a matter for the committee and the candidate to decide, the expectation is that the complete draft of the dissertation which will be defended will be circulated to the committee at least three weeks before the date of the defense .

Dissertation defenses are public, and may be attended both by department members and other interested parties. They are normally two hours in length, and normally begin with a brief summary by the candidate of what the candidate has accomplished in the dissertation, followed by a conversation between the candidate and the committee. The purpose of this conversation is not so much to test the range and detail of the candidate’s knowledge as to judge the candidate’s skill in presenting and discussing matters considered in the dissertation as well as the candidate’s ability to meet friendly but searching criticism.

PhD in Classical Philosophy

The departments of the Classics and Philosophy collaborate in an interdisciplinary PhD program in Classical Philosophy for students registered in either department. Candidates whose major field is philosophy are expected to take the Proseminar for graduate students in the classics, as well as attend seminars or other courses in classics relevant to their interests. With the approval of the director of graduate studies, students in the Classical Philosophy program may be permitted to count an appropriate course in ancient philosophy toward the distribution requirement in metaphysics and epistemology and one (in addition to the one already required) toward the requirement in history of philosophy.

Language requirements:

Candidates who plan to write a dissertation in Classical Philosophy are expected to have learned at least one of the classical languages (Greek or Latin) before they are admitted. Depending upon the level of fluency they have reached before entering the program, they may be asked to take additional language or reading courses. If they have not previously studied the second language, they will be required to reach the level of one year of college coursework. This can be done either by taking courses or by passing a language examination. In addition, candidates will be expected to have acquired a reading knowledge of German sufficient for reading scholarly literature and to pass a departmental examination on a suitably chosen text. The rules and procedures for the dissertation will, in general, be those established for candidates in philosophy.

PhD in Indian Philosophy

The departments of Philosophy and South Asian Studies collaborate in an interdisciplinary PhD program in Indian Philosophy for students registered in either department. Candidates whose major field is Philosophy are expected to take advanced language courses in South Asian studies and pass AM qualifying examinations. Candidates whose major field is South Asian studies are expected to fulfill the requirements of students in Philosophy, including distribution and logic requirements. With the approval of the director of graduate studies, students in Indian Philosophy may be permitted to count appropriate course in advanced Sanskrit or Tibetan toward the distribution requirement in metaphysics or epistemology and one toward the requirement in history of philosophy.

Language Requirements:

Candidates who plan to write a dissertation in Indian Philosophy are expected to have learned at least one of the relevant classical languages (Sanskrit or Tibetan) before they are admitted to the program. Depending upon the level of fluency they have reached before entering the program, they may be asked to take additional language or reading courses. In addition, candidates will be expected to satisfy the specific language requirements of their home department. The rules and procedures for the dissertation will, in general, be those established for candidates in Philosophy.

For more information please see the PhD in Indian Philosophy section .

JD/PhD in Philosophy and Law

A coordinated JD/PhD in Philosophy and Law is available. Students wishing to obtain the coordinated degrees must be admitted separately to both programs. Students admitted for the coordinated degrees must begin either with the first full year of law school or the first two years of philosophy; after that they may alternate terms as they choose. The program in Law may be completed in five terms. The requirements for philosophy are the same as for regular philosophy graduate students. For more information please see the JD/PhD Coordinated Program section .

The Master of Arts (AM) in Philosophy

The Department does not admit students for degrees other than the PhD. Students who have been admitted for the PhD and who have completed all course requirements for the degree may apply to be awarded an AM in Philosophy.

Harvard PhD students from programs (such as African and African-American Studies) which require PhD students to take courses required for an AM in another program are not required to take the first year colloquium required of Philosophy PhDs. (Students from these programs who wish to the take the colloquium must consult with the DGS.) Students from these programs who have completed 10 philosophy courses which satisfy the course requirements for a PhD and who have satisfied the distribution requirements for the PhD may apply to be awarded an AM in Philosophy.

A student who is pursuing an ad hoc degree administered in part by the Philosophy Department may petition to receive a Master of Arts degree in Philosophy. To receive this degree the student must have taken a total of 10 courses in Philosophy at the level of 100 or higher. At least two of these courses must satisfy the graduate distribution requirement in metaphysics and epistemology, two must satisfy the practical philosophy distribution requirement, two the history distribution requirement, and one must be a logic course. All must be passed with a grade of B or better. Students may receive this degree only when the Department has voted to support their petition.

Secondary Field in Philosophy

Much work in philosophy speaks directly to one or more disciplines which have Harvard PhD programs --literature, physics, statistics, science, mathematics, linguistics, and economics, to name a few. A secondary field in Philosophy gives students from other disciplines an opportunity to step back and look at the big picture in their discipline, putting students from discipline X in a position to do "philosophy of X" as part of doing X, thereby helping them both to understand their field more deeply and to open a path to developing it in innovative ways.

Graduate students may apply to the Philosophy Department to do a secondary field after their first term as a graduate student at Harvard. Secondary field students normally begin the secondary field in the second or third semester at Harvard, normally taking one or two courses a semester until they have completed the secondary field requirements.

Applicants should contact the Philosophy DGS before applying to do a secondary field in Philosophy. Applications must include: a brief statement explaining what the applicant hopes to achieve with the secondary field, including a brief summary of the applicant's background in philosophy; a copy of the undergraduate transcript (this can be a copy sent from the student's home department at Harvard) and a brief letter from a Harvard faculty member of the student's home department discussing how a secondary field in philosophy would contribute to the student's work in the home department.

To complete a secondary field in philosophy, a student completes four courses in philosophy at the 100 level or higher with a grade of B+ or better. One course must be in the area of one of the Department's PhD distribution requirements: moral and political philosophy; metaphysics and epistemology; logic; history of philosophy. A second course must be in another of these areas. At least one course must be a graduate seminar. In principle, an independent study with a member of the Department may be used to complete the secondary field. A capstone project is not required. Courses are counted towards satisfying the secondary field requirements only when approved to do so by the Philosophy DGS.

A student completing a secondary field in philosophy is assigned an advisor from the Philosophy Department, normally the DGS.

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Philosophy, PhD

The Penn Philosophy Department has a long and distinguished history. Philosophy has been taught at the University since 1755, and Penn was among the first universities in the country to offer the PhD degree in Philosophy, in 1882. The Department has always prized breadth, and its members are prepared to supervise advanced research in metaphysics and epistemology, philosophy of mind, philosophy of science, logic, philosophy of language, ethics, social and political philosophy, philosophy of law, and the history of philosophy.

The Ph.D. program includes course work, a teaching requirement, a preliminary examination, and the preparation and defense of a dissertation. Required coursework includes two courses in contemporary epistemology and metaphysics (including philosophy of science, mind, language, and mathematics); two courses in value theory (ethics, political or legal philosophy, aesthetics); three courses in history of philosophy, and a logic requirement.

For more information: http://philosophy.sas.upenn.edu/graduate

View the University’s Academic Rules for PhD Programs .

Required Courses

The total course units required for graduation is 20.

Must include one course in ancient and one course in early modern through Kant.

One course unit must be a regularly offered Philosophy course.

The degree and major requirements displayed are intended as a guide for students entering in the Fall of 2023 and later. Students should consult with their academic program regarding final certifications and requirements for graduation.

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Doctor of Philosophy Program in Philosophy

The Department of Philosophy also offers a program leading to the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. The degree requires 72 points. The department requires that 44 points (the "basic points") be as specified below. A minimum of 36 of the 44 basic points must be taken in the NYU Department of Philosophy. Twenty-eight of the total 72 points may be in dissertation research, although the student may include other courses toward that total as well. Transfer credit is apportioned on a case-by-case basis and is normally restricted to courses taken in philosophy Ph.D. programs. Normally, credit for a maximum of 12 basic points is allowed for work done elsewhere. Except in unusual circumstances, transfer credit may not be used to satisfy the area distribution requirements described below under "Basic course work."

Coursework: The required 44 basic points consist of the following:

Proseminar, PHIL-GA 1000, (8 points). It includes frequent short writing assignments, and the mode of instruction emphasizes discussion rather than lecture. The topics are determined by the instructors but include basic texts and ideas in analytic philosophy.
Basic course work (28 points; typically seven 4-point courses) These seven courses are drawn from advanced introduction courses, intermediate-level courses, topics or advanced seminar courses, and research seminar courses. These must include at least one course in value theory (ethics, aesthetics, philosophy of law, or political philosophy); at least one course in metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of language, or philosophy of mind; and at least one course in the history of philosophy (ancient, medieval, modern, or 19th century). At least three of the courses must be outside value theory.
Two Associated Writing courses (8 points). There are two main forms that an Associated Writing course may take. In the first, most common form, the student works with a faculty member to develop and refine an already existing paper. (The paper is often, but not always, a paper written for a previous graduate seminar.) During the semester, the student submits drafts of the developing paper, discussing each draft with the instructor before moving on to the next draft. The aim is for students to receive individual mentoring in the craft of writing a professional-level philosophy paper; to have a chance to develop a paper more deeply and thoroughly than is typically possible in the more rushed context of a one-semester seminar; and to be provided with a formally structured opportunity to prepare papers for the third-year review. Although this is the paradigmatic form of an Associated Writing course, the student needn't always start with a preexisting paper. In some cases, an Associated Writing may take a form more akin to an "Independent Study," in which the student (with faculty guidance) reads up on an area of interest and writes a new paper from scratch. While this is sometimes a good option, students should be aware that to go this route is potentially to saddle themselves with extra work in a way that could slow their progress through the program. To go this route is also to forgo a formally structured opportunity to work on polishing an existing paper for the third-year review. It is expected that the student and faculty member will meet roughly every two weeks during the semester. Students needn't have prior acquaintance with a faculty member to ask him or her to supervise an Associated Writing. Under no circumstances may a student submit one and the same paper for credit in both a graduate seminar and an Associated Writing course. If an Associated Writing paper develops out of an existing seminar paper, as will often be the case, the expectation is that it will constitute a substantial development of that paper. An Associated Writing course may in some cases be used to fulfill a distribution requirement, but only if the course is done on the "Independent Study" model and permission is obtained in advance from the Director of Graduate Studies and the course instructor.

Third-Year Review: By the date one week prior to the first day of the fifth semester in the program, students must submit two papers (normally the product of courses in the first two years). To satisfy the requirement, papers should be substantial pieces of work of 15-30 pages in length and should demonstrate that the student is able to take his or her philosophical research and writing to the high level appropriate for writing a dissertation. Students should also be in good standing at the time of the review.

Thesis Prospectus: By the fifth week of their fifth term in the program, students must designate a prospectus advisor and report that designation to the Director of Graduate Studies. (The designation of a prospectus advisor takes place by this time regardless of whether the student has successfully completed the third-year review.) It is understood that the designation of "prospectus advisor" is provisional and subject to change depending on the evolving nature of the thesis project. The prospectus advisor's role is to guide the student through the prospectus-writing process; the prospectus advisor may or may not ultimately serve on the dissertation committee, though of course often he or she will.

By the tenth week of their sixth term in the program, students must submit a draft prospectus document to their prospectus advisor, copying the Director of Graduate Studies. It is hoped that this draft can serve as the final, or near-final, version of the prospectus and be defended by the end of the sixth term, but it is understood that this will not always be possible; to remain in good standing, however, the student must submit a draft, which may then serve as the basis for ongoing work and discussion. The prospectus document should be between five and a strict maximum of fifteen pages long. It should not be a philosophy paper, but rather a thesis plan that (1) clearly articulates an interesting philosophical problem in a way that (2) displays the student's knowledge of the problem's place in the space of philosophical ideas and, in particular, of the leading attempts to resolve the problem, and (3) gives as clear an indication as the student can give at this early stage of how he or she intends to organize the thesis, and of what he or she expects his or her contribution to be, that is, of what the thesis will add to the existing literature. (Students writing a thesis consisting of three linked papers should apply these guidelines to each of their topics. The prospectus document should still not exceed fifteen pages, however.)

No later than the fourteenth week of the sixth term in the program, each student must notify the Director of Graduate Studies of the composition of his or her full prospectus committee. The prospectus committee ordinarily consists of three, and no more than three, faculty members. The prospectus committee often becomes the dissertation committee, but this needn't always be the case and uncertainty about the ultimate composition of the dissertation committee should not stand in the way of the designation of the prospectus committee by the end of the sixth term. Dissertation committees also ordinarily consist of three, and no more than three, faculty members. Exceptions to this rule require special justification and must be approved by the Director of Graduate Studies.

To remain in good standing, students must complete the prospectus and pass the prospectus defense no later than the fourteenth week of their seventh term in the program. While the prospectus defense takes the form of an oral examination, its principal purpose is to reach an agreement with prospective future members of the student's thesis committee as to the shape and substance of the project. The thesis prospectus examination should satisfy the committee that the candidate can write a passing thesis meeting the description in the candidate's submitted prospectus.

Logic Requirement: Students should satisfy the department of their competence in the following: formalization of English sentences; derivations within a system of predicate logic; formal definition of truth and validity for a first-order language; basic metalogical tools, including the use-mention distinction, the concept of rigor, and proof and definition by mathematical induction; statement and proof of basic metalogical results, including the deduction theorem, soundness and completeness for sentential and predicate logic, and completeness for predicate logic. The Director of Graduate Studies will count the student as having passed the requirement when presented with appropriate evidence (e.g., of a pass in a relevant course at NYU or elsewhere).

Thesis and Oral Examination: The dissertation can consist of a monograph or, alternatively, of three outstanding papers. The department envisions that, in most cases, the dissertation will grow out of work done for the topics or advanced seminar and Associated Writing courses and that there will be no sharp distinction between years of course work and years of dissertation writing. Students who entered in the year 2010 or later are expected to complete all degree requirements, including the dissertation, within six years (or five if the student elects not to participate in the teaching program).

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Digital Commons @ USF > College of Arts and Sciences > Philosophy > Theses and Dissertations

Philosophy Theses and Dissertations

Theses/dissertations from 2023 2023.

Karl Marx on Human Flourishing and Proletarian Ethics , Sam Badger

The Ontological Grounds of Reason: Psychologism, Logicism, and Hermeneutic Phenomenology , Stanford L. Howdyshell

Theses/Dissertations from 2022 2022

Interdisciplinary Communication by Plausible Analogies: the Case of Buddhism and Artificial Intelligence , Michael Cooper

Heidegger and the Origin of Authenticity , John J. Preston

Theses/Dissertations from 2021 2021

Hegel and Schelling: The Emptiness of Emptiness and the Love of the Divine , Sean B. Gleason

Nietzsche on Criminality , Laura N. McAllister

Learning to be Human: Ren 仁, Modernity, and the Philosophers of China's Hundred Days' Reform , Lucien Mathot Monson

Nietzsche and Eternal Recurrence: Methods, Archives, History, and Genesis , William A. B. Parkhurst

Theses/Dissertations from 2020 2020

Orders of Normativity: Nietzsche, Science and Agency , Shane C. Callahan

Humanistic Climate Philosophy: Erich Fromm Revisited , Nicholas Dovellos

This, or Something like It: Socrates and the Problem of Authority , Simon Dutton

Climate Change and Liberation in Latin America , Ernesto O. Hernández

Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa as Expressions of Shame in a Post-Feminist , Emily Kearns

Nostalgia and (In)authentic Community: A Bataillean Answer to the Heidegger Controversy , Patrick Miller

Cultivating Virtue: A Thomistic Perspective on the Relationship Between Moral Motivation and Skill , Ashley Potts

Identity, Breakdown, and the Production of Knowledge: Intersectionality, Phenomenology, and the Project of Post-Marxist Standpoint Theory , Zachary James Purdue

Theses/Dissertations from 2019 2019

The Efficacy of Comedy , Mark Anthony Castricone

William of Ockham's Divine Command Theory , Matthew Dee

Heidegger's Will to Power and the Problem of Nietzsche's Nihilism , Megan Flocken

Abelard's Affective Intentionalism , Lillian M. King

Anton Wilhelm Amo's Philosophy and Reception: from the Origins through the Encyclopédie , Dwight Kenneth Lewis Jr.

"The Thought that we Hate": Regulating Race-Related Speech on College Campuses , Michael McGowan

A Historical Approach to Understanding Explanatory Proofs Based on Mathematical Practices , Erika Oshiro

From Meaningful Work to Good Work: Reexamining the Moral Foundation of the Calling Orientation , Garrett W. Potts

Reasoning of the Highest Leibniz and the Moral Quality of Reason , Ryan Quandt

Fear, Death, and Being-a-problem: Understanding and Critiquing Racial Discourse with Heidegger’s Being and Time , Jesús H. Ramírez

The Role of Skepticism in Early Modern Philosophy: A Critique of Popkin's "Sceptical Crisis" and a Study of Descartes and Hume , Raman Sachdev

How the Heart Became Muscle: From René Descartes to Nicholas Steno , Alex Benjamin Shillito

Autonomy, Suffering, and the Practice of Medicine: A Relational Approach , Michael A. Stanfield

The Case for the Green Kant: A Defense and Application of a Kantian Approach to Environmental Ethics , Zachary T. Vereb

Theses/Dissertations from 2018 2018

Augustine's Confessiones : The Battle between Two Conversions , Robert Hunter Craig

The Strategic Naturalism of Sandra Harding's Feminist Standpoint Epistemology: A Path Toward Epistemic Progress , Dahlia Guzman

Hume on the Doctrine of Infinite Divisibility: A Matter of Clarity and Absurdity , Wilson H. Underkuffler

Climate Change: Aristotelian Virtue Theory, the Aidōs Response and Proper Primility , John W. Voelpel

The Fate of Kantian Freedom: the Kant-Reinhold Controversy , John Walsh

Time, Tense, and Ontology: Prolegomena to the Metaphysics of Tense, the Phenomenology of Temporality, and the Ontology of Time , Justin Brandt Wisniewski

Theses/Dissertations from 2017 2017

A Phenomenological Approach to Clinical Empathy: Rethinking Empathy Within its Intersubjective and Affective Contexts , Carter Hardy

From Object to Other: Models of Sociality after Idealism in Gadamer, Levinas, Rosenzweig, and Bonhoeffer , Christopher J. King

Humanitarian Military Intervention: A Failed Paradigm , Faruk Rahmanovic

Active Suffering: An Examination of Spinoza's Approach to Tristita , Kathleen Ketring Schenk

Cartesian Method and Experiment , Aaron Spink

An Examination of John Burton’s Method of Conflict Resolution and Its Applicability to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict , John Kenneth Steinmeyer

Speaking of the Self: Theorizing the Dialogical Dimensions of Ethical Agency , Bradley S. Warfield

Changing Changelessness: On the Genesis and Development of the Doctrine of Divine Immutability in the Ancient and Hellenic Period , Milton Wilcox

Theses/Dissertations from 2016 2016

The Statue that Houses the Temple: A Phenomenological Investigation of Western Embodiment Towards the Making of Heidegger's Missing Connection with the Greeks , Michael Arvanitopoulos

An Exploratory Analysis of Media Reporting of Police Involved Shootings in Florida , John L. Brown

Divine Temporality: Bonhoeffer's Theological Appropriation of Heidegger's Existential Analytic of Dasein , Nicholas Byle

Stoicism in Descartes, Pascal, and Spinoza: Examining Neostoicism’s Influence in the Seventeenth Century , Daniel Collette

Phenomenology and the Crisis of Contemporary Psychiatry: Contingency, Naturalism, and Classification , Anthony Vincent Fernandez

A Critique of Charitable Consciousness , Chioke Ianson

writing/trauma , Natasha Noel Liebig

Leibniz's More Fundamental Ontology: from Overshadowed Individuals to Metaphysical Atoms , Marin Lucio Mare

Violence and Disagreement: From the Commonsense View to Political Kinds of Violence and Violent Nonviolence , Gregory Richard Mccreery

Kant's Just War Theory , Steven Charles Starke

A Feminist Contestation of Ableist Assumptions: Implications for Biomedical Ethics, Disability Theory, and Phenomenology , Christine Marie Wieseler

Theses/Dissertations from 2015 2015

Heidegger and the Problem of Modern Moral Philosophy , Megan Emily Altman

The Encultured Mind: From Cognitive Science to Social Epistemology , David Alexander Eck

Weakness of Will: An Inquiry on Value , Michael Funke

Cogs in a Cosmic Machine: A Defense of Free Will Skepticism and its Ethical Implications , Sacha Greer

Thinking Nature, "Pierre Maupertuis and the Charge of Error Against Fermat and Leibniz" , Richard Samuel Lamborn

John Duns Scotus’s Metaphysics of Goodness: Adventures in 13th-Century Metaethics , Jeffrey W. Steele

A Gadamerian Analysis of Roman Catholic Hermeneutics: A Diachronic Analysis of Interpretations of Romans 1:17-2:17 , Steven Floyd Surrency

A Natural Case for Realism: Processes, Structures, and Laws , Andrew Michael Winters

Theses/Dissertations from 2014 2014

Leibniz's Theodicies , Joseph Michael Anderson

Aeschynē in Aristotle's Conception of Human Nature , Melissa Marie Coakley

Ressentiment, Violence, and Colonialism , Jose A. Haro

It's About Time: Dynamics of Inflationary Cosmology as the Source of the Asymmetry of Time , Emre Keskin

Time Wounds All Heels: Human Nature and the Rationality of Just Behavior , Timothy Glenn Slattery

Theses/Dissertations from 2013 2013

Nietzsche and Heidegger on the Cartesian Atomism of Thought , Steven Burgess

Embodying Social Practice: Dynamically Co-Constituting Social Agency , Brian W. Dunst

Subject of Conscience: On the Relation between Freedom and Discrimination in the Thought of Heidegger, Foucault, and Butler , Aret Karademir

Climate, Neo-Spinozism, and the Ecological Worldview , Nancy M. Kettle

Eschatology in a Secular Age: An Examination of the Use of Eschatology in the Philosophies of Heidegger, Berdyaev and Blumenberg , John R. Lup, Jr.

Navigation and Immersion of the American Identity in a Foreign Culture to Emergence as a Culturally Relative Ambassador , Lee H. Rosen

Theses/Dissertations from 2012 2012

A Philosophical Analysis of Intellectual Property: In Defense of Instrumentalism , Michael A. Kanning

A Commentary On Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz's Discourse on Metaphysics #19 , Richard Lamborn Samuel Lamborn

Sellars in Context: An Analysis of Wilfrid Sellars's Early Works , Peter Jackson Olen

The New Materialism: Althusser, Badiou, and Zizek , Geoffrey Dennis Pfeifer

Structure and Agency: An Analysis of the Impact of Structure on Group Agents , Elizabeth Kaye Victor

Moral Friction, Moral Phenomenology, and the Improviser , Benjamin Scott Young

Theses/Dissertations from 2011 2011

The Virtuoso Human: A Virtue Ethics Model Based on Care , Frederick Joseph Bennett

The Existential Compromise in the History of the Philosophy of Death , Adam Buben

Philosophical Precursors to the Radical Enlightenment: Vignettes on the Struggle Between Philosophy and Theology From the Greeks to Leibniz With Special Emphasis on Spinoza , Anthony John Desantis

The Problem of Evil in Augustine's Confessions , Edward Matusek

The Persistence of Casuistry: a Neo-premodernist Approach to Moral Reasoning , Richard Arthur Mercadante

Theses/Dissertations from 2010 2010

Dewey's Pragmatism and the Great Community , Philip Schuyler Bishop

Unamuno's Concept of the Tragic , Ernesto O. Hernandez

Rethinking Ethical Naturalism: The Implications of Developmental Systems Theory , Jared J.. Kinggard

From Husserl and the Neo-Kantians to Art: Heidegger's Realist Historicist Answer to the Problem of the Origin of Meaning , William H. Koch

Queering Cognition: Extended Minds and Sociotechnologically Hybridized Gender , Michele Merritt

Hydric Life: A Nietzschean Reading of Postcolonial Communication , Elena F. Ruiz-Aho

Descartes' Bête Machine, the Leibnizian Correction and Religious Influence , John Voelpel

Aretē and Physics: The Lesson of Plato's Timaeus , John R. Wolfe

Theses/Dissertations from 2009 2009

Praxis and Theōria : Heidegger’s “Violent” Interpretation , Megan E. Altman

On the Concept of Evil: An Analysis of Genocide and State Sovereignty , Jason J. Campbell

The Role of Trust in Judgment , Christophe Sage Hudspeth

Truth And Judgment , Jeremy J. Kelly

The concept of action and responsibility in Heidegger's early thought , Christian Hans Pedersen

Roots and Role of the Imagination in Kant: Imagination at the Core , Michael Thompson

Theses/Dissertations from 2008 2008

Peirce on the Passions: The Role of Instinct, Emotion, and Sentiment in Inquiry and Action , Robert J. Beeson

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Philosophy PhD thesis collection

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The PhD theses in this collection must be cited in line with the usual academic conventions. These articles are protected under full copyright law. You may download it for your own personal use only.

Recent Submissions

Objectification of women: new types and new measures , wisdom as responsible engagement:how to stop worrying and love epistemic goods , prescribing the mind: how norms, concepts, and language influence our understanding of mental disorder , humean constitutivism: a desire-based account of rational agency and the foundations of morality , predictive embodied concepts: an exploration of higher cognition within the predictive processing paradigm , impacts of childhood psychological maltreatment on adult mental health , epistemic fictionalism , thinking for the bound and dead: beyond man3 towards a new (truly) universal theory of human victory , function-first approach to doubt , abilities, freedom, and inputs: a time traveller's tale , concept is a container , analysing time-consciousness: a new account of the experienced present , emotion, perception, and relativism in vision , justice as a point of equipoise: an aristotelian approach to contemporary corporate ethics , asymmetric welfarism about meaning in life , mindreading in context , economic attitudes and individual difference: replication and extension , mindful love: the role of mindfulness in willingness to sacrifice in romantic relationships , embodied metacognition: how we feel our hearts to know our minds , temporal structure of the world .

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Doctor of Philosophy

A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) is an internationally recognised graduate research program that will enable you to become an independent researcher.

With the guidance of an advisory team, you'll undertake a research project, produce an 80,000-word thesis and complete an oral examination.

A PhD takes 3 to 4 years full-time. Under guidance, you'll develop advanced research skills and knowledge in your chosen field.

The thesis is a substantial document that makes an original contribution to your field of research. Your thesis may involve an alternate format .

You'll need a strong academic background and you may need to submit a research proposal and other documents to support your application. About 1,000 PhD candidates join UQ each year researching a wide range of topics.

Research at UQ

UQ is one of Australia’s top research-intensive universities. Our research makes an impact on the world's cultural, environmental, economic and social challenges.

Learn more about UQ's research

Program highlights

Be inspired and challenged to explore new ideas and develop greater understanding of complex questions with leading researchers.
Access premier resources including one of Australia’s largest libraries, with more than 2 million physical resources and 116,800+ journal subscriptions.
Foster and improve your skills through the Career Development Framework, created with industry.
Learn from researchers whose work addresses national and global cultural, environmental, economic and social challenges.

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CWTS Leiden Ranking 2023

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Academic Ranking of World Universities 2023

Supervision

You have to find and contact a thesis supervisor before you apply

This supervisor will support, guide and mentor you through your research, and can introduce you to professional networks that will start your career.

Find a supervisor

3-Minute Thesis

The showcase event for research candidates is the 3-Minute Thesis (3MT).

3MT is held each spring.

Learn more about the 3MT

A UQ HDR student presents her research on stage during the Three-Minute Thesis competition.

Career development

UQ offers a range of development opportunities via the Career Development Framework (CDF) to help you develop portable skills for any career or industry.

Learn more about the CDF

An HDR student sitting in an engineering laboratory.

Studying at UQ gave me the flexibility to expand my knowledge across different areas of science outside of my chosen specialty. Keeping my scientific and translational skills broad has allowed me to adapt to different environments and opportunities throughout my career.

Environmental scientists takes water sample from waterway.

Discover Postgraduate Conservation Science

Urban landscape from above with houses, trees and streets.

Discover Postgraduate Urban and Regional Planning

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UQ Career Pulse

Why choose UQ for your Bachelor of Arts?

4-minute read

Is clinical psychology a good career?

5-minute read

Meet the expert: exploring peace and conflict studies with Dr Melissa Johnston

Entry requirements, gpa equivalent.

Select where you studied and your qualification to see the GPA you need to be considered for this program.

Meeting the GPA requirement doesn’t guarantee admission.

Academic entry requirements

You have to prove you are prepared for PhD study. You do this by showing you:

have completed some research experience
have completed an approved university degree and
can meet the English language requirements.

Approved degrees

An approved degree needs to be:

in an area relevant to your proposed PhD project and
completed no more than 10 years ago.

You need one of the following approved degrees to apply for a PhD:

Master of Philosophy (or another research master’s degree); or
Bachelor’s degree from an approved university with at least honours class IIA or equivalent; or
Coursework master’s degree with an overall grade point average of 5.65 on the 7-point UQ scale which includes relevant research experience, approved by the dean; or
Postgraduate degree (at least one year full-time or equivalent) with an overall grade point average of 5 on the 7-point UQ scale, together with demonstrated research experience equivalent to honours class IIA will be considered on a case-by-case basis; or
Bachelor’s degree plus at least 2 years of relevant research experience , including research publications.

Research experience

You'll meet the requirements for admission into a PhD in terms of 'research preparedness' if you can provide evidence that you've planned and executed project work and/or a body of research with some independence.

To demonstrate this, we'll ask you to provide one of the following:

with completed courses that aim to develop research skills (minimum value of #1 unit e.g. 50 per cent of a #2 unit course), and/or
the completion of a supervised research project that includes an individually graded written report with a combined minimum course volume equal to #4 units at UQ.
Scholarly papers involving a substantial contribution as an author, appearing in recognised academic journals or in volumes published by recognised academic publishers.
Research or technical reports prepared for industry, government or business, which adhere to the broad conventions of academic publishing (i.e. contain an up-to-date review of relevant literature, a description of relevant research methods and an evaluation of results, etc.) and which identify you as a significant contributor.
A portfolio of published creative work together with published critical discussion of some or all of that work, or of a comparable body of work by others, and which demonstrates your development of a scholarly approach to creative work as research investigation.
Demonstrable industry or work experience where you can demonstrate that you have planned and executed a project, working with a high level of independence.

Student visas

International students who are accepted into full-time study in the Doctor of Philosophy are eligible to apply for an Australian Student visa (subclass 500).

This program has two CRICOS codes:

0100213 – Architecture, creative arts, education, health, information technology, management and commerce, mathematical sciences, social and cultural studies
0100214 – Agriculture and environmental studies, dentistry, engineering, human movement, medical studies, natural and physical sciences, pharmacy, psychology, veterinary science

Discuss your proposed project with us to determine which CRICOS code is most relevant for your visa application.

There are a number of requirements you must satisfy before a visa is granted, including the genuine temporary entrant (GTE) requirement.

Learn more about student visas

Additional entry requirements

Many departments will have additional entry requirements and may request documents to support your application, such as a research proposal. You should discuss these additional requirements with your potential thesis supervisor.

Additional application information

Minimum English language proficiency requirements apply, please refer to the English proficiency policy .

English language requirements

There are a few ways you can meet our English language requirements. If you sit a test, the following scores are needed for PhD admission:

Read our English language requirements

Scholarships

There are several types of PhD scholarship:

tuition fee scholarship : this covers the fees charged by UQ for PhD study
living stipend scholarship: this is a fortnightly payment (or stipend) to support your daily expenses
top-up scholarship: may be provided by external organisations, supervisors, or philanthropic donations. When awarded, they provide an additional payment on top of a living stipend scholarship. They cannot be held without a living stipend scholarship.

Each year, we award more than 600 scholarships to attract and support the highest quality higher degree by research applicants.

View all postgraduate research scholarships

University scholarships

UQ scholarships include:

Graduate School Scholarships
Graduate School Tuition Fees Scholarship
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Scholarships
Earmarked Scholarships
The Graduate School Scholarship

Other scholarships

Throughout the year we advertise a range of other research scholarships, including top-up scholarships, travel grants and external scholarships, including:

Westpac Future Leaders Scholarship

How to apply for a scholarship

You can apply for many scholarships using the same form as your PhD application. External scholarships might have different ways to apply.

Our Scholarships website explains how to apply for each scholarship. If you are applying for a non-UQ scholarship, outcome dates may vary.

Fees and costs

Tuition fees.

Your fees will vary according to your academic field, study load and whether you study internally or remotely.

Learn more about postgraduate research fees

Research costs

The department you enrol with will meet all necessary costs for your project, including:

resource and facility costs: at UQ, which may include other organisations in Australia or overseas
travel costs: to complete fieldwork, collect data, or to visit libraries or other repositories
coursework costs: for courses studied outside the department
relevant training: in particular methodologies or techniques.

How to apply

Before you apply, 1. check your eligibility.

Check your eligibility by reviewing the entry requirements for UQ's Higher Degrees by Research. If applying for a scholarship, check the scholarship's eligibility and important dates.

2. Approach a potential supervisor or find a project

You'll either need to find:

a supervisor in your field who will support your proposed project. Identify a researcher .
a project you can join that suits your interests. See available projects .

If you're choosing a researcher, you'll need to find one with relevant expertise and get agreement to support your PhD and project.

Many departments will require additional information to make a decision around your motivation, understanding, commitment, and financial support required.

They may request documents to support your application, such as a research proposal. You should discuss these additional requirements with your potential thesis supervisor.

3. Gather your documents

You will need to compile the necessary documents. We will accept scanned copies of original documents, but you will have to keep all original documents for the duration of your studies.

Upload all documents as PDFs and name your files like this: LASTNAME_firstname_document-name.pdf

If any of your documents is in a language other than English, you will need to send both the original document and an official translation.

Send the following documents with your application:

An academic CV assists us to determine your readiness to commence a higher degree by research. For the purposes of this application, your academic CV should be current (i.e. no more than 6 months old) and include information under the following headings:

Personal details

your full name
your contact details (phone number, email address, city and country of residence)
nationality
languages spoken and proficiency level for each
your ORCID ID or other research output identifier (such as Google Scholar) if you have one (see the ORCID ID and research identifiers information provided by UQ Library).

As the purpose of this academic CV is to determine your academic suitability for a higher degree by research program at UQ and your competitiveness against other applicants, we only require information that is of direct relevance to our decision-making processes. With this in mind, please do not include the following in your academic CV:

photographs/head shot
marital status
driver’s license
date of birth/age
hobbies and interests.

Educational qualifications and academic awards

List each of your formal educational qualifications in reverse chronological order (i.e. with the most recent formal educational qualification listed first). For each qualification, include:

the commencing and end dates (month and year) for the qualification
the full title of the qualification (e.g. Bachelor of Arts instead of B.A.)
the institution attended and the enrolling school/administrative unit
the city and country where the institution is located
your Grade Point Average (GPA) for the overall qualification
any academic achievement awards (e.g. Dean’s awards, subject prizes, University medals, thesis prizes etc.) received for the qualification
if a research thesis was part of the qualification, include the title and word length of your dissertation.

As part of your application, please submit academic transcripts and degree certificates for each educational qualification you list.

Please do not include:

high school qualifications
the individual subjects/courses undertaken throughout your qualifications or the grades awarded for these
training courses/professional development activities not resulting in a formal qualification.

Professional affiliations and memberships

List any professional/disciplinary associations or committees that you a member of and include:

the commencing and end date (in years) for the affiliation/membership
the name of the professional association or committee
your membership type (e.g. student member, affiliate member, full member etc.) or role (e.g. committee member, secretary, president etc.).

Employment history

List each of your previous employment roles in reverse chronological order (i.e. with the most recent/current employment listed first) and include:

the commencing and end dates (month and year) for the employment
the title of each position
the name of the employing organisation, the city, and country where you were based
your main duties or accountabilities in that role, providing detailed information on any research-related activities
any achievements during that role that are relevant to your proposed field of research .

Other research experience

List any voluntary, unpaid, or extra-curricular research-related projects or experiences you have undertaken (e.g. summer research projects, internships etc.) and include:

the commencing and end dates (month and year) of the experience
the name of the organisation, the city, and country where you were based

Research outputs

In reverse chronological order (i.e. the most recent output first) list your research outputs, including for example research published or accepted for publication, research reports, and research by creative practice.

If needed, use sub-headings to separate refereed journal articles, published conference proceedings, edited book chapters, books, creative works, industry reports, invited papers, patents, media commentary, conference presentations and posters, invited talks etc. If applicable, use additional sub-headings to indicate if outputs are published , accepted for publication (but not yet in print), or (submitted but) under review .

Do not include any outputs/publications that are ‘in preparation’ .

For all research outputs, include:

the output/publication reference using an official bibliographical style (such as Turabian/Chicago, APA, Harvard), including listing all authors in the order that they appear in the work with your name in bold
the Digital Object Identifier (DOI), PubMed Identifier (PMID), International Standard Book Number (ISBN) or URL where applicable
the standing of the journal or conference and the impact of the work (e.g. impact factors, citations and other metrics indicators)
relevant indicators of national or international significance
rejection rates for the outlet etc.
how much of the original research you were responsible for (i.e. what was your role in the conception and design of the project and how involved were you in the analysis and interpretation of the research data on which the publication is based?)
the extent to which you authored the paper.

Research grants and relevant awards

Include only those research grants and relevant awards that you have received at the time of making your application (i.e. do not list grants or awards that you applied for and did not receive or are awaiting a decision on). For each research grant/award, include:

the name of the granting/awarding body and the country in which they are based
the name of the grant/award
the year(s) in which the grant was active or the year in which the award was made
the amount of the research grant/award
if relevant (e.g. for research grants), the title of your application.

Applicants from creative and professional-based disciplines may also include non-research grants and awards related to their creative or professional practice.

Research achievements relative to opportunity (optional)

In recognition of the diverse personal and professional pathways that applicants have experienced, you are invited to provide information ( maximum 200 words ) to contextualise your research outputs and achievements, relative to the opportunities that you have had to participate in research-related activities.

This section of the CV is optional and should only be included if you believe there are factors relevant to your research achievements that you would like the selection panels to know. Examples of factors include (but are not limited to):

study/career disruptions due to illness, caregiving, natural disasters etc.
non-linear academic or career progression, or a change in career direction
reduced ability to take up research-related opportunities (e.g. attend conferences) due to caregiving responsibilities.

Academic referees

Please provide us with two referees who can comment on your academic work. For each referee, include their:

honorific and name
employing organisation and the city and country where they are located
contact details, including office address, telephone, fax and email (preferably an institutional, rather than private, email address)
an indication of the capacity in which you know this person (e.g. were they a lecturer or thesis supervisor, an employer, how long you’ve known them etc.).

If possible, please include at least one:

senior person (preferably your supervisor or the head of your organisational unit) closely associated with your current work, and
person who is not a member of your proposed advisory panel/supervisory team.

Formatting and document specifications

We recommend that you use the below formatting settings to improve the readability of your CV:

margins of at least 1.5 centimetres
single line spacing
no smaller than 12 point Times New Roman font (or equivalent)
left justify text (not full justify)
include your name and page number on each page
be consistent in your formatting and spelling throughout
limit the use of bold, underline, italics, and multiple font types.

Please proofread your CV carefully before uploading it to your application.

Save as a PDF and name your file: LASTNAME_firstname_CV.pdf

There is no page limit to your academic CV – it can be as long as required to include the information requested here.

Please include in your CV all the headings listed above – if you do not have any content to add for a particular heading please list ‘None to date’ under that heading .

An academic CV for employment purposes within Australia would not include the information requested here outlining your three most significant publications or your research achievements relative to opportunity. It would, however, include information about professional and service activities undertaken and may include a summary of your relevant research/teaching interest areas and skill sets – this information is not required in the CV you submit here for application to an HDR program.

This should show all study you have undertaken since secondary school, whether complete or incomplete, including the institution grading scale. The grading scale is often found on the final page or the reverse page; be sure to include all pages.

An academic transcript can also be called an:

academic record
diploma supplement
statement of learning
record of achievement.

A degree certificate is a legal document, imprinted with a university seal. It should state the name of your qualification and areas of study.

Include all degree certificates (testamurs) for post-secondary study with your application. If you studied in China, you must provide a:

award certificate and
graduate statement/certificate.

All applicants have to prove they can meet English language requirements . Any test scores have to be valid at your proposed commencement date.

Include a copy of the information page (with your photo) in your passport. This will verify your identity and ensure we can make offers correctly.

Include the contact details of two referees who will support your application. These referees will need to provide insight into your research experience.

We will contact your referees for a report, but you will need to enter their details into the application form.

Other documentation, originals or certified copies, may be required depending on your individual circumstances, for example:

evidence of change of name
proof of citizenship, if you are not a citizen of Australia or New Zealand by birth
evidence of your Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander status
previous research program information .

If you don't provide us with all documents it will take us longer to process your application. Your start date might then be delayed, or you might miss an admission or scholarship deadline.

4. Apply online

Once you have prepared your application and contacted a potential supervisor, use the online application form to apply. Your application can only be assessed once your referees have responded to us, and all outstanding documents and school/institute endorsements have been received.

Important dates

The academic year for research students is divided into four research quarters (RQ).

Candidates applying for a Student Visa or UQ scholarship may need to apply earlier. Make sure you check scholarship round application deadlines and outcome dates before applying.

The agreed start date will be included on your Confirmation of Enrolment.

Find out more about research quarter dates

The academic year for research students is divided into four research quarters (RQ). You can start a PhD in any quarter, as long as the Census Date hasn't passed.

Candidates applying for a UQ scholarship may need to apply earlier. Make sure you check scholarship round application deadlines and outcome dates before applying.

The agreed start date will be included on your offer of admission.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants

For support with applying – or if you have any questions about university life – get in touch with our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies Unit.

Contact the ATSIS Unit

Explore other programs

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Study Postgraduate

Phd in philosophy (2024 entry).

a student reads a philosophy book in the library

Course code

30 September 2024

3-4 years full-time; Up to 7 years part-time

Qualification

University of Warwick

Find out more about our Philosophy PhD.

The Philosophy PhD is a leading research programme, suiting students who thrive on independent study. You will undertake a substantial research project as part of an active research community, supervised by world-leading experts at the University of Warwick's Department of Philosophy.

Course overview

The Warwick PhD in Philosophy is aimed at outstanding students who wish to pursue advanced research in philosophy and prepare to become professional researchers in, and/or teachers of, philosophy.

As a PhD student, you will produce an 80,000 word thesis that can provide the basis for professional publication. You will contribute to the vibrant research environment in the department by taking part in work in progress seminars, and contributing to the activities of the department’s research centres . While many UK philosophy departments possess strength in analytic philosophy or continental philosophy, we are distinctive in having world-leading philosophers from both fields.

Teaching and learning

In addition to regular supervisions, in the first year you will also take our core PhD seminar, which engages you with a broad range of philosophical issues beyond your thesis topic that are central to different philosophical traditions. You will have the opportunity to undertake a range of professional development activities to support your research, your thesis writing, and your teaching skills.

Additionally, you are expected to attend any relevant postgraduate seminars, including modules on our taught MA programmes.

General entry requirements

Minimum requirements.

A Master’s level degree in Philosophy or a Master’s degree (or equivalent) with a significant Philosophy component; a strong research proposal; a sample of academic writing on a philosophical topic relevant to your research proposal around 2,500 words in length.

See our departmental guidance Link opens in a new window .

English language requirements

You can find out more about our English language requirements Link opens in a new window . This course requires the following:

IELTS overall score of 7.0, minimum component scores of two at 6.0/6.5 and the rest at 7.0 or above.

International qualifications

We welcome applications from students with other internationally recognised qualifications.

For more information, please visit the international entry requirements page Link opens in a new window .

Additional requirements

There are no additional entry requirements for this course.

Our research

The department has particular research strengths in:

Philosophy of Mind and Psychology
Epistemology
The Philosophy of Art and Literature
Moral and Political Philosophy
20th Century Continental Philosophy
Kant and 19th Century Post-Kantian Philosophy

Full details of our research interests are listed on the Philosophy web pages .

You can also read our general University research proposal guidance.

Find a supervisor

Please see our Philosophy 'How to Apply' web page Link opens in a new window for guidance on completing your application form.

Before completing your application we encourage you to make contact with the convenor of the programme to discuss your application.

Tuition fees

Tuition fees are payable for each year of your course at the start of the academic year, or at the start of your course, if later. Academic fees cover the cost of tuition, examinations and registration and some student amenities.

Find your research course fees

Fee Status Guidance

We carry out an initial fee status assessment based on the information you provide in your application. Students will be classified as Home or Overseas fee status. Your fee status determines tuition fees, and what financial support and scholarships may be available. If you receive an offer, your fee status will be clearly stated alongside the tuition fee information.

Do you need your fee classification to be reviewed?

If you believe that your fee status has been classified incorrectly, you can complete a fee status assessment questionnaire. Please follow the instructions in your offer information and provide the documents needed to reassess your status.

Find out more about how universities assess fee status

Additional course costs

As well as tuition fees and living expenses, some courses may require you to cover the cost of field trips or costs associated with travel abroad.

For departmental specific costs, please see the Modules tab on the course web page for the list of core and optional core modules with hyperlinks to our  Module Catalogue  (please visit the Department’s website if the Module Catalogue hyperlinks are not provided).

Associated costs can be found on the Study tab for each module listed in the Module Catalogue (please note most of the module content applies to 2022/23 year of study). Information about module department specific costs should be considered in conjunction with the more general costs below:

Core text books
Printer credits
Dissertation binding
Robe hire for your degree ceremony

Scholarships and bursaries

Scholarships and financial support

Find out about the different funding routes available, including; postgraduate loans, scholarships, fee awards and academic department bursaries.

Living costs

Find out more about the cost of living as a postgraduate student at the University of Warwick.

Philosophy at Warwick

Philosophy at Warwick is recognised for our support of diverse philosophical traditions, including both analytic and continental philosophy. We have particular strengths in:

Philosophy of Mind, Action, and Epistemology
Philosophy of Psychology
Philosophy of Literature and the Arts
Kant and Hegel
19th and 20th Century Post-Kantian (Continental) Philosophy, including Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, Husserl, Heidegger
Mathematical Logic

We also collaborate extensively with academics and practitioners in other subjects and have long-standing collaborations with researchers and practitioners across all faculties.

At Warwick, you’ll be part of an inclusive staff and student community. We provide a vibrant and friendly environment where our students have dedicated support to explore their passion for philosophy and develop their skills as researchers.

Find out more about us on our website. Link opens in a new window

Our Postgraduate courses

Continental Philosophy (MA)
Philosophy (MA)
Philosophy and Literature (PhD)
Philosophy and the Arts (MA)
Philosophy (MPhil)
Philosophy (PhD)

How to apply

The application process for courses that start in September and October 2024 will open on 2 October 2023.

For research courses that start in September and October 2024 the application deadline for students who require a visa to study in the UK is 2 August 2024. This should allow sufficient time to complete the admissions process and to obtain a visa to study in the UK.

How to apply for a postgraduate research course

After you’ve applied

Find out how we process your application.

Applicant Portal

Track your application and update your details.

Admissions statement

See Warwick’s postgraduate admissions policy.

Join a live chat

Ask questions and engage with Warwick.

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Postgraduate fairs.

Throughout the year we attend exhibitions and fairs online and in-person around the UK. These events give you the chance to explore our range of postgraduate courses, and find out what it’s like studying at Warwick. You’ll also be able to speak directly with our student recruitment team, who will be able to help answer your questions.

Join a live chat with our staff and students, who are here to answer your questions and help you learn more about postgraduate life at Warwick. You can join our general drop-in sessions or talk to your prospective department and student services.

Departmental events

Some academic departments hold events for specific postgraduate programmes, these are fantastic opportunities to learn more about Warwick and your chosen department and course.

See our online departmental events

Warwick Talk and Tours

A Warwick talk and tour lasts around two hours and consists of an overview presentation from one of our Recruitment Officers covering the key features, facilities and activities that make Warwick a leading institution. The talk is followed by a campus tour which is the perfect way to view campus, with a current student guiding you around the key areas on campus.

Connect with us

Learn more about Postgraduate study at the University of Warwick.

We may have revised the information on this page since publication. See the edits we have made and content history .

Why Warwick

Discover why Warwick is one of the best universities in the UK and renowned globally.

9th in the UK (The Guardian University Guide 2024) Link opens in a new window

67th in the world (QS World University Rankings 2024) Link opens in a new window

6th most targeted university by the UK's top 100 graduate employers Link opens in a new window

(The Graduate Market in 2024, High Fliers Research Ltd. Link opens in a new window )

About the information on this page

This information is applicable for 2024 entry. Given the interval between the publication of courses and enrolment, some of the information may change. It is important to check our website before you apply. Please read our terms and conditions to find out more.

King's College London

Philosophy research mphil/phd.

Key information

Joint PhDs available: The Department of Philosophy at King's is delighted to be able to offer t wo exciting options for joint-PhD study at either Humboldt University or the National University of Singapore.

The Philosophy Department at King’s is one of the largest research departments in the field in the UK. We offer close personal supervision to students in a wide variety of research areas, with particular strengths in the history of philosophy (analytic and continental, Greek and Roman, Medieval, Early Modern, 18th, 19 th , and 20 th century); philosophy of mind, action and psychology; epistemology; metaphysics; philosophy of science, especially philosophy of physics and philosophy of medicine; ethics; political philosophy; philosophy of art; logic; and philosophy of language and logic.

For more information on our areas of expertise , our recent research projects and their impact as well as a list of recent publications by our research staff see our department web pages.

Recent Research Projects: recent projects include:

- The History of Philosophy Without Any Gaps

- Philosophy and Medicine

- Thinking with Assent: Renewing a Traditional Account of Knowledge and Belief

- Ancient Commentators on Aristotle;

- The Evolution of the Emotions;

- Perception, Narrative Discourse and Conceptual Art;

- The Boundaries of Illness;

- Word Meaning: What it is and what it is not?;

Most recent REF rankings: the department was ranked 3rd in the UK, and 1st in London, for both quality and power according to the most recent Research Excellence Framework (REF) rankings; 80% of research was valued as being of a world-leading (4*) or internationally excellent (3*) standard and 63% of its research scored the top rating for impact with an outstanding reach and significance.
Current number of research staff : 30.
Current number of research students : 60.

The Philosophy department offers close personal supervision to students in a wide variety of research areas. As a large and highly-integrated department we can support research projects spanning the various sub-fields of philosophy. Philosophy postgraduates are normally supervised within the Philosophy department. Students wishing to work with someone at King's who is not a member of the Philosophy department are urged to apply directly to the relevant department for admission as a graduate student.

The PhD programme is exclusively devoted to research in philosophy. The programme lasts a minimum of three years full time study. During this time students meet with their supervisors on a regular basis to work on their thesis. During the first year, students are registered as MPhil students. You will have the opportunity to develop your research ideas and writing skills. Towards the end of the first students submit a thesis plan and an extended work sample for assessment before being upgraded to full PhD registration.

At the end of their studies students submit a PhD thesis of a maximum length of 100,000 words. The thesis is examined by two examiners external to King’s.

King’s is set in the heart of London. Graduate students have the opportunity to attend meetings of the Aristotelian Society , and events organised by the Institute of Philosophy .

The department runs joint PhD programmes with the National University of Singapore and the Humboldt University in Berlin (more information below).

The department also has links with other departments around the world. The Norman Malcolm Fellowship pays for a King's research student to spend a semester at Cornell every second year, and for a Cornell student to come to King's in the intervening years. There is an annual KCL/Berlin graduate workshop, hosted alternate years in KCL and in Berlin. And there is a regular KCL/UNC Chapel Hill graduate workshop, hosted in KCL or in Chapel Hill.

Joint PhD programme

The Department of Philosophy at King's is delighted to be able to offer research students two exciting options for joint-PhD study. The programmes offered provide candidates with the opportunity to divide their PhD study between two prestigious universities, enjoying full supervision at both. The programme builds on an extensive network of existing institutional links, joint teaching experience and collaborative graduate programmes between King’s and the partners universities. The Department of Philosophy at the Humboldt University has strengths in the following research areas: Classical German Philosophy, especially Kant, Early Modern Philosophy, especially Leibniz and Locke, Philosophy of Mind (Berlin School of Mind and Brain), Ancient Philosophy (Graduate School of Ancient Philosophy) and Analytic Metaphysics. These areas complement the research in King’s in the history of philosophy, in ancient philosophy, modern philosophy, philosophy of mind and metaphysics. We encourage applications from students who intend to write a PhD in one of these areas. The joint PhD offers the opportunity to do some graduate work in German. Hence, it should be of interest to PhD students who want to work on a German speaking philosopher. The Department of Philosophy at the National University of Singapore is a thriving community with 16 full-time tenured or tenure track faculty members. In addition, there are more than thirty graduate students pursuing the PhD and Masters in philosophy. Its faculty members engage in research in a wide range of fields, including Moral and Practical philosophy, Continental European, Buddhist, Indian, Chinese and Comparative Philosophy. It thus offers a range of study options for potential PhD students that complement well King's own research strengths in, for example, ancient philosophy, modern philosophy, philosophy of mind and metaphysics. Students would spend a significant portion of their time in Singapore, thereby enabling them to access expertise in fields of philosophy where King's alone would not be able to offer supervision. Information about joint PhDs can be found here .

Head of group/division

Dr Andrea Sangiovanni

How to apply
Fees or Funding

UK Tuition Fees 2023/24

Full time tuition fees:

£5,820 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research)

£5,820 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research with National University of Singapore or Humboldt University)

Part time tuition fees:

£2,910 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research)

£2,910 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research with National University of Singapore or Humboldt University)

International Tuition Fees 2023/24

£22,900 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research)

£22,900 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research with National University of Singapore or Humboldt University)

£11,450 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research)

£11,450 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research with National University of Singapore or Humboldt University)

UK Tuition Fees 2024/25

£6,168 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research)

£6,168 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research with National University of Singapore or Humboldt University)

£3,084 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research)

£3,084 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research with National University of Singapore or Humboldt University)

International Tuition Fees 2024/25

£24,786 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research)

£24,786 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research with National University of Singapore or Humboldt University)

£12,393 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research)

£12,393 per year (MPhil/PhD, Philosophy Research with National University of Singapore or Humboldt University)

These tuition fees may be subject to additional increases in subsequent years of study, in line with King’s terms and conditions.

Departmental and Other Funding

Sorabji Graduate Bursary: This studentship honours Richard Sorabji, Emeritus Professor of Ancient Philosophy in the Department. Each year the Department awards one or more studentships to graduate students in the Department, taking into account academic merit and financial need.

Susan Stebbing Studentship: This studentship honours Susan Stebbing, who was formerly Professor in the Department of Philosophy at Bedford College London (which merged with KCL in 1984). Each year the Department awards one or more studentships to women graduate students in the Department, taking into account academic merit and financial need.

Peter Goldie Award: This studentship honours Peter Goldie, former Reader in Philosophy in the Department, who sadly passed away in 2011. This studentship commemorates Peter and his contribution to the Department, following a generous bequest from his estate. Each year the Department awards one or more studentships to graduate students in the Department, taking into account academic merit and financial need.

Joint PhD Funding

Information on joint PhD funding and scholarships can be found here .

Study environment

Base campus

Strand Campus

Located on the north bank of the River Thames, the Strand Campus houses King's College London's arts and sciences faculties.

You will see your supervisor regularly for supervisions. In addition, first year research students attend the weekly First Year Research Seminar, and all other research students attend the weekly Advanced Research Seminar. These seminars are opportunities for research students to present their work, receive feedback on it, and gain exposure to a wider range of philosophical topics via discussion of the work of their peers. First year students also attend a weekly MPhil Research Seminar, where research staff present their work-in-progress or critical assessment of work by others in their areas of expertise.

The Philosophy department is broad and inclusive. Our wide range of research expertise is set within a collegiate and cooperative research community. Postgraduate students will usually receive supervisions from more than one member of staff, and benefit from a range of perspectives and expertise on their project.

The department also runs regular reading groups, and students are welcome to set up their own. Recent reading groups have included: Gender and Philosophy; Political Philosophy; Early Modern Philosophy; Mind; Metaphysics; Philosophy of Action.

Research students are encouraged to attend the regular research activities of the department’s research clusters, such as the King’s History of Philosophy Seminar, and the Formal Methods Masterclass.

The department has a computer room and a graduate common room.

Postgraduate training

Students in the department can take advantage of induction and training programmes offered by the Faculty Graduate Programme. The progress of all graduate students is overseen by the Department's Postgraduate and Research Committee.

Research students gain training at presenting their work to their peers through the weekly research seminars and are encouraged to attend conferences (small travel bursaries are available to support this).

The Department's Placement Officer provides training for advanced research students in preparing them for the academic job market. This includes training in publishing your work and applying for funding.

There is also the opportunity to undertake paid teaching work. This comes with many opportunities for training, including support and guidance in gaining recognition from the Higher Education Academy.

Entry requirements

Find a supervisor

Search through a list of available supervisors.

Accommodation

Discover your accommodation options and explore our residences.

Connect with a King’s Advisor

Want to know more about studying at King's? We're here to help.

Learning in London

King's is right in the heart of the capital.

What is a PhD?

Types of Doctorates
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) is the highest globally recognized postgraduate degree that higher education institutions can award.
PhDs are awarded to candidates who undertake original and extensive research in a particular field of study.
Full time PhD programmes typically last three to four years, whilst part time PhD programmes typically last six to seven years.
A PhD can lead to an academia teaching role or a career in research. A PhD can also equip you with skills suitable for a wide range of jobs unrelated to your research topic or academia.

Definition of a PhD – A Doctor of Philosophy (commonly abbreviated to PhD , Ph.D or a DPhil ) is a university research degree awarded from across a broad range of academic disciplines; in most countries, it is a terminal degree, i.e. the highest academic degree possible.

PhDs differ from undergraduate and master’s degrees in that PhDs are entirely research-based rather than involving taught modules (although doctoral training centres (DTCs) offer programmes that start with a year of lecture-based teaching to help develop your research skills prior to starting your project).

In most English-speaking countries, those that complete a PhD use the title “Doctor” (typically abbreviated to Dr) in front of their names and are referred to as such within academic and/or research settings. Those that work in fields outside of academia may decide not to use the formal doctor title but use post-nominal letters (e.g. John Smith PhD); it’s unusual though for someone to use both the Doctor title and post-nominal letters in their name.

PhD vs Doctorate

A PhD and a professional doctorate are both research-based terminal degrees.

However, where a PhD focuses on original research mostly around theoretical concepts, a professional doctorate focuses on examining existing knowledge to solve real-life, practical problems.

While there is much crossover between the two, a PhD is generally better suited for an individual to wants to advance the knowledge and understanding in their field, and a professional doctorate degree is better suited to a working professional who wants to better be able to apply knowledge and understanding to their field.

What Are the Entry Requirements for a PhD?

To be accepted on to a PhD programme, students usually need to hold at least a high ( 2:1 and above ) undergraduate degree that is related to the field of research that they want to pursue. A PhD candidate may also be expected to hold a Master’s degree , however, this does not mean you must have one, as it is still possible to enrol into a PhD without a Master’s .

Self-funded courses may sometimes be more relaxed in relation to entry requirements. It may be possible to be accepted onto a self-funded PhD programme with lower grades, though these students typically demonstrate their suitability for the role through professional work experience.

Whilst a distance learning project is possible , most PhD candidates will carry out their research over at least three years based at their university, with regular contact with two academic supervisors (primary and secondary). This is particularly the case for lab-based projects, however, some PhD projects require spending time on-site away from university (e.g. at a specialist research lab or at a collaborating institution abroad).

How Long Does a PhD Take?

Typically, full-time PhDs last 3-4 years and part-time PhDs last 6-7 years. However, at the discretion of the university, the thesis writing-up period can be extended by up to four years.

Although most doctoral programmes start in September or October, they are generally much more flexible than taught-courses and can start at any time of the year.

How Much Does a PhD Cost?

Tuition fees for UK and EU students vary between £3,000 and £6,000 per year, with the average tuition fee of £4,712 per year for 2023/24 programmes.

Tuition fees increase considerably for international students, varying between £16,000 to £25,000 per year, with an average tuition fee of £19,600 per year .

Nonetheless, most students will secure PhD funding in the form of studentships, scholarships and bursaries to help pay for these fees. These funding opportunities can either be partial, which cover tuition fees only, or full, which cover both tuition fees and living expenses.

UK national students can also apply for Doctoral Loans from Student Finance England if they are unable to secure funding.

Finding a PhD has never been this easy – search for a PhD by keyword, location or academic area of interest.

What Does a PhD Involve?

To be awarded a PhD, a doctoral student is required to produce a substantial body of work that adds new knowledge to their chosen field.

A PhD programme will typically involve four key stages:

Stage 1: Literature Review

The first year of a PhD involves attending regular meetings with your supervisors and carrying out a search on previously published work in your subject area. This search will be used to produce a literature review which should set the context of the project by explaining the foundation of what is currently known within the field of research, what recent developments have occurred, and where the gaps in knowledge are. In most cases, this will be an extension of your research proposal should you have produced one as part of your application. The literature review should conclude by outlining the overarching aims and objectives of the research project. This stage of setting achievable goals which are original and contribute to the field of research is an essential first step in a successful PhD.

The supervisor is the main point of contact through the duration of a PhD – but remember: they are there to mentor, not to teach, or do it for you . It will be your responsibility to plan, execute and monitor your own work as well as to identify gaps in your own knowledge and address them.

Stage 2: Research

The second year (and prehapse some of your third year) is when you work on your research. Having identified novel research questions from your review of the literature, this is where you collect your data to help answer these questions. How you do this will depend on the nature of your doctoral research: for example, you may design and run experiments in a lab alongside other PhD students or visit excavation sites in remote regions of the world. You should check in regularly with your supervisors to update them and run any ideas or issues past them.

Have the structure and chapters of your thesis in mind as you develop and tackle your research questions. Working with a view of publishing your work will be very valuable later on.

Stage 3: Write up of Thesis

The next key stage of a PhD is writing a doctoral thesis , which typically takes from anywhere between three months to one year. A thesis is a substantial body of work that describes the work and outcomes of the research over the previous two to three years. It should tell a detailed story of the PhD project – focusing on:

The motivations for the research questions identified from the literature review.
The methodologies used, results obtained, and a comprehensive analysis and discussion of the findings.
A detailed discussion of the key findings with an emphasis on the original contributions made to your field of research and how this has been impactful.

There is no universal rule for the length of a PhD thesis, but general guidelines set the word count between 80,000 to 100,000 words.

For your thesis to be successful, it needs to adequately defend your argument and provide a unique or increased insight into your field that was not previously available.

Stage 4: Attending the Viva

A viva voce , most commonly referred to as just a ‘ viva ‘, is an interview-style examination where the PhD student is required to engage in a critical appraisal of their work and defend their thesis against at least two examiners. The examiners will ask questions to check the PhD student has an in-depth understanding of the ideas and theories proposed in their thesis, and whether they have developed the research skills that would be expected of them.

The viva is one of the final steps in achieving a PhD, and typically lasts at least two hours, but this duration can vary depending on the examiners, the university and the PhD project itself.

Once you have done the viva – you’re on the home stretch. You will typically be asked to make some amendments to your thesis based on the examiner’s feedback. You are then ready to submit your final thesis for either:

PhD – If you pass the requirements you will be awarded a PhD degree (most common outcome),
MPhil – If you failed to meet requirements for a PhD, you may be downgraded to an MPhil degree (uncommon outcome),
Fail – No award is given, typically for cases of plagiarism (extremely uncommon outcome).

What Is It Like to Undertake a PhD?

We’re often asked what it is like to undertake a PhD study. Unfortunately, this isn’t a simple answer to this question as every research project is different.

To help give insight into the life of a PhD student, we’ve interviewed PhD students at various stages of their programmes and put together a series of PhD Student Interviews . Check out the link to find out what a PhD is like and what advice they have to offer you.

What Are the Benefits of A PhD?

A PhD is the highest globally recognised postgraduate degree that higher education institutions can award. The degree, which is awarded to candidates who demonstrate original and independent research in a particular field of study, is not only invaluable in itself, but sets you up with invaluable skills and traits.

Career Opportunities

First, a PhD prepares you for a career in academia if you wish to continue in this area. This takes form as a career in the Higher Education sector, typically as a lecturer working their way to becoming a professor leading research on the subject you’ve studied and trained in.

Second, a PhD also enables the opportunity for landing a job in a research & development role outside of the academic environment. Examples of this include laboratory work for a private or third sector company, a governmental role and research for commercial and industrial applications.

Transferable Skills

Finally, in possessing a PhD degree, you can show to employers that you have vital skills that make you an asset to any company. Three examples of the transferable skills that you gain through a PhD are effective communication, time management, and report writing.

Communication – presenting your work in written and oral forms using journal papers and podium presentations, shows your ability to share complex ideas effectively and to those with less background knowledge than you. Communication is key in the professional environment, regardless of the job.
Time management – The ability to prioritise and organise tasks is a tremendous asset in the professional industry. A PhD holder can use their qualification to demonstrate that they are able to manage their time, arrange and follow a plan, and stick to deadlines.
Report writing – Condensing three years of work into a thesis demonstrates your ability to filter through massive amounts of information, identify the key points, and get these points across to the reader. The ability to ‘cut out the waffle’ or ‘get to the point’ is a huge asset in the professional industry.

Aside from the above, you also get to refer to yourself as a Doctor and add fancy initials after your name!

What Can I Do After a PhD?

One of the most desirable postdoctoral fields is working within independent Research and Development (R&D) labs and new emerging companies. Both industries, especially R&D labs, have dedicated groups of PhD graduates who lead research activities, design new products and take part in crucial strategic meetings. Not only is this a stimulating line of work, but the average salaries in R&D labs and emerging start-ups are lucrative. In comparison, an undergraduate with five years of experience within their given field will, on average, likely earn less than a new PhD graduate taking on a R&D position.

It’s a common misunderstanding that PhDs only opens the door for an academic career such as university lecturers and training providers. Although obtaining a PhD opens these doors, the opportunities extend far beyond educational roles. In fact, recent data from the UK’s Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) indicates only 23% of PhD graduates take a position in educational roles . This low percentage is primarily because PhD graduates have a wide range of skills that make them suitable for a broad spectrum of roles. This is being seen first hand by the increasing number of PhD graduates who are entering alternative roles such as research, writing, law and investment banking.

How Do I Find a PhD?

We appreciate that finding a PhD programme to undertake can be a relatively daunting process. According to Higher Education Student Statistics , over 22,000 PhDs were awarded in 2016/17 within the United Kingdom alone. Clearly there are a huge number of PhD programmes available. This can sometimes be confusing for prospective doctorates, particularly when different programmes are advertised in different places. Often, it is difficult to know where to look or where to even start. We’ve put together a list of useful sources to find the latest PhD programmes:

A great place to start is with our comprehensive and up-to-date database of available PhD positions .
Assuming you are still at university, speak to an existing PhD supervisor within your department.
Attend as many postgraduate open days as you can. Whilst there, speak to current PhD students and career advisors to get an awareness of what PhDs are on offer.
Visit the postgraduate section of university websites and the PhD Research Council section of the UKRI website.

Browse PhDs Now

Join thousands of students.

Join thousands of other students and stay up to date with the latest PhD programmes, funding opportunities and advice.

Philosophy Ph.D. student reflects on experience at Midwest Ethics Symposium

My name is Griffin Kiegiel and I am a Ph.D. candidate in Wayne State University’s philosophy program. This past April I attended the second annual Midwest Ethics Symposium (MES) at Depauw University, thanks to travel support from the Robert J. Yanal Legacy Endowment Fund . I would like to share some details of my experience for anyone looking to understand philosophy conferences a little better.

The event was held in the beautiful Prindle Institute for Ethics, surrounded by a small, lush forest and neighboring a gorgeous hike-able quarry. I was incredibly nervous for the event as this was not just my first time presenting at a philosophy conference—it was also my first time attending one. As someone with moderate social anxiety, I was apprehensive about going alone, but I am very glad I made the five-plus hour journey to Greencastle, Indiana.

Through the experience I came to appreciate three key reasons graduate students in philosophy should attend and present at conferences: networking, feedback and experience.

a covered walkway leading to a one-story stone building, surrounded by trees on a sunny day.

Making new connections

The most obvious reason to attend an event with a bunch of strangers is to turn some of those strangers into friends, making you a person with potentially fruitful academic connections. I admittedly felt slightly uncomfortable with the prospect of developing friendships for instrumental reasons, but while I was at the conference, I never felt any pressure to do so. I find that philosophy is a field that tends to attract thoughtful, kind people who are easy to talk to and have interesting things to say. There was never a moment in which I felt like I was dragging myself through a dull conversation for the mere sake of advancing my career. I met some genuinely wonderful people.

When I arrived on the first day, I made myself a cup of complimentary tea and sat in the waiting area with some of the other attendees. A simple, “What are you studying?” revealed that my couch neighbors and I had a lot to talk about. I was lucky enough to befriend a student from Iowa and we continued to check in with one another throughout the conference, discussing the presentations and the interesting questions they provoked. Meeting just one person early in the conference did a lot towards making me feel comfortable there.

Four men with microphones sitting in chairs on a stage with a large glass window behind them and lush greenery outside.

Real-time feedback

Perhaps my favorite part about the experience was how it helped with my academic work. I was invited to present a paper entitled “Conscious AI and the Climate Crisis.” In the paper, I highlight some of the environmental consequences we may encounter if AI continues to develop and gains some level of consciousness. ( Reach out to me if you’d like to discuss more!)

While one can certainly receive feedback on a paper by handing it to friends and colleagues, conferences offer the unique opportunity to hear from a wide range of educated perspectives in a relatively brief amount of time. And if a 15-minute Q&A session does not sound long enough to get the feedback you’re looking for, rest assured there is ample opportunity to talk with others during the lunch breaks and after the day’s scheduled events. Many people will be more than willing to do so.

Conferences are also a great way to motivate oneself to complete a project. Graduate school can sometimes be challenging as one’s time management skills are put to the test, with procrastination and fatigue becoming some of the greatest obstacles towards earning that master’s or Ph.D. Many graduate students I talked to employed a similar strategy of submitting an abstract to several conferences in the hopes of being accepted, without having written the full paper. Once they were accepted at one or more events, this provided a deadline and some extrinsic motivation to complete the project and make progress toward their degree.

Unlocking opportunities and experiences

The opportunity to travel and experience life on other campuses is another excellent benefit of going to philosophy conferences. I have personally spent much of my academic career in city universities, so it was very refreshing to spend some time in a small, quiet Indiana town.

As I walked through the quad, I felt very relaxed and nearly nostalgic for a college experience that never was. I have absolutely no regrets about choosing to be a part of Wayne State University, but I appreciated the perspective I gained by walking on some different grass.

A group portrait of 19 diverse people smiling at the camera.

Finally, I find it pertinent to tell those thinking about attending a philosophy conference that the process is very easy, thanks to Wayne State’s incredible faculty. I am very grateful for the support I received while submitting to the conference, preparing for my presentation and applying for travel funds .

There are many helpful and kind people available to help you have the best conference experience possible.

Griffin Kiegiel, Ph.D. candidate in philosophy

Faculty spotlight

Griffin Kiegiel

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Grapple with the insights of great thinkers from across the world and throughout history while developing skills in critical thinking, argument analysis and cultural literacy.

We prepare graduates to meet a rapidly changing world. Students will study ancient and contemporary philosophers as they engage in rigorous debate, ask the big questions and sharpen their critical thinking skills. Students will study problems arising in contemporary movements such as analytic philosophy, existentialism and American philosophy; students will be introduced to the major subdivisions of philosophy, including logic, ethics, aesthetics, philosophy and law, philosophy of science and philosophy of religion.

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The major is part of the Department of Philosophy and Religion , an academic unit within the College of Arts and Letters .

The major in philosophy empowers students to analyze diverse worldviews and value systems. In a world that is increasingly pluralistic, ideologically driven and globally connected, skills in critical thinking and cross-cultural understanding are more important than ever. Our students apply this degree to a wide variety of career fields.

Students choose from two concentrations: general philosophy and interdisciplinary philosophy. The interdisciplinary concentration allows students to count relevant courses in another field toward the major and is a particularly good fit for students choosing philosophy as a second major.

Philosophy and Religion

B.A. in Philosophy and Religion, Major in Philosophy
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Penn Ph.D. candidate Penelope Lusk named 2024 Queen Elizabeth Scholar

The scholarship funds a year of study at oxford university in england..

Penelope Lusk, a Ph.D. candidate in University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education , has been awarded a 2024 Queen Elizabeth Scholarship , which covers all fees and provides a stipend of 16,000 pounds, or about $20,000, for a year of study at the University of Oxford in England.

The Queen Elizabeth Scholarship, made possible by funding from Walter Annenberg, is awarded to outstanding students of Penn and Oxford, which alternate sending one Ph.D. student to the other university as a non-degree visiting student. Applicants must be at the dissertation stage or in the final stages of coursework in pursuit of a Ph.D. in any subject taught at Oxford University. A committee of Penn faculty select the Queen Elizabeth Scholar.

Lusk, from Brooklyn, New York, is a Ph.D. candidate in education, culture, and society at Penn GSE with a graduate certificate in gender, sexuality, and women’s studies. She has also completed a certificate in college and university teaching. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English literature from Bowdoin College, a master’s degree in narrative medicine from Columbia University, and a master’s degree in criticism and theory from the University of Exeter, where she was a U.S.-U.K. Fulbright study/research grantee.

Since coming to Penn, Lusk has been a volunteer with the Philadelphia chapter of the National High School Ethics Bowl, a canvasser for local voting efforts, and a member of the Penn Violence Prevention student board. She is also a post-graduate fellow in narrative medicine at Columbia . In her dissertation, “Shame and the Student Body,” Lusk examines the impact of shame as a quintessential self-conscious emotion on personal identity and community development in education and health care. Her scholarship on shame, identity, learning, and health equity in classrooms and in broader social life has been accepted for publication in a number of journals.

The Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships assisted Lusk in her application for the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship.

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Department of Philosophy

Bing Shuo graduated from Wuhan University with a BA in Philosophy. He is primarily interested in some topics in philosophy of language, metaphysics and philosophy of science. Outside of philosophy, he likes to take photographs and surf the internet.

Antares holds a BA in Philosophy from Weber State University in Ogden, Utah, and is thrilled to join the Brandeis community in pursuit of their Master's. Their research interests center on the philosophy of disability and the areas that touch it: most notably, metaphysics, philosophy of mind, and applied ethics. As a disabled scholar themself, they are passionate about furthering philosophical thought and knowledge in the area and giving back to their community. In their spare time, Antares enjoys cooking, creative writing, and spending time outdoors, and on weekends, they can usually be found relaxing with a video game.

Aengus received his BA in philosophy with honors at University of California, Berkeley. What research interests him the most is philosophy of mind, including philosophical zombies, the hard problem of consciousness, subjective idealism, panpsychism, philosophy of self, and monism. When not doing philosophy he enjoys meditating, strength training, running, hanging out with friends, and exploring the world.

I graduated from Colgate University in 2023 with a BA in philosophy, and I've been teaching math at a middle school in Boston for the past year. I'm really excited to be starting the MA in philosophy at Brandeis this Fall. Within philosophy, I'm most intrigued by questions within the realms of phenomenology, metaphysics, and the mind. Outside of philosophy, I love nature, walking around Boston, and movies.

Qiyuan Feng graduated from Brandeis University with a BA in Philosophy and Mathematics. His main interest lies in philosophy of language, philosophy of science and at any intersection between artificial intelligence and philosophy. He enjoys combative sports, literature and is a traceur-wanna-be.

I graduated from the University of New Hampshire with a BA in philosophy. My primary philosophical passions include metaphysics and epistemology, with a focus on philosophy of mind and theories of epistemic justification. I also have an ancillary fascination with the ideas of American pragmatism, phenomenology, and mysticism - though, I do take a broad interest in a variety of other subjects and am always eager to expand my philosophical horizons. Aside from philosophy, I enjoy listening to and playing music.

I hold a BA in Economics and International Relations and a JD from Seoul National University. After completing my degrees, I served as a judge advocate in the South Korean Army for three years. My research interests are in ethics and philosophy of law, particularly topics related to the consequentialist tradition. Outside of philosophy, I enjoy jogging, watching soccer, and spending time with friends.

I graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a BSE in Computer Science and minor in English. I'm interested in metaphysics and 19th and 20th century philosophy, particularly the German tradition. Outside of philosophy, I like watching movies, painting / experimenting with visual art forms, and reading fiction.

Jacob graduated from Fort Lewis College with a BA in Philosophy and a minor in Mathematics. His philosophical interests include: value theory, philosophy of language, philosophy of math, epistemology, philosophy of science, and just about anything related to logic. In addition to his academic pursuits, he enjoys rollerblading, culinary experimentation, exploration via bicycle, and trail running.

I graduated from Beijing Normal University with a BA in Philosophy. My philosophical interests mainly focus on contemporary social and political philosophy, especially egalitarianism, the debate between ideal and non-ideal theories, and feminist philosophy. I'm looking for friends who can play baseball with me in Boston.

Dustin graduated from Leiden University with a BA in Comparative Philosophy, and prior to that, he was an undergrad at the University of Pittsburgh. His philosophical interests are diverse, but he is currently focused on philosophy of mind, metaphysics, and Buddhist philosophy. Outside of philosophy, he enjoys cooking, hiking, and listening to electronic music.

I recently graduated from Sun Yat-sen University with a bachelor's degree in philosophy. My primary philosophical interests lie in metaethics and normative ethics, especially in the areas of moral anti-realism, Kantian ethics, and virtue ethics. I am also interested in political philosophy and logic. In my spare time, I enjoy playing video games and board games, experimenting with cooking, and reading history.

I graduated from Shanghai International Studies University with a BA in Japanese Literature, but I have been devoted to philosophy since my sophomore year. I find the questions raised by Plato and Aristotle particularly intriguing, but I prefer to philosophize in the analytical philosophy tradition. My current interests mainly lie in ethics and epistemology, but I am secretly interested in mathematics and logic. Outside of philosophy, I enjoy jogging, cooking, and computer programming.

I graduated from USC with a BA in philosophy and a minor in psychology. Within philosophy, I'm currently most interested in epistemology and theory of action, but I'm intrigued by lots of random stuff as well. Outside of philosophy, I'm a massive music lover - I love alternative pop and rock the most I think, but I'm very focused and not as expansive. I also like hanging out and changing minds.

"I received my BA in Philosophy from Duke Kunshan University and an MA in Philosophy from King's College London. My research primarily focuses on social epistemology, particularly feminist social epistemology. I'm also interested in the intersections of social epistemology, philosophy of language, and philosophy of mind. In my spare time, I enjoy traveling and photography. Check out my photography insta account at lifeofyjy! Feel free to reach out if you'd like to model for me!"

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IMAGES

161 Best Philosophy PhD Thesis Topics List For A-Graders
130 Powerful Philosophy Research Topics to Get Started
227 Philosophy Thesis Topics Every Student Should Have
Philosophy Research Topics: 400+ Captivating Ideas
170 Philosophy Research Paper Topics: Awesome Free List
130 Powerful Philosophy Research Topics to Get Started

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COMMENTS

100s of Philosophy Topics For your Dissertation
More Philosophy Dissertation Research Topics. Topic 1: Why we should stop capital punishment and adopt permanent solutions to help solve crimes. Topic 2: Should people always obey the rules? A closer look at the line between breaking rules and rebellion. Topic 3: Loneliness: Reconstructing its meaning.
Dissertations
Rigid Designation, Scope, and Modality. Emergent Problems and Optimal Solutions: A Critique of Robert Nozick's Anarchy, State, and Utopia. Expressing Consistency: Godel's Second Incompleteness Theorem and Intentionality in Mathematics. Physicalism, Intentionality, Mind: Three Studies in the Philosophy of Mind. Frege's Paradox.
161 Best Philosophy PhD Thesis Topics List For A-Graders
Philosophy Topics for Research Paper. Evil persons and evil actions: a philosophical perspective. The effect of the ideology of Darwinism on natural selection. Intervention vs. information: distinguishing the differences. Melancholia in teenagers: a psychological analysis. Relating depression to interactive children.
Ph.D. Program
Ph.D. Program The program of studies leading to the doctorate in philosophy provides subjects and seminars in such traditional areas as logic, ethics, metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of science, philosophy of language, philosophy of mind, aesthetics, social and political philosophy, and history of philosophy. Interest in philosophical problems arising from other disciplines, such as ...
Doctoral Program
Stanford's Ph.D. program is among the world's best. Our graduate students receive their training in a lively community of philosophers engaged in a wide range of philosophical projects. Our Ph.D. program trains students in traditional core areas of philosophy and provides them with opportunities to explore many subfields such as the philosophy ...
Philosophy
As a PhD student in the Harvard philosophy program, you'll have the opportunity to develop your ideas, knowledge, and abilities. You'll work with other doctoral students, our faculty, and visiting scholars, all in a stimulating and supportive environment. The program has strengths across a broad range of topics and areas, so you'll be able to ...
UC Berkeley
Philosophy Ph.D. Program. Approved by Graduate Council and Graduate Division, Nov. 10, 2008. These requirements apply prospectively beginning with those admitted for Fall 2009. ... Each topic should be centered on a major philosophical problem or question. Together the topics should reflect a balance of breadth and depth, and the Graduate ...
Doctor of Philosophy in Education
The Harvard Ph.D. in Education trains cutting-edge researchers who work across disciplines to generate knowledge and translate discoveries into transformative policy and practice. Offered jointly by the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, the Ph.D. in Education provides ...
Program Overview
The conference is intended to determine the acceptability of the topic on which the candidate wishes to write a dissertation, the candidate's fitness to undertake such a dissertation, and the candidate's command of relevant issues in related areas of philosophy. A dissertation on the proposed topic may be submitted only if the topical ...
APA Guide to Graduate Programs in Philosophy
About the Grad Guide. The Guide to Graduate Programs in Philosophy, published biennially until the early 2000s, was relaunched in 2012 as an annual online resource. It is now a continuously updated website. The guide compiles data on both doctoral and master's degree programs in philosophy at institutions throughout the US and Canada ...
Philosophy, PhD < University of Pennsylvania
The Penn Philosophy Department has a long and distinguished history. Philosophy has been taught at the University since 1755, and Penn was among the first universities in the country to offer the PhD degree in Philosophy, in 1882. The Department has always prized breadth, and its members are prepared to supervise advanced research in ...
Doctor of Philosophy Program in Philosophy
The topics are determined by the instructors but include basic texts and ideas in analytic philosophy. Basic course work (28 points; typically seven 4-point courses) These seven courses are drawn from advanced introduction courses, intermediate-level courses, topics or advanced seminar courses, and research seminar courses.
Past Dissertations
Table 6: Dissertations from 1969-1960. Name. Year. Title. Mentor. Michael Didoha. 1969. Conceptual Distortion and Intuitive Creativity: A Study of the Role of Knowledge in the Thought of Nicholas Berdyaev. Wilfred Desan.
PhD Program
In order to be admitted to candidacy for the PhD, students complete the following requirements within six (6) semesters from beginning the PhD program. At least 15 courses (45 credits) are required and are to be distributed as follows: philosophy of science (LEMMS Proseminar 1 & LEMMS Proseminar 2).
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Theses/Dissertations from 2020. Orders of Normativity: Nietzsche, Science and Agency, Shane C. Callahan. Humanistic Climate Philosophy: Erich Fromm Revisited, Nicholas Dovellos. This, or Something like It: Socrates and the Problem of Authority, Simon Dutton. Climate Change and Liberation in Latin America, Ernesto O. Hernández.
How to Choose a Dissertation Topic For Your Doctoral Degree
1. Take advantage of the resources available. Use the resources offered by your university to help with your decision making. This might include your research center or applicable seminars. 2. Tap into your peers. Meet with each of your cohorts and ask them to weigh in on your topic and plans for research. 3.
Philosophy PhD thesis collection
Philosophy PhD thesis collection. Browse By. By Issue Date Authors Titles Subjects Publication Type Sponsor Supervisors. Search within this Collection: ... The work presented in this dissertation primarily focused on two topics. The first was understanding differences in support for redistribution. In this section, we replicated existing ...
Doctor of Philosophy
Philosophy. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) is an internationally recognised graduate research program that will enable you to become an independent researcher. With the guidance of an advisory team, you'll undertake a research project, produce an 80,000-word thesis and complete an oral examination. A PhD takes 3 to 4 years full-time.
PhD in Philosophy (2024 Entry)
The Warwick PhD in Philosophy is aimed at outstanding students who wish to pursue advanced research in philosophy and prepare to become professional researchers in, and/or teachers of, philosophy. As a PhD student, you will produce an 80,000 word thesis that can provide the basis for professional publication. You will contribute to the vibrant ...
Philosophy Research
Joint PhDs available: The Department of Philosophy at King's is delighted to be able to offer two exciting options for joint-PhD study at either Humboldt University or the National University of Singapore. The Philosophy Department at King's is one of the largest research departments in the field in the UK. We offer close personal supervision to students in a wide variety of research areas ...
What is a PhD?
Definition of a PhD - A Doctor of Philosophy (commonly abbreviated to PhD, Ph.D or a DPhil) is a university research degree awarded from across a broad range of academic disciplines; in most countries, it is a terminal degree, i.e. the highest academic degree possible. PhDs differ from undergraduate and master's degrees in that PhDs are ...
What Does 'PhD' Stand For?
A PhD is a terminal academic degree students typically pursue when they're interested in an academic or research career. A PhD is the highest possible academic degree a student can obtain. PhD stands for "Doctor of Philosophy," which refers to the immense knowledge a student gains when earning the degree. While you can actually get a PhD in ...
Thesis Topics & Graduate Placement
Fulbright College of Arts & Sciences. Department of Philosophy. 318 Old Main. University of Arkansas. Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701. 479-575-3551. [email protected]. Make a Gift. to Philosophy.
Doctor of Philosophy in Computing
The Computing PhD program provides students with advanced, research-based, studies in the field of Computing to prepare them for research and development positions in the private and public sectors as well as academic positions in universities and colleges. In addition to the traditional and well-established, research methods, the program ...
What Jobs Can You Get with a Philosophy Degree
Below is a list of five careers you might choose with a philosophy degree: Professor of Philosophy. Clinical ethicist. Lawyer. Policy analyst. Marketing manager. Let's take a look at the job description, outlook, and average annual salary of each career. 1. Professor of Philosophy.
Philosophy Ph.D. student reflects on experience at Midwest Ethics Symposium
My name is Griffin Kiegiel and I am a Ph.D. candidate in Wayne State University's philosophy program. This past April I attended the second annual Midwest Ethics Symposium (MES) at Depauw University, thanks to travel support from the Robert J. Yanal Legacy Endowment Fund.I would like to share some details of my experience for anyone looking to understand philosophy conferences a little better.
Philosophy Major Overview
Request Info. The major is part of the Department of Philosophy and Religion, an academic unit within the College of Arts and Letters. The major in philosophy empowers students to analyze diverse worldviews and value systems. In a world that is increasingly pluralistic, ideologically driven and globally connected, skills in critical thinking ...
Penn Ph.D. candidate Penelope Lusk named 2024 Queen Elizabeth Scholar
Penelope Lusk, a Ph.D. candidate in University of Pennsylvania's Graduate School of Education, has been awarded a 2024 Queen Elizabeth Scholarship, which covers all fees and provides a stipend of 16,000 pounds, or about $20,000, for a year of study at the University of Oxford in England.. The Queen Elizabeth Scholarship, made possible by funding from Walter Annenberg, is awarded to ...
2024 Master's Cohort
Master's Student, 2024 Cohort. [email protected]. Aengus received his BA in philosophy with honors at University of California, Berkeley. What research interests him the most is philosophy of mind, including philosophical zombies, the hard problem of consciousness, subjective idealism, panpsychism, philosophy of self, and monism.
International student deposits in UK dive after graduate visas tightened
A letter last week co-signed by the heads of 17 local chambers of commerce warned that abolition of the graduate visa route and the resultant loss of income from international students would have ...

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Philosophy Dissertation Topics

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Philosophy Dissertation Topics of Research

Topic 2: Sociological Functionalism- Investigating the Development and Beliefs

Topic 3: Assessing the History and Development of Philosophical Work from the 15th to 21st Century.

Topic 4: A Comprehensive View of Social Development of Loneliness.

Topic 5: What does it mean to live in an Ideal Society- Discuss using Plato's Philosophies.

More Philosophy Dissertation Research Topics

Topic 2: Should people always obey the rules? A closer look at the line between breaking rules and rebellion.

Topic 3: Loneliness: Reconstructing its meaning

Topic 4: Understanding why religion is paramount above anything else for many people around the globe.

Topic 5: What is the best way to boost a person’s creativity?

Topic 6: Morality and religion: Why are they different, yet they talk about the same thing?

Topic 7: Wealth: Is it possible to be rich without having a lot of money?

Topic 8: How can the custom of dowry be eliminated from people’s minds?

Topic 9: To love or to be loved: Which is more important?

Topic 10: Why social behaviour and ethics cannot be separated?

Topic 11: A more in-depth look at things that make human life meaningful.

Topic 12: Is it possible to create an ideal society?

Topic 13: A closer look at modern life values.

Topic 14: Euthanasia: Is it ethical?

Topic 15: What is the value of truth? Are there instances when lying is good?

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Department of Linguistics and Philosophy

1. Your Advisor

2. Requirements

2.2 Teaching Requirement

2.3 Logic Requirement

2.4 Distribution Requirement

2.4.2 History of Philosophy

2.4.3 Value Theory

2.4.4 Dissertation Seminar

2.5 Fifth Term Paper Requirement

2.6 Petitions

3. Independent Studies

6. Ph.D. Thesis

6.1 Final Term

6.1.1 MIT Deadline

6.1.2 Thesis Defense

6.1.3 Public Defense

6.1.4 Final Library Copy

6.2 September Degrees

7. Policies on Satisfactory Progress and Good Standing

Doctoral Program

Doctor of Philosophy in Philosophy

Proficiency Requirements

Ph.D. Minor in Philosophy

Interdisciplinary Study

Graduate Program in Cognitive Science

Special Track in Philosophy and Symbolic Systems

Joint Program in Ancient Philosophy

Ph.D. Subplan in History and Philosophy of Science

Stanford Support Programs

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