phd in philosophy thesis

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Past Dissertations

Hyperlinked dissertations are available through  Proquest Digital Dissertations .

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Philosophy Theses and Dissertations

Theses/dissertations from 2024 2024.

On the Possibility of Secular Morality , Zachary R. Alonso

An Ecofeminist Ontological Turn: Preparing the Field for a New Ecofeminist Project , M. Laurel-Leigh Meierdiercks

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

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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

Phronimo: an argument for the use of an ai bot to augment human moral reasoning , agency machine: motives, levels of confidence and metacognition , 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 .

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Philosophy Dissertations and Theses

The Department of Philosophy Dissertations and Theses Series is comprised of dissertations and theses authored by Marquette University's Department of Philosophy doctoral and master's students.

Theses/Dissertations from 2023 2023

Place, Attachment, and Feeling: Indigenous Dispossession and Settler Belonging , Sarah Kizuk

Nepantla and Mestizaje: A Phenomenological Analysis of the Mestizx Historical Consciousness , Jorge Alfredo Montiel

The Categories Argument for the Real Distinction Between Being and Essence: Avicenna, Aquinas, and Their Greek Sources , Nathaniel Taylor

Theses/Dissertations from 2022 2022

Modeling, Describing, and Explaining Subjective Consciousness- A Guide to (and for) the Perplexed , Peter Burgess

Looking Through Whiteness: Objectivity, Racism, Method, and Responsibility , Philip Mack

Emmanuel Levinas and Jacques Maritain on the Student-Teacher Relationship in Catholic Higher Education , Timothy Rothhaar

Theses/Dissertations from 2021 2021

The Empathetic Autistic: A Phenomenological Look at the Feminine Experience , Dana Fritz

Concerning Aristotelian Animal Essences , Damon Andrew Watson

When to Trust Authoritative Testimony: Generation and Transmission of Knowledge in Saadya Gaon, Al-Ghazālī and Thomas Aquinas , Brett A. Yardley

Theses/Dissertations from 2020 2020

The Status of Irrationality: Karl Jaspers' Response to Davidson and Searle , Daniel Adsett

Cosmic City - Cosmic Teleology: A Reading of Metaphysics Λ 10 and Politics I 2 , Brandon Henrigillis

Phenomenal Consciousness: An Husserlian Approach , John Jered Janes

Al-Fārābī Metaphysics, and the Construction of Social Knowledge: Is Deception Warranted if it Leads to Happiness? , Nicholas Andrew Oschman

The Epistemology of Disagreement: Hume, Kant, and the Current Debate , Robert Kyle Whitaker

Theses/Dissertations from 2019 2019

'Our Feet are Mired In the Same Soil': Deepening Democracy with the Political Virtue of Sympathetic Inquiry , Jennifer Lynn Kiefer Fenton

Towards a Philosophy of the Musical Experience: Phenomenology, Culture, and Ethnomusicology in Conversation , J. Tyler Friedman

Humor, Power and Culture: A New Theory on the Experience and Ethics of Humor , Jennifer Marra

Care of the Sexual Self: Askesis As a Route to Sex Education , Shaun Douglas Miller

Re-Evaluating Augustinian Fatalism through the Eastern and Western Distinction between God's Essence and Energies , Stephen John Plecnik

The Fantastic Structure of Freedom: Sartre, Freud, and Lacan , Gregory A. Trotter

The Province of Conceptual Reason: Hegel's Post-Kantian Rationalism , William Clark Wolf

Theses/Dissertations from 2018 2018

Hume on Thick and Thin Causation , Alexander Bozzo

Evolution, Naturalism, and Theism: An Inconsistent Triad? , David H. Gordon

The Parable As Mirror: An Examination of the Use of Parables in the Works of Kierkegaard , Russell Hamer

Theses/Dissertations from 2017 2017

Contextualizing Aquinas's Ontology of Soul: An Analysis of His Arabic and Neoplatonic Sources , Nathan McLain Blackerby

The Social and Historical Subject in Sartre and Foucault and Its Implications for Healthcare Ethics , Kimberly Siobhan Engels

Investigations of Worth: Towards a Phenomenology of Values , Dale Hobbs Jr.

Hegel and the Problem of the Multiplicity of Conflicting Philosophies , Matthew M. Peters

Aquinas, Averroes, and the Human Will , Traci Ann Phillipson

Theses/Dissertations from 2016 2016

Nature, Feminism, and Flourishing: Human Nature and the Feminist Ethics of Flourishing , Celeste D. Harvey

Developing Capabilities: A Feminist Discourse Ethics Approach , Chad Kleist

Kierkegaard in Light of the East: A Critical Comparison of the Philosophy of Søren Kierkegaard with Orthodox Christian Philosophy and Thought , Agust Magnusson

The Secular Transformation of Pride and Humility in the Moral Philosophy of David Hume , Kirstin April Carlson McPherson

Living within the Sacred Tension: Paradox and Its Significance for Christian Existence in the Thought of Søren Kierkegaard , Matthew Thomas Nowachek

Moral Imagination and Adorno: Before and After Auschwitz , Catlyn Origitano

Essence and Necessity, and the Aristotelian Modal Syllogistic: A Historical and Analytical Study , Daniel James Vecchio

Theses/Dissertations from 2015 2015

Subversive Humor , Chris A. Kramer

Virtue, Oppression, and Resistance Struggles , Trevor William Smith

Health As Embodied Authenticity , Margaret Steele

Recognition and Political Ontology: Fichte, Hegel, and Honneth , Velimir Stojkovski

The Conceptual Priority of the Perfect , Matthew Peter Zdon

Theses/Dissertations from 2014 2014

Dangerous Knowledge? Morality And Moral Progress After Naturalism , Daniel Diederich Farmer

Nietzsche's Revaluation of All Values , Joseph Anthony Kranak

Theses/Dissertations from 2013 2013

Re-Enchanting The World: An Examination Of Ethics, Religion, And Their Relationship In The Work Of Charles Taylor , David McPherson

Thomas Aquinas on the Apprehension of Being: The Role of Judgement in Light of Thirteenth-Century Semantics , Rosa Vargas Della Casa

Theses/Dissertations from 2012 2012

Naturalized Panpsychism: An Alternative to Fundamentalist Physicalism and Supernaturalism , Earl R. Cookson

The Concept of Personhood in the Phenomenology of Edmund Husserl , Colin J. Hahn

The Humanistic, Fideistic Philosophy of Philip Melanchthon (1497-1560) , Charles William Peterson

Theses/Dissertations from 2011 2011

Knowledge and Thought in Heidegger and Foucault: Towards an Epistemology of Ruptures , Arun Anantheeswaran Iyer

William James's Undivided Self and the Possibility of Immortality , Anthony Karlin

The Poetics of Remembrance: Communal Memory and Identity in Heidegger and Ricoeur , David Leichter

The Ontological Foundations for Natural Law Theory and Contemporary Ethical Naturalism , Bernard Mauser

Sexualized Violence, Moral Disintegration and Ethical Advocacy , Melissa Mosko

Spinoza on Individuals and Individuation: Metaphysics, Morals, and Politics , Matthew David Wion

Theses/Dissertations from 2010 2010

The Paradox of Nature: Merleau-Ponty's Semi-Naturalistic Critique of Husserlian Phenomenology , Shazad Akhtar

Hume's Conception of Time and its Implications for his Theories of Causation and Induction , Daniel Esposito

Arabic Influences in Aquinas's Doctrine of Intelligible Species , Max Herrera

The Attestation of the Self as a Bridge Between Hermeneutics and Ontology in the Philosophy of Paul Ricoeur , Sebastian Kaufmann

Love's Lack: The Relationship between Poverty and Eros in Plato's Symposium , Lorelle D. Lamascus

Friendship and Fidelity: An Historical and Critical Examination , Joshua Walter Schulz

Natural Law Theory and the "Is"--"Ought" Problem: A Critique of Four Solutions , Shalina Stilley

Attending to Presence: A Study of John Duns Scotus' Account of Sense Cognition , Amy F. Whitworth

Theses/Dissertations from 2009 2009

Friendship and Self-Identity in the Thought of Paul Ricoeur , Cristina Bucur

The Finality of Religion in Aquinas' Theory of Human Acts , Francisco José Romero Carrasquillo

The finality of religion in Aquinas' theory of human acts , Francisco J Romero

Theses/Dissertations from 2008 2008

Self-Identity in Comparative Theology: The Functional lmportance of Charles Taylor's Concept of the Self for a Theology of Religions , Richard Joseph Hanson

Theses/Dissertations from 2007 2007

Husserl's Noema: A Critical Assessment of the Gestalt and Analytic Interpretations , Peter M. Chukwu

A Social Contract Analysis of Rawls and Rousseau: Supplanting the Original Position As Philosophically Most Favored , Paul Neiman

To Validate a Feeling: the Role of the Mood of Angst in Human Being , Gregory P. Schulz

The Conception and Attributes of God: A Comparison of Charles Sanders Peirce and Alfred North Whitehead , Scott W. Sinclair

John Rawls, Public Reason, and Natural Law: A Study of the Principles of Public Justification , Christopher Ward

Submissions from 2006 2006

Hans Jonas's ethic of responsibility applied to anti-aging technologies and the indefinite extension of the human life span , Jeffrey P Goins

David Hume and the Principle of Sufficient Reason , Ginger Lee

Virtue Theory in Plato's Republic , Griffin T. Nelson

The Principle of Alternate Possibilities: Finding Freedom after Frankfurt , Matthew F. Pierlott

Theses/Dissertations from 2005 2005

Is There a Future for Marxist Humanism? , Jacob M. Held

Self-Love and Morality: Beyond Egoism and Altruism , Li Jing

Eikos Logos and Eikos Muthos: A Study of the Nature of the Likely Story in Plato's Timaeus , Ryan Kenneth McBride

Hume's Conclusions on the Existence and Nature of God , Timothy S. Yoder

Theses/Dissertations from 2004 2004

The Foundations of the Politics of Difference , Peter Nathaniel Bwanali

The foundations of the politics of difference , Peter Nathaniel Bwanali

The Place of Justice in the Thinking of Emmanuel Levinas , Michael H. Gillick

New Waves in Metaethics: Naturalist Realism, Naturalist Antirealism and Divine Commands , Daniel R. Kern

Reason in Hume's Moral System , John Muenzberg

Conceiving Mind: A Critique of Descartes' Dualism and Contemporary Immaterialist Views of Consciousness , Kristin P. Schaupp

Respecting Plurality in Times of Change: Hannah Arendt's Conceptions of Political, Personal, and Ethical Responsibility , Stephen Schulman

Francis Suárez on the Ontological Status of Individual Unity vis-à-vis the Aristotelian Doctrine of Primary Substance , John W. Simmons

Through a Glass Darkly: Bernard Lonergan and Richard Rorty on the Possibility of Knowing Without a God's-Eye-View , Russell Snell

Theses/Dissertations from 2003 2003

Building a Heideggerian Ethic , Kelly A. Burns

St. Thomas Aquinas and the Self-Evident Proposition: A Study of the Manifold Senses of a Medieval Concept , Michael V. Dougherty

Ricoeur's Narrative Development of Gadamer's Hermeneutics: Continuity and Discontinuity , Keith D'Souza

Beauty's Resting Place: Unity in St. Augustine's Sensible Aesthetic , Matthew J. Hayes

Empathy and Knowledge: Husserl's Introductions to Phenomenology , Kevin Hermberg

The Transactional Model: A Critical Examination of John Dewey's Philosophy of Freedom , Mark N. Lenker III

Reflection on the "good" As a Source of Freedom in Virtue Theory , John D. Morse

Theses/Dissertations from 2002 2002

An Evaluation of Alvin Plantinga's Religious Epistemology Does It Function Properly? , James Beilby

Merleau-Ponty: Embodied Subjectivity and the Foundation of Ethics , Sarah A. Fischer

Kant on Love for Oneself: Why Respect for the Moral Law, But not the Desire for Happiness, is a moral incentive , Lawrence Masek

Essence, Individuation, and Artifact: An Aristotelian Model for Familiar Concrete Particulars , Chad V. Meister

Normative Strategies for Resolving Human Rights Conflicts , Eugene T. Rice

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Scholars' Bank

Philosophy theses and dissertations.

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This collection contains some of the theses and dissertations produced by students in the University of Oregon Philosophy Graduate Program. Paper copies of these and other dissertations and theses are available through the UO Libraries .

Recent Submissions

• Making and Unmaking Worlds: Towards Liberation Beyond Subjectivity  Friaz, Ricardo ( University of Oregon , 2024-08-07 ) This dissertation develops the concept of liberation by questioning what it means to destroy, abolish, and create worlds. I develop a critical position towards agential or subject-based accounts of liberation in order to ...
• A Critical Feminist Semiology: De-naturalizing and Re-Politicizing Patriarchal, White Supremacist, and Settler-Colonial Systems of Meaning  Ring, Annalee ( University of Oregon , 2024-08-07 ) This dissertation de-naturalizes and re-politicizes patriarchal, white supremacist and settler-colonial systems of meaning through creating a methodology of critical feminist semiology. This methodology is built from the ...
• Critical Phenomenology of Illness: Towards a Politics of Care  McLay , Sarah ( University of Oregon , 2024-08-07 ) Working at the intersection of phenomenology and critical disability studies, this dissertation develops a critical phenomenology of illness and health. Moving beyond classical phenomenologies of illness—which center on ...
• The Problem of Freedom and Universality: Marxian Philosophical Anthropology  Ralda, Oscar ( University of Oregon , 2024-03-25 ) This dissertation has two principal aims. First, it provides a critical reconsideration of Marx’s philosophical anthropology as it bears on the essential continuity of his emancipatory critique of political economy. Second, ...
• Living Legality: Law and Dussel's Philosophy of Liberation  Ospina Martinez, Juan Sebastián ( University of Oregon , 2024-01-10 ) In this dissertation I examine the theoretical underpinnings necessary for a philosophy of liberationaccount of law and suggest an alternative conceptualization of the function of law and political institutions, following ...
• Making Sense of the Practical Lesbian Past: Towards a Rethinking of Untimely Uses of History through the Temporality of Cultural Techniques  Simon, Valérie ( University of Oregon , 2024-01-10 ) This dissertation focuses on the practice of untimely uses of lesbian history, and in particular the diverse practices of engagement with lesbian activist history, all of which aim to mobilize this activist history for the ...
• An Argument for a Cartographic Approach to Technology  McLevey, Mare ( University of Oregon , 2024-01-09 ) This dissertation develops a way to study technology and politics that is an alternative to dominant approaches particular to contemporary philosophy of technology’s empirical and ethical turns. Dominant models fix ...
• Nietzsche, Reification, and Open Comportment  Currie, Luke ( University of Oregon , 2024-01-09 ) This work primarily discusses the “fallacy of reification” from the perspective of Nietzsche’s late philosophy (particularly in the chapter on ‘Reason’ in philosophy in his Twilight of the Idols). While reification is ...
• Time, Capitalism, and Political Ecology: Toward and Ecosocialist Metabolic Temporality  Gamble, Cameron ( University of Oregon , 2022-10-26 ) The ecological crises that have already marked the 21st century, and which will continue to do so on an increasingly intense and destructive scale, present theory in every discipline and field of study with a number of ...
• Demystifying Racial Monopoly  Haller, Reese ( University of Oregon , 2022-10-04 ) Through analysis of private, public, and state reactions to the Great Depression and northward black migration, this thesis demystifies four key functions of race constitutive of capitalist racial monopoly: historical ...
• Pragmatism, Genealogy, and Moral Status  Showler, Paul ( University of Oregon , 2022-10-04 ) This dissertation draws from recent work in pragmatism and philosophical genealogy to develop and defend a new approach for thinking about the concept of moral status. My project has two main aims. First, I argue that Huw ...
• Ethics for the Depressed: A Value Ethics of Engagement  Fitzpatrick, Devin ( University of Oregon , 2022-10-04 ) I argue that depressed persons suffer from “existential guilt,” which amounts to a two-part compulsion: 1) the compulsive assertion or sense of a vague and all-encompassing or absolute threat that disrupts action and ...
• Soul and Polis: On Arete in Plato's Meno  Smith III, Ansel ( University of Oregon , 2022-10-04 ) In “Soul and Polis: On Arete in Plato’s Meno,” I interpret Meno as a dialogue in which the pursuit of individual arete appears intertwined with political arete. While the differentiation of these two arete is itself ...
• Place-in-Being: A Decolonial Phenomenology of Place in Conversation with Philosophies of the Americas  Newton, Margaret ( University of Oregon , 2022-05-10 ) Our experiences of place and emplacement are so fundamental to our everyday existence that most of us rarely dedicate much time to thinking about how place and emplacement impact the various aspects of our daily lives. In ...
• Species Trouble: From Settled Species Discourse to Ethical Species Pluralism  Sinclair, Rebekah ( University of Oregon , 2021-11-23 ) In this dissertation, I develop and defend the importance of species pluralism (the recognition and use of multiple species definitions) for both environmental and humanist ethics. I begin from the concern that, since the ...
• The Hybris of Plants: Reinterpreting Philosophy through Vegetal Life  Kerr, Joshua ( University of Oregon , 2021-11-23 ) This dissertation reexamines the place of plants in the history of Western philosophy, drawing on the diverse philosophical approaches of Plato, Aristotle, Goethe, Hegel, and Nietzsche, among others. I suggest that a close ...
• Decolonizing Silences: Toward a Critical Phenomenology of Deep Silences with Gloria E. Anzaldúa and Maurice Merleau-Ponty  Ferrari, Martina ( University of Oregon , 2021-11-23 ) Motivating this dissertation is a concern for how Western philosophical, cultural, and political practices tend to privilege speech and voice as emancipatory tools and reduce silence to silencing. To locate power in silence ...
• Mere Appearance: Redressing the History of Philosophy  Zimmer, Amie ( University of Oregon , 2021-09-13 ) The principal aim of this dissertation is to seriously consider what accounts of fashion and dress can offer—have indeed already offered—to philosophy. In recounting these histories, I have two primary goals. The first is ...
• Universal History as Global Critique: From German Critical Theory to the Anti-Colonial Tradition  Portella , Elizabeth ( University of Oregon , 2021-09-13 ) This dissertation argues for a critical reconstruction of the concept of universal history. In doing so, it draws on theoretical resources offered by a materialist philosophy of history, as it is expressed in both German ...
• Synoptic Fusion and Dialectical Dissociation: The Entwinement of Linguistic and Experiential Pragmatisms à la Wilfrid Sellars  Naeb, Cheyenne ( University of Oregon , 2021-09-13 ) This work will attempt to examine the relationship between experiential and linguistic pragmatism through the lens of the twentieth-century Analytic philosopher, Wilfrid Sellars. I maintain that Sellars meta-linguistic ...

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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, and nineteenth-century German 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. Graduate students are expected to meet standards of professional behavior, including: being present on campus to meet the academic and research expectations of the degree program; communicating in a timely, respectful and professional manner; complying with institutional policies and procedures; and participating appropriately in the program’s community. Graduate students are expected to familiarize themselves with applicable university policy and degree program requirements.’ ( https://gap.stanford.edu/handbooks/gap-handbook/chapter-5/subchapter-6/… )

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. 

In the spring quarter of each year, the department reviews the progress of each first-year student to determine whether the student is making satisfactory progress. In the fall and the spring quarter of each year, the department reviews the progress of each student who is past the first year 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 the end of Winter 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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St Andrews is one of the leading international centres for philosophy in Britain. We offer graduate teaching at a level that matches the best graduate programmes elsewhere in the world, in a wide area of philosophy and the history of philosophy.

For more information please visit the Department of Philosophy home page.

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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.

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Akova, Fırat (2020) Effective altruism and extreme poverty. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Anantharaman, Muralidharan (2019) Political liberalism and epistemic permissivism. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Anaya Ruiz Esparza, José Alfonso (2017) Perceptual non-evidential knowledge : an epistemology of perception from an Austinian perspective. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Allen, David James (2015) Philosophy and the sciences in the work of Gilles Deleuze, 1953-1968. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Arnold, Adam Robert (2015) The authority of us : on the concept of legitimacy and the social ontology of authority. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Ali, Zulfiqar (2010) Ethics as aesthetics : Michel Foucault's genealogy of ethics. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Ambrose, Darren (2002) Beyond Hegel : Levinas and the persistence of skepticism. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Allard-Nelson, Susan K. (2002) Normativity and Aristotelian virtue ethics: an evaluation and reconciliation. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Allan, Neil Peter (2001) Kafka : phenomenology and post-structuralism. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Albert, Eliot (1999) Towards a schizogenealogy of heretical materialism : between Bruno and Spinoza, Nietzsche, Deleuze and other philosophical recluses. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Ahmad, Saeedah (1994) James and Russell on neutral monism. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Ashby, David (1992) The limitations of dispersive freedom : Michel Foucault and historiography. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Ainley, Alison Claire (1992) Ethics and embodiment : an examination of "the feminine" and the body in recent French philosophy. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Blaiklock, Jack (2023) Emotional experience, imagination, and our understanding of evaluative concepts. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Bazzurro Gambi, Leonello (2021) Juan Luis Martínez’s poetics of assemblage. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Barry, Lucy Clare (2019) Autonomy, an ethics of freedom, and the question of answerability. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Bieliavskyi, Vladyslav (2018) Free will and responsibility in personality theories of Freud and Rogers: meaning, application, and integration. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Berger, Benjamin (Researcher in philosophy) (2016) From nature to spirit : Schelling, Hegel, and the logic of emergence. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Broome, Matthew R. (2014) Philosophical reflections on the nature of psychosis. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Bassi, Yasmin (2013) Interventionism and the exclusion problem. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Booth, Jennifer Elizabeth (2006) Experience, action and affordance perception. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Bailey, Thomas W. (2003) Kant, Nietzsche, and the moral agent. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Barker, Tom Paul (2003) Disclosure and inscription: Heidegger, Derrida, and the technological difference. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Bani, Nayère (2002) The eclipse of being: Heidegger on the question of being and nothing and the ground of nihilism. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Brassier, Ray (2001) Alien theory : the decline of materialism in the name of matter. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Boyer, Amalia (2000) Materialist ontology and the problem of politics : Spinoza : Deleuze and Guattari's capitalisme et schizophrénie. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Bracken, Pat (1998) Trauma and the age of postmodernity: a hermemeutic approach to post traumatic anxiety. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Bazin, Jacqueline H. M. (1997) The myth of psychical distance in aesthetic experience. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Beddoes, Diane J. (1996) Breeding demons : a critical enquiry into the relationship between Kant and Deleuze with specific references to women. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Beardsworth, Sara (1993) The philosophical foundations of Kristeva's thought. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Bennett, Laura Jane (1992) Realism and evidence in the philosophy of mind. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Blincoe, Nicholas Joseph (1992) Derrida and economics : the economics of depression. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Burnham, H. Douglas (Hugh Douglas) (1992) Kant, Heidegger and spacing. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Brassett, Jamie D. (1992) Cartographies of subjectification. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Boothroyd, David (1987) Metaphysics and the other. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Bernard, Malcolm (1984) Economy and strategy : deconstruction as feminism. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Corrado, Maria Giovanna (2023) Audition and the world: an account of the materiality of the objects of auditory perceptual experience. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Chennells, Matthew (2023) (In)compatible : shared intention, ordinary uncertainty and social commitment. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Carneiro, Diogo Nuno Rodrigues (2021) Reasons of justice : objectivity as trans-positionality. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Copelj, Erol (2019) Mindfulness: the feeling of being tuned-in, and related phenomena : phenomenological reflections of a Buddhist practitioner. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Cunningham, Joseph John (2015) The remit of reasons. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Camacho, Enrique (2013) Justice, legitimacy and political boundaries : the morality of border control. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Chouraqui, Frank (2009) A study in ambiguity : Nietzsche and Merleau-Ponty on the question of truth. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Crawford, Jane-Ann (2001) Creative involution : overcoming man : becoming-woman. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Crespo-Perona, Miguel Ángel (1999) An aesthetics of sacredness : a Nietzschean reading of James Joyce and T. S. Eliot. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Chetwynd, S. B. (Susan Beryl) (1997) The embedded self : an investigation into moral thinking and thinkers. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Cardinal, Daniel (1995) Condillac and the language of sensation. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Chapman, Helen Christine (1992) The philosophy of tragedy : the tragedy of philosophy : the mimetic interrelationship of tragedy and philosophy in the theoretical writings of Friedrich Hölderlin. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Clarke, Bernard (1992) Self-deception. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Dal Poz, Irene (2019) Foucault and the politics of self-government. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Dennis, Matthew (2018) Cultivating our passionate attachments : self-cultivation in practical philosophy. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Dabbagh, Sorush H. (2006) Moral reasons : particularism, patterns and practice. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

De Forest Duer, Alexandra (2003) The dialectics of eros: from Plato to Dante. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Doyle, Tsarina (2002) Nietzsche on epistemology and metaphysics. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Dixon, Joan Elizabeth (1997) Time, consciousness and scientific explanation. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Dibben, Colin (1994) Influence and infection : Georges Bataille and the fate of critique. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Earley, Christopher (2023) Crisis and engagement : a philosophy of contemporary art. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Evans, Brigid (2023) Ain’t talkin’ ‘bout love : intellectual disability and broad sexual exclusion. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Evans, Zack (2016) Intentional agency. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Espejo-Serna, Juan C. (2016) A Rylean account of intelligent actions and activities. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Ennis, Kathleen (2008) Michel Foucault and Judith Butler: troubling Butler's appropriation of Foucault's work. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Ferro, Bernardo (2023) Freedom beyond liberalism : a reconstruction of Hegel’s social and political philosophy. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Flenady, Gene (2018) Indifference and determination: Kant’s concept/intuition distinction and Hegel’s doctrine of being. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Faramarzi, Danyal (2015) Nietzsche's epistemology : a Kantian reading. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Fossey, Peter (2014) Desire and value in practical reasoning. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Finozzi, Riccardo (2013) The ethics of thinking in Heidegger, Bruno & Spinoza. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Fenton, Michael P. (2009) The possibility of empirical knowledge. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Faulkner, Keith W. (2004) Deleuze and the three syntheses of time. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Frowe, Ian (1999) Language, ideology and education. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Fisher, Mark (1999) Flatline constructs : Gothic materialism and cybernetic theory-fiction. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Floridi, Luciano (1990) The search for knowledge : from desire to defence : hypothesis for the introduction of a Peirceisch interpretation of the genetic principle of the process of knowing as a fundamental orientation for a future gnoseology. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Fine, Kit (1969) For some proposition and so many possible worlds. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Gansinger, Simon (2023) Reasons of state as reasons in law : understanding deep legal change with Hegel’s theory of adjudication. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Giavazzi, Michele (2020) Rule of the knowers : the epistocratic challenge to democracy. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Giavazzi, Michele (2020) Rule of the knowers: The epistocratic challenge to democracy. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Gaydon, Philip Keith (2019) Lived epistemology, the childlike and a virtuous education. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Godwin, Matthew (2018) Sophia and poiesis : Nietzsche, aesthetics, and the quest for knowledge. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Ganitsky, Tania (2018) Unworking poetic address: a comparative study on Emily Dickinson, Maurice Blanchot, Paul Celan and Jean-Luc Nancy. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Grewal, Siddhant (2016) Intentionalism as metacriticism : a reassessment of the intentional fallacy. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Gracieuse, Marjorie (2011) Deleuze and the problem of hierarchy : the crowned anarchy of desire. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Greaves, Thomas Guy (2007) The poverty of ecology: Heidegger, living nature and environmental thought. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Gripps, Richard (2001) Alienation and the sciences of mind : understanding Schizophrenia without cognitivist theory. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Greenspan, Anna (2000) Capitalism's transcendental time machine. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Groves, Christopher (1999) Hegel and Deleuze: immanence and otherness. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Goodman, Steve (1999) Turbulence : a cartography of postmodern violence. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Gargett, Adrian (1997) Sextant in dogtown : a project. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Granger, Stewart Edward (1983) A pragmatic theory of truth and ontology. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Honsbeek, Samuel (2022) The invention of knowing : a study of Nietzsche's casual-genetic enquiries into knowledge. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Hetterley, Jae (2022) Being and interpretation : Kant, Heidegger, and fundamental ontology. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Hart, Michael Richard (2012) Platonic education : teaching virtue in a constantly changing moral culture. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Hernandez, Juan P. (2011) The Seinsfrage and the place of the objective in Heidegger's early work. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Heldt, Caleb (2011) Dialectic and caesura : immanence and transcendence in Sartre's ontology. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Hughes, Julian C. (2000) Understanding dementia : a Wittgensteinian critique of models of dementia. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Hall, Stephen Alexander (2000) Outside the gate : a study of Nietzsche's project of revaluation as mediated via the work of D.H. Lawrence. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Haldane, Adrian (1999) On the possibility of Kant's answer to Hume : subjective necessity and objective validity. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Horton, Roderyck John (1986) Some foundational problems in the theory of measurement. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Ivanov, Ivan V. (2016) Observational concepts and experience. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Irwin, Jones (1997) Reviving an ancient-modern quarrel : a critique of Derrida's reading of Plato and Platoism. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Jeong, Jihun (2019) Nietzsche on the social whole and unity. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Jakušić, Dino (2017) The possibility of ontology. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Joseph, Vivan (2015) The relation between attention and awareness in visual experience. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Johnson, Andrew Tyler (2012) Being in the earth : Heidegger and the phenomenon of life. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Jennings, Sarah (2010) The dialectic of conscience within Hegel's philosophy of right. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Jones, Rachel (Rachel Ellen) (1997) Mosaics of the self : Kantian objects and female subjects in the work of Claire Goll and Paula Ludwig. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Jones, Kath Renark (1996) Re-thinking desire. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Jovejoy, James Grant (1992) Heidegger's early ontology and the deconstruction of foundations. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Joughin, Martin (1984) Inquiry in question. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Kreetz, Tristan (2021) Wakeful consciousness as biological phenomenon : a teleological account. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Kay, James (2020) Hegel and Spinoza on the philosophy of nature. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Kaushall, Justin N. (2018) The historical negation of aesthetic categories: Adorno’s inheritance of Kant’s critique of judgment. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Kalantari, Seyed Ali (2013) Thoughts and oughts. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Kuzma, Joseph Dlaboha (2011) Erotic scenographies : Blanchot, Nietzsche & the exigency of return. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Kolkman, Michael (2009) Towards a philosophy of freedom : Fichte and Bergson. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Kelly, Alexander J. (2009) Properties and powers. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Kim, Hyosup (2009) Nietzsche's substantive ethics: towards a new table of values. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Kollias, Hector (2003) Exposing romanticism : philosophy, literature, and the incomplete absolute. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Känd, Kaupo (2000) Beyond society : a study of Hegel's and Nietzsche's political thought. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Kurak, Michael D. (1999) The foundations of cognition : variations on the theme of an a priori structure of awareness. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Koutoupis-Kitis, Elizabeth (1982) Problems connected with the notion of implicature. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Logan, Fraser (2023) Nietzsche on honesty. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Luvisotto, Giulia (2021) An aretaic account of responsibility for beliefs. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Lordan, Thomas (2018) Kant and the concept of cognitive finitude. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Locatelli, Roberta (2016) Relationalism in the face of hallucinations. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Lambert, Richard (2015) The diffêrance of an almost absolute proximity : Hegel and Derrida. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Laleh, Justin (2013) The presence of Nietzsche in Heidegger's The fundamental concepts of metaphysics : a philosophical Auseinandersetzung. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Lynch, Kevin, Ph.D. (2011) A defense of a deflationary theory of self-deception. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Lafferty, Michael Gerald (2006) Arthur Danto's philosophy of art. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Lord, Beth (2003) Kant's productive ontology : knowledge, nature and the meaning of being. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Lee, Kyoo Eun (2000) Cartesian deconstruction : self-reflexivity in Descartes and Derrida. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Livingston, Suzanne (1998) Touch-sensitive : cybernetic images and replicant bodies in the post-industrial age. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Lyne, Ian (1995) The temporality of language : Kant's legacy in the work of Martin Heidegger and Walter Benjamin. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Lamb, Virginia (1976) The aesthetics of a phenomenologist: Mikel Dufrenne's "La phénoménologie de l'expérience esthétique". PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

McDade, Pedro (2020) Reciprocity and its role in economic cooperation. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Martina, Giulia (2019) Changing appearances : a minimalist approach. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

McIntire, William (2016) Living as sublimated dying : understanding aesthetics and ethics from Freud and Nietzsche. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Muldoon, James (2016) Hannah Arendt and council democracy. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Mitchell, Jonanthan (2015) Exemplars as evaluative ideals in Nietzsche’s philosophy of value. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Moore, Richard Thomas (2009) Learning to do things with words. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Mitcheson, Katrina Maud (2009) Nietzsche's philosophy of overcoming and the practice of truth. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Mitchell, Elizabeth Gay (2005) Different ways of seeing: the language games of mothering. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Mitinunwong, Kanit (2002) An ontology of practice. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

McClure, Bruce David (2001) Between the seen and the said : Deleuze-Guattari's pragmatics of the order-word. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Mandarini, Matteo (1998) Efficient material-abstraction : towards a critical materialist pragmatics. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Mullarkey, John (1993) Bergson and perspectivism. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

McCarney, Joe (1970) The concept of morality. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Noonan, Christopher (2021) Evolutionary debunking arguments and explanatory constraints on belief. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Niklas, Filip (2021) Hegel’s critique of determinism : justifying unfreedom as a moment of freedom. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Nie, Chenwei (2021) Understanding delusions : evidence, reason, and experience. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Niederhauser, Johannes Achill (2018) Heidegger on death and being. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Newbigging, Eric Lomax (1997) The particularity of autonomy. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Oda, Tomoo Thomas (2006) Many spheres of music : hermeneutic interpretation of musical signification. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

O'Donnell, Aislinn (2001) An ethics of the pre-individual. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

O'Reilly, John Anthony (1992) The vanishing of Jean Baudrillard. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

O'Hear, Anthony (1970) Belief. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Pickernell, Jeffrey N. (2018) Temporality and ethics in early Sartre. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Polzin, Sunael (2013) Sartre's existential psychoanalysis : theory, method and case studies. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Pearmain, Charles (2007) Authenticity: an ethic of capacity realisation. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Prosser, Simon James (2001) The dynamics and communication of concepts. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Porter, James Ewan (2001) Alternative temporalities of revolution in the work of Walter Benjamin and Luce Irigaray. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Philpott, Matthew John Irvine (2000) Towards a phenomenology of dyslexia. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Purdom, Judy (2000) Thinking in painting : Gilles Deleuze and the revolution from representation to abstraction. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Rokni, Ahilleas (2021) From logic to nature : a study of objectivity and the idea in Hegel’s Science of Logic. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Ryan, Thomas (2017) The affirmation of Eros : passion and eternity in Friedrich Nietzsche’s The gay science. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Rowthorn, David (2015) Cultural incorporation in Nietzsche’s middle period. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Reeves, Richard (2013) Thought imitates life : the case of John Stuart Mill. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Reglitz, Merten (2011) Global egalitarianism as a practice-independent ideal. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Rashbrook, Oliver William (2010) The unity of consciousness and the ontology of mind. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Rae, Gavin (2010) Hegel, Sartre, & the ontological structure of consciousness. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Richardson, Louise Fiona (2009) What is distinctive about the senses? PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Richardson, Janice (2002) Selves, persons, individuals : a feminist critique of the law of obligations. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Ray, Matthew Alun (2001) On the principles and presuppositions of atheism and agnosticism in Kant, Schopenhauer and Nietzsche. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Ruiz, Martin (1997) Psychophysical parallelism: in the philosophy of G. Deleuze. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Robinson, Keith A. (1995) Michel Foucault : topologies of thought : thinking-otherwise between knowledge, power and self. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Rehberg, Andrea (1993) Becoming-body: the repetition of Kantian critique in the physiological thinking of Nietzsche. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Ramsay, William Donald (1985) Materialism and perceptual experience. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Stinchcombe, Zak (2022) What makes bad books good? The relationship between ethical and aesthetic value. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Stevenson, Shaun (2021) Positively dead : an examination of the concept of the death drive in Gilles Deleuze’s difference and repetition. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Serini, Lorenzo (2020) Senses of scepticism in Nietzsche’s middle writings : how he becomes a sceptic. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Shardlow, Jack (2019) Experiencing (in) time. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Schumski, Irina (2017) Make no exceptions for yourself : – a Kantian response to the particularist challenge. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Spinelli, Nicola (2016) Husserlian essentialism revisited : a study of essence, necessity and predication. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Sokolov, Dariush (2014) Nietzsche and social change. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Shum, Peter (2013) Images of otherness : on the problem of empathy and its relevance to literary moral cognitivism. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Simecek, Karen (2013) Experiencing lyric poetry : emotional responses, philosophical thinking and moral inquiry. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Shimizu, Shogo (2011) Molyneux’s question and the phenomenology of shape. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Shields, Liam (2011) The prospects for sufficientarianism. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Somers-Hall, Henry (2008) Dialectics of difference and negation: the responses of Deleuze and Hegel to representation. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Shaw, Spencer (2002) Showtime: the phenomenology of film consciousness. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Sellars, John (2001) The art of living : Stoic ideas concerning the nature and function of philosophy. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Smethurst, Coryn Russell Ronald (2001) Towards a creative aesthetics: with reference to Bergson. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Speidel, Michelle (2000) An examination of the role of symbiosis and symbiotic systems in evolutionary theory. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Sparks, Simon (1999) Fatalities: truth and tragedy in texts of Heidegger and Benjamin. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Shorthouse, Raymond T. (1999) From 'suspicion' to 'affirmation' : a study of the role of the imagination and prose rhythm, drawing upon the hermeneutical philosophy of Paul Ricoeur, in which there may be movement from suspicion to affirmation of reasonable hope. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Stamp, Richard (1999) The work of friendship : Blanchot, Bataille, Hegel. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Stagoll, Clifford Scott (1998) Deleuze's becoming-subject : difference and the human individual. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Sawhney, Deepak Narang (1996) Axiomatics : the apparatus of capitalism. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Sandowsky, Louis N. (1995) After Derrida before Husserl : the spacing between phenomenology and deconstruction. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Samaras, Athanasios (1995) Virtue and democracy in Plato's late dialogues. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Skilleås, Ole Martin (1992) Literature and the value of interpretation : the cases of The Tempest and Heart of Darkness. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Thorneycroft, William Stephen (2019) A dual process model of emotion. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Testa, Federico (2019) On the politics of life: Michel Foucault and Georges Canguilhem on life and norms. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Tissandier, Alex (2014) Affirming divergence : Deleuze's reading of Leibniz. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Tsoulou, Marina-Georgia (2003) Philosophical appproaches to classical ballet and modern dance. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Toews, David (2001) The social occupations of modernity : philosophy and social theory in Durkheim, Tarde, Bergson and Deleuze. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Thomas, Colin (1997) T.W. Adorno : the memory of utopia. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Thomson, Eoin Scott (1996) The unknown tongue : postponing language and the anonymous. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Tarver, Mark (1985) Metaontology. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Underwood, Alex (2021) Subject and subjection : Deleuze, Guattari, and the problems of liberalism. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Upadhyaya, Kartik (2020) What’s wrong with hypocrisy. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Vanello, Daniel (2016) Emotion and value : a phenomenological approach. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Vaughan, Michael (2010) Creative revolution : Bergson's social thought. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Wetherall, Graham (2020) Errant thought: on philosophy and its past. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Wimmer, Simon Bastian (2019) Reflections on knowledge and belief. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Wigmore, Stephen R. (2015) An examination of Max Scheler’s phenomenological ethics. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Walker, Barnaby (2015) Enquiry and the value of knowledge. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Werkhoven, Sander (2014) The being and value of health. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Wilson, Keith A. (Researcher in philosophy) (2013) Representationalism and anti-representationalism about perceptual experience. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Watkins, Lee (2011) Hegel after Deleuze and Guattari : freedom in philosophy and the state. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Wolfendale, Peter (2011) The question of being : Heidegger and beyond. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Whittington, Mark R. (2004) Identity, continuity and consciousness. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Williamson, George Earl (2001) Alterity and the limit : a heterological ontology. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Wolf, Bogdan (1998) Psychographies : specularity and death in psychoanalysis. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Weate, Jeremy (1998) Phenomenology and difference: the body, architecture and race. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Wilding, Adrian (1996) The concept of remembrance in Walter Benjamin. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Welchman, Alistair (1995) 'Wild above rule or art' : creation and critique. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Webb, David Andrew Noel (1993) Heidegger's reading of Aristotle: praxis and the ontology of movement. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Watt, Alan Norman (1992) Nietzsche and rhetoric. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Williams, James Richard (1990) The conflict of presentations : a critique of Jean-François Lyotard's philosophy of differends. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Wood, David (David C.) (1985) The deconstruction of time. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Wilkinson, Robert (1974) The aesthetics of George Santayana. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Yirmibeş, Mert Can (2022) Hegel’s treatment of modality in the context of contemporary modal metaphysics. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

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 logic requirement may be satisfied by doing one of the following:

(a) Pass the half-term subject Logic for Philosophers with a grade of B or better. (b) Audit Logic I and complete the work (Logic I may not be taken for graduate credit). (c) Pass Logic II, Modal Logic, or Theory of Models. Other advanced logic classes may also be used, with COGS approval. (d) Submit to COGS a syllabus from a logic class completed elsewhere, with a grade of B+ or better, showing it equivalent to Logic I.

Students should complete the logic requirement by the end of their fourth semester.

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.

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Dissertations & Theses

Ph.d. dissertations + m.a. theses.

Here, to the best of our ability to reconstruct it, is a list of all Ph.D. dissertations and master's theses ever written in our department. (For a shorter list of only more recent Ph.D. dissertations, see our page of placement information .) Note that, until 1929, the Department of Philosophy was not distinct from the Department of Psychology at Indiana University. This helps to explain some of the titles below that nowadays might be thought odd to find in a Department of Philosophy. Nevertheless, even Dr. Tugman's 1912 dissertation on the English sparrow — which is as pure a piece of empirical psychology as one could require (it even contains a discussion of how to handle the sparrows) — says it is submitted for the Ph.D. in Philosophy, not Psychology. The same goes for the pre-1929 M.A. theses listed below.

Ph.D. Dissertations

Daniel Buckley, Evidence and Epistemic Normativity

Uri Eran,  Kant's Theory of Emotion: Toward a Systematic Reconstruction

Daniel Lindquist,  Hegel's Critique of Kant's Philosophy of Biology  

Elisabeth Lloyd, 2021 Advanced Study Program Postdoctoral Fellow, National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado

Monica Morrison,  A Socio-Epistemic Theory of Climate Model Development  

Levi Tenen, From Heirlooms to Nature: An Account of Extrinsic Final Value James Andrew Smith, Jr., Science as the Pursuit of Truth: On Quine’s Naturalism

Kevin Mills, Empirical Knowledge in Normative Reasoning

Wade Munroe,  Rationality and Higher-Order Evidence

Hao Hong, Truth and Reality

Dylan Black, A Philosophical Framework for the Science of Consciousness

Emmalon Davis, Testifying Across Difference: Responsibility for Interpersonal and Structural Epistemic Injustice

Noam Hoffer, Kant’s Theoretical Conception of God

Tufan Kiymaz , Phenomenal Knowledge of Physical Facts: What Mary Didn't Know about Physicalism

Tim Perrine, Accurate Representation and Epistemic Value

Sommerlatte, Curtis, The Central Role of Cognition in Kant's Transcendental Deduction

Krista Rodkey, Hume on Sympathy: Justice, Politeness, and Beauty

Mason, Sharon, Knowledge and the First-Person Perspective

Woodward, Philip, The Emergence of Mental Content: An Essay on the Metaphysics of Mind

Saxon, Michael, Drones and Contemporary Conflict: Just War Theory and the US Drone Wars

Houser, Kevin, Suffering, Acknowledgement, and the Ehtical Space of Reasons

Blake, Susan, Mental Content and Epistemic Foundations

Jankovic, Marija, Conventional Meaning

Palmer, Elizabeth, Facts as reasons: The Role of Experience in Empirical Justification

Rings, Michael, The Aesthetic Cosmopolitan Project

Carlson, Matthew, The Structure of Logical Knowledge

Gonnerman, Chad, Concepts in psychology: Towards a better hybrid theory

Han, Gwahee, Integrity as a moral virtue

Jones, Derek, Primitive Agency

Koss, Michael, Semantic and Mathematical Foundations for Intuitionism

Cheung, Kwok-Tung, Doxastic Involuntarism, Epistemic Deliberation and Agency

Gehring, Allen, Truthmaker Theory and Its Application

Harris, Steven, Artifacts and Human Cognitive Agency

McAninch, Andrew, Holding Me to My Word: The Normative Avowal View of Rational Agency

Phillips, Luke, Aestheticism from Kant to Nietzsche

Talcott, David, Metaphysics and Religion in Plato’s Euthyphro

Theurer, Kari,   Rethinking Reductionism: From 17th Century Mechanism to Contemporary Molecular Neuroscience

Buckner, Cameron, Learning from mistakes: error-correction and the nature of cognition

Lopez, Jason, The process of defining self-deception

Wang, Ellie Hua,  Toward an Empirically Grounded Theory of Virtues for Consequentialism

Churchill, John, Mental Causation and the Problem of Causal Exclusion .

Diener, David, The Supremacy and Irrelevance of Reason: Kierkegaard’s Understanding of Authority in the Second Authorship .

Kirchner, Daniel, Sittlichkeit and the Ancient View of the Self in Hegel’s Phenomenology of Spirit .

Lee, Jaeho, Explanation and Its Place In Metaphysical and Scientific Inquiries .

Bassett, Gregory, Searching for Normativity .

Burkhart, Brian, Respect for Kinship: Toward an Indigenous Environmental Ethics .

Aumann, Antony, Kierkegaard on the Need for Indirect Communication .

Jacobs, Jonathan, Causal Powers, A Neo-Aristotelian Metaphysic .

Im, Seungpil, A Study of Kant’s Dreams of a Spirit Seer: Kant’s Ambiguous Relation to Swedenborg.

Alexander, Joshua, Philosophical Intuitions and Experimental Philosophy .

Keele, Lisa, Theories of Continuity and Infinitesimals: Four Philosophers of the Nineteenth Century .

Theiner, Georg, From Extended Minds to Group Minds: Rethinking the Boundaries of the Mental.

Ceballes, John. Hearing the Call of Reason: Kant and Publicity.

Kimble, Kevin. The Intentional Structure of Phenomenal Awareness.

Klein, Alexander M. The Rise of Empiricism: William James, Thomas Hill Green, and the Struggle over Psychology.

McDonald, Brian E. Constraint Variational Semantics.

Seymour, Melissa. Duties of Love and Kant's Doctrine of Obligatory Ends.

Abramson, Darren. Computability and Mind.

Demir, Hilmi. Error Comes with Imagination: A Probabilistic Theory of Mental Content.

Stephen James Crowley. A Complex Story About Simple Inquiries: Micro-epistemology and Animal Cognition.

Tropman, Beth. Moral Realism and the New Intuitionism.

Murakami, Yuko. Modal Logic of Partitions.

Werner, Daniel. Myth and Philosophy in Plato's Phaedrus.

Wolsing, Jennifer. Free at Last: A Libertarian Defense of Free Will.

Conolly, Brian Francis. Studies in the Metaphysics of Dietrich von Freiberg.

Jain, Pragati. Validity and Its Epistemic Roles.

Lindland, Erik. Kierkegaard on Self-Deception.

Shaw, Joshua. Putting Ethics First: Reconsidering Emmanuel Levinas's Ethical Metaphysics.

Brown, Karen Leigh. Epistemic Possibilities and the Sources of Belief.

Dalton, Eric. Analyticity, Holism and Conceptual Role Semantics.

Farin, Ingo. Studies in Early Heidegger (1919–1923).

Gottlieb, Michah. The Ambiguity of Reason: Mendelssohn's Writings on Spinoza.

Morton, Brian P. R. Ineffability and Self-Refutation: Non-Monotonic Logic in the Thought of Pseudo-Dionysius, Sextus Empiricus, and the Astasahasrika Prajnaparamita.

Pamental, Matthew P. Naturalized Human Agency and the Emergence of Norms: Placing Dewey's Ethics on the Map.

Corry, Richard Lachlan. A Causal-Structural Theory of Empirical Knowledge.

Guldmann, Rony. Two Orientations towards Human Nature.

Kaniike, Yoichi. Carnap's Conception of Wissenshaftslogik.

Keele, Rondo Patten. Formal Ontology in the Fourteenth Century: The Chatton Principle and Ockham's Razor.

Janiak, Andrew. Kant's Newtonianism.

Kim, Hans Eung. The Problem of Indexicality.

Liang, Caleb. Toward an Understanding of Objectivity: A Study of the Realism/Antirealistm Debate and the Nature of Empirical Content.

Barceló Aspeita, Axel Arturo. Mathematics as Grammar: 'Grammar' in Wittgenstein's Philosophy of Mathematics during the Middle Period.

DiLeo, Jeffrey R. Is There a Text in Philosophy: Writing, Style, Rhetoric and Culture.

Musselman, Jack Green. Judicial Craftmanship at the Supreme Court: A Critical Legal Studies Examination of Court Crafts Informing the Hate Speech Debate (2 vols).

Pook, David Olson. Objectivity, Skepticism, and the Realistic Spirit in Ethics.

Bolyard, Charles. Knowledge, Certainty, and Propositions Per se notae: A Study of Peter Auriol.

Chemero, Anthony P. How To Be an Anti-Representationalist.

Grueso, Delfin Ig. Justice and Monirities: An Evaluation of John Rawls' Political Liberalism.

DeLancy, Craig. Emotion, Action, and Intentionality.

Edwards, James G. Justification as Intra-Personal Argumentation.

Kennedy, Thomas V. Impartiality and the Moral Domain.

Zheng, Yiwei. Bad Faith, Authenticity, and Pure Reflection in Jean-Paul Sartre's Early Philosophy.

Hardy, James Hintze. Instantial Reasoning, Arbitrary Objects, and Holey Propositions.

Kovach, Adam. A Species of Good: An Essay on Truth as a Kind of Value.

Lee, Byeong Deok. The Paradox of Belief Instability and a Revision Theory of Belief.

Ray, Carolyn. Identity and Universals: A Conceptualist Approach to Logical, Metaphysical, and Epistemological Problems of Contemporary Identity Theory.

Hogg, Charles R., Jr. Ethics secundum stoicos: An Edition, Translation, and Critical Essay.

Mattox, John Mark. Saint Augustine and the Theory of the Just War.

Miller, Pamela. The Implications of John Dewey's Ideas for Environmental Ethics.

Rosenberg, Gregg Howard. A Place for Consciousness: Probing the Deep Structure of the Natural World.

Fry, Jeffrey P. Self-Esteem, Moral Luck, and the Meaning of Grace.

Shimojima, Atsushi. On the Efficacy of Representation.

Eberle, Ruth. Diagrams and Natural Deduction: Theory and Pedagogy of Hyperproof.

Hammer, Eric. M. Diagrams, Logic and Representation.

Luengo, Isabel. Diagrams in Geometry.

Marquez, Ivan. Rorty, Reason, and Modernity's Quest for Freedom and Equality.

Schönfield, Martin. Kant's Early Philosophy of Nature: Science and Metaphysics.

Steeves, H. Peter. Toward a Phenomenological Ethic of Community.

Morado, Raymundo. Fault-Tolerant Reasoning.

Parker, Surekha Gillian. An Aesthetic Theory for Metaphor: How to Avoid Beating a Good Metaphor to Death.

Santory Jorge, Anayra O. The Moral Force of Philosophy.

Yoon, Bosuk. The Problem of Naturalizing Intentionality.

Chalmers, David John. Toward a Theory of Consciousness.

Curtis, Gary Nelson. The Concept of Logical Form.

Chapuis, André. Circularity, Truth, and the Liar Paradox.

Syverson, Paul F. Logic, Convention, and Common Knowledge.

Vaughan, Christopher. Pure Reflection: Self-Knowledge and Moral Understanding in the Philosophy of Jean-Paul Sartre.

Hicks, Stephen Ronald Craig. Foundationalism and the Genesis of Justification.

Ning, Yin-Bin. A Post-Philosophical Essay on Knowledge/Power: Richard Rorty, Anti-Foundationalism, and the Possibility of an Alternative Epistemology. </p

Beavers, M. Gordon. Topics in Lukasiwicz Logics.

Houng, Yu-Houng. Classicism, Connectionism, and the Concept of Level.

Lee, In Tak. A Critique of the Universalist Theory of Ethical Justification: Habermas vs. the Contextualist Point of View.

Soraj, Hongladarom. Imagination in Kant's Critique of Pure Reason.

Dixon, Bobby R. The Master-Slave Dialectic in the Writings of Ralph Ellison: Toward a Neo-Hegelian Synthesis.

Favila, José Manuel. Intersubjectivity of Indexical Thoughts.

Foulks, Frank. A Phenomenal Semantic Frame for the Semiotics of Contrapuntal Theory.

Holland, Monica. Beliefs Based on Emotional Reception: Their Formation, Justification and Truth.

Mares, Edwin David. The Logic of Fictional Discourse.

Armijos, Gonzalo. Marxism, Pragmatism, and Historical Realism: An Epistemological Appraisal.

Freund, Max A. Formal Investigations of Holistic Realist Ramified Conceptualism.

Kalumba, Kibuggo M. The Common Good as a Mandate for the Official Catholic Church's Support for, And Participation in, the Various Revolutionary Movements in Latin America.

Maróstica de Gomez, Ana. Peirce's Conceptions of Truth: A Tychist Approach.

Palma, Adriano. Indexicality.

Jetli, Priyedarshi. The Origins of a Realist Conception of Relations in Plato's Phaedo.

Katz, Sheri. Ontology and Epistemology in John Scottus Eriugena.

Day, Timothy Joseph. Infinite Regress Arguments: Some Metaphysical and Epistemological Problems.

Kill, Kathleen. A Theory of Events.

Herrera, Alejandro Ibanez. Leibniz on Existence.

Landini, Gregory. Meinong Reconstructed versus Early Russell Reconstructed: A Study in the Formal Ontology of Fiction.

Morris, Robert Allan. A Complementarity Thesis for Doxastic Truth.

Orilia, Francesco. Natural Language Semantics and Guise Theory.

Bahlul, Raja. Sameness and Similarity and the Identity of Indiscernibles.

Cohen, Daniel H. The Logic of Conditional Assertions.

Etuk, Udo A. Ethical Postulates for African Development.

Gomez, Ricardo J. Kant's Pre-Transcendental Conception of Science.

Kim, Hyo-Myung. Constant Conjunction and Necessity: A Study in Hume's Theory of Causation.

Kincaid, Harold. Hegel and Holistic Explanation.

Wahl, Russell. Propositions and Facts in the Early Philosophy of Bertrand Russell.

Laycock, Steven William. Intersubjectivity and the Divine Envisionment.

Schoenig, Richard Keith. Primary and Secondary Qualities.

Lesses, Glenn. Desire and Motivation in Plato: Issues in the Psychology of the Early Dialogues and the Republic.

Macdonald, J. Ellis. On Truth and Falsehood in the Extra-Moral Sense: A Translation and Critical Study.

Pendlebury, Michael John. Believing.

Weber, Gregory Dean. Theory of Purposive Behavior, Desire, and Belief, with Applications to the Issues of Materialism and the Objectivity of Value Judgments.

Wilt, Lawrence J. M. Franz Brentano's Epistemology for Ethics.

Fleming, Roger A. A Relativist Theory of Truth and the Problem of Skepticism.

Momoh, Campbell Shittu. An African Conception of Being and the Traditional Problem of Freedom and Determinism.

Dipert, Randall R. Development and Crisis in Late Boolean Logic: The Deductive Logics of Peirce, Jevons and Schröder.

Maloney, J. Christopher. A Philosophical Theory of Perception.

Seiferth, David M. The Grounds of Moral Rightness.

Kapitan, Tomis. Foundations for a Theory of Propositional Form, Implication, Alethic Modality and Generalization.

McKinsey, Thomas Michael. The Reference of Proper Names: A Critical Essay in the Philosophy of Language.

Rapaport, William Joseph. Intentionality and the Structure of Existence.

MacCarthy, Mark Michael. On Methodological Individualism.

Geels, Donald Eugene. False Beliefs and Possible States of Affairs.

Fletcher, James John. Generalization in Art Criticism and the Role Therin of Paradigmatic Aesthetic Objects.

Freeman, James B. Algebraic Semantics for Modal and Relevant Predicate Logics.

Hunt, Walter Murray. An Examination of Some Problems about the Nature of "Moral" Situations and Their Role in Ethics.

Nute, Donald. Identification and Demonstrative Reference.

Beversluis, John. The Connection between Duty and Happiness in Kant's Moral Philosophy.

Cadwallader, Eva Hauel. Nicolai Hartmann's Twentieth-Century Value Platonism.

Williams, Clifford. 'Now', Interchangeability without a Change of Truth Value, and Time.

Williams, Thomas Raymong. The Ideal Observer Theory in Ethics.

Dreher, John Hugo. A Study of Human Action.

Heizer, Ruth Bradfute. A Critique of Karl Popper's Solution to the Problem of Induction.

Hull, Richard T. The Role of the Principle of Acquaintance in Contemporary Disputes over the Relation of Mental, Perceptual, and Physical.

Nassar, Alan George. The Ontological Argument and the Problem of God.

Barford, Robert. The Criticisms of the Theory of Forms in the First Part of Plato's Parmenides.

Marquis, Donald Bagley. Scientific Realism and the Antinomy of External Objects.

Roberts, Lawrence D. John Duns Scotus and the Concept of Human Freedom.

Samuelson, Norbert. The Problem of God's Knowledge in Gersonides: A Translation of and Commentary to Book Three of the Milhamot Adonai.

Scott, Stephen Hamilton. Universals and Ontological Analysis.

Park, Désirée. Berkeley's Theory of Notions.

Bayles, Michael D. Rule Utilitarianism and an Enlightened Moral Consciousness.

Hanke, John W. The Ontological Status of the Work of Art in the Aesthetics of Maritain.

Perreiah, Alan R. Is There a Doctrine of Supposition in the Logica Magna?

Vollrath, John. Actions and Events.

Allen, Allan J. Moral Judgment and the Concept of a Universal Imperative with Special Reference to Kant.

Clatterbaugh, Kenneth C. The Problem of Individuation.

Cooper, William F. Francesco Romero's Theory of Value.

Gram, Moltke S. Two Theories of the A Priori.

Robinsin, William S. Perception and Reference.

Galligan, Edward Michael. Plato and the Philosophy of Language.

Howard, Vernon Alfred. The Academic Compromise on Free Will in Nineteenth Century American Philosophy: A Study of Thomas C. Upham's A Philosophical and Practical Treatise on the Will (1834).

Perkins, Robert L. Kierkegaard and Hegel: The Dialectical Structure of Kierkegaard's Ethical Thought.

Peterson, John. Logical Atomism and the Realism-Nominalism Issue: A Critique of Contemporary Atomism from the Viewpoint of Classical Realism.

Dietl, Paul Joseph. Explanation and Action: An Examination of the Controversy between Hume and Some of His Contemporary Critics.

Tovo, Jerome. The Experience of Causal Efficacy in Whitehead and Hume.

Young, Theodore A. Change in Aristotle, Descartes, Human, and Whitehead: An Essay in Philosophy of Nature.

Lineback, Richard H. The Place of the Imaginatiion in Hume's Epistemology.

Wisadavet, Wit. Sartre's and the Buddhist's Concept of Man.

Davis, Clarence George. Obligation and Aspiration in Ethics.

Anton, Peter Achilles. Empiriciam and Analysis.

Kleis, Sander J. Brightman's Idea of God.

Smyth, Richard A. Kant's Theory of Reference.

Owsley, Richard Mills. The Moral Philosophy of Karl Jaspers.

Churchill, James Spencer. Kant and the Problem of Metaphysics.

Lord, Catherine. The Cognitive Import of Art, with Reference to Kant's Theory of Aesthetic Judgment.

Rukavina, Thomas. Heidegger as Critic of Western Thinking.

Faruki, Mohamed Zuhdi Taji. The Universal Categories of Charles Sanders Peirce.

Hayes, Frank Ambrose. Platonic Elements in Spinoza's Theory of Method.

Frye, Robert Edward. Pragmatism in Recent Non-Pragmatic Systems: Santayana, Bergson, Whitehead.

Carmichael, Douglas. Order and Human Value.

Kramer, Richard Neil. The Ontological Foundations of Negatives.

Mayfield, William Hollingsworth. Platonism and Christianity in the Work of Paul Elmer More.

Al-Faruqi, Isma'il R. On Justifying the Good.

Reeves, George Cooper.  The Philosophy of Tommaso Campanella with Special Reference to His Doctrine of the Sense of Things and of Magic, with a Translation of Books 1 and 2 and a Bibliography.

Baker, Arthur Mulford.  The River of God: The Source-Stream for Morals and Religion.

Tugman, Eupha May Foley.  Light Discrimination in the English Sparrow.

Master's Theses

Gottschling, David.  Moral Philosophy's Double Vision: Toward a More Coherent Moral Philosophy.

Taliano, Lisa Toni.  The Tragic Affirmation of Life: A Critical Analysis of Nietzsche and Van Gogh.

Vári, Peter.  Wittgenstein and the Problem of Relations.

DiLeo, Jeffrey R.  Charles S. Peirce on Proper Names and Haecceitism.

Tilton, Louis.  Sartre's Theory of the Group.

Dreher, John Hugo.  A Theory of Knowledge for Empiricism.

Evans, Fred J.  Whitehead's Philosophy of Mind.

Johnson, Anita Louise.  Activity, Labor, and Human Nature in Karl Marx.

Johnston, Thomas Michael.  The Process of Transition in Whitehead's Metaphysics.

Larrabee, Mary Jeanne.  Intentionality in Edmund Husserl and Martin Heidegger: A Comparative Study of Ideen I and Sein und Zeit.

Hamrick, William B.  Time in the Philosophies of Whitehead and Merleau-Ponty.

Hunt, Walter Murray.  The Situationism of Joseph Fletcher: An Examination of Some of Its Philosophical Bases.

Learned, Stephen Paul.  The Austin-Strawson Debate on Truth.

Moon, Donald Le Rue.  Max Scheler's Phenomenology of Religion: The Self-Givenness of the Divine and Human Consciousness.

Gale, Kenneth E.  Descartes: The Cogito, Substance, and Individuation.

Goldenbaum, Donald M.  Ambiguities in Certain Arguments for the Existence of External Objects.

Hammond, John Elwyn.  Collingwood's Theory of Presuppositions: The Road to a New Metaphysics.

Krausz, Michael.  On Method in Metaphysics: A Modular Analysis for Criticism of Philosophical Theories.

Pil'l, Anne Kimino Uemura.  Cogito, ergo sum: A Critical Analysis of Jaakko Hintikka's Interpretation.

Mueller, Robert W. An Examination of the Meaning of the Socratic Paradoxes.

Kuo, David Dah-Chuen. Kant's Method and His Deduction of the Categories.

Williams, Thomas Raymong. A Critique of the Rationalistic Ethical Theory Presented in Marcus Singer's Generalization in Ethics.

Lineback, Richard H. An Introduction to Kierkegaard's Philosophical Fragments.

Leonard, Marilyn Rosenthein. Propositions and Atomic Propositions.

Stamatakos, Bess Makris. On Being Both Red and Blue All Over at the Same Time.

Galligan, Edward Michael. Towards the Understanding of Parmenides' Way of Truth.

Gavrilis, Nicholas. Non-Cognitive Ethics: An Examination of Five Contemporary Ethical Writers.

D'Abbracci, Anthony Robert. Order vs. the Arbitrary: St. Thomas Aquinas and Duns Scotus.

Perkins, Robert L. Aesthetics and Existence: Some Kierkegaardian Themes.

Smyth, Richard A. Intuition and Concept: A Study in Kantian Logic.

Jager, Ronald. Language, Truth and Intentional Logic.

Burkhardt, Phillip Edward. Monad and Universe: Some IMplication of Leibniz' Concept.

Davis, Clarence George. Religious Experiences.

Rukavina, Thomas. Fundamental Ontology in the Philosophy of Martin Heidegger.

Ogden, Joan Barbara. The Square of Opposition: An Evaluation of the Current Controversy.

Pietersma, Henry. Freedom and Man: An Essay on Jean-Paul Sartre's View of Existential Freedom as Found in His L'Etre et le néant.

Wasserman, Irving. Realism and Historicism: A Study of the Philosophy of R. G. Collingwood.

Crimmel, Henry H. The Copernican Revolution in Philosophy.

Young, Theodore A. Being and Analogy: The Role of Metaphysical Analogy in Classical Realism, Josiah Royce and R. G. Collingwood.

Anton, Peter. Empiricism and Solipsism.

Conger, Mary Janeway. The Erotic Bird: Platonism and Wallace Stevens.

Frye, Robert Wedard. John Locke as Rationalist.

Allen, Jerome Lawson. Justice and Necessity in Plato.

Sikma, Barney. God and Man: A Comparative Study of Epictetus the Stoic and St. Paul the Apostle.

Achamma, John. An Interpretation of Gandhi's Religious Philosophy in the Light of Bergson's Two Sources of Morality and Religion.

Kramer, Richard Neil. The Nature of Causation.

Owsley, Richard Mills. The Concept of Evolutionary Progress and the Philosophies of Two Biologists.

Bullock, Robert Lee. Latent Pragmatism in the Philosophy of Schopenhauer.

Burkhart, Reginald Keith. The Aristotelian Syllogism and Causation.

Kellermann, Frederick D. Socrates and Christianity.

Al-Faruqi, Isma'il R. The Ethics of Reason and the Ethics of Life (Kantian and Nietzschean Ethics).

Barber, Richard Leslie. A Reinterpretation of the Significance of the Calculus of Classes for Aristotelian Logic.

Parker, Francis Howard. A critical examination of Professor Kantor's interbehavioral description of thinking.

Jeanes, Charlotte Ann. The Ontological Status of Ought, Based on a Study of the Ought Concepts of Hartmann and Urban.

Pitz, Sally A. The Intentional Fallacy Issue.

Van Liere, Donald Wilbur. The Relation of Virtue to Knowledge with Special Reference to Plato's Protagoras.

Harshman, Hardwick W. Immortality in Plato.

Reagan, Gordon Lober. An Analysis and Redefinition of the Concept of Organic Unisty as an Essential Property of Aesthetic Objects.

Muedeking, George Herbert. The Basis for Ethics: The Contribution of Christianity to a Theory of Ethics.

Mason, Robert E. A Semantic Alphabet for Philosophy.

Meloy, John Wilson. The Nature and Function of Religious Experience: A Study in the Philosophy of Religion.

Keller, Samuel E. Business ethics and the N.R.A. codes; an ethical analysis of business with special references to the codes prepared to comply with the requirements of the National industrial recovery act of 1933.

Horth, Dudley Shirley. An Examination of Nicolai Hartmann's Ethical Theory.

Knight, Everett Estes. The Constructive Value of Doubt with a Bibliography Appended.

Knight, Homer Guy. Psychology of Initiative.

Llewelyn, Edgar Julius. The Forms of Stimulus which Favor the Radical and Permanent Expansion of Human Energy.

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Home > FACULTIES > Philosophy > PHILOSOPHY-ETD

Philosophy Theses and Dissertations

This collection contains theses and dissertations from the Department of Philosophy, collected from the Scholarship@Western Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Theses/Dissertations from 2023 2023

The Phenomenology and Intentionality of Normative-Evaluative Experience , Shawn K. Bartlett

Causal Variable Choice, Interventions, and Pragmatism , Zili Dong

What Do We Owe The Other Animals In Health-Related Research? , Jessica A. du Toit

Using Formal Epistemology to Model Epistemic Injustice Against Neurodivergent People , Mackenzie Marcotte

Conceptual Engineering & Contextualism , Madhavi Mohan

Human Extinction in the Pessimist Tradition , Ignacio L. Moya

The Exclusion of Religious Reasons , Jaclyn Rekis

Kant's Concept of Freedom in the Metaphysics Lectures , Alin Paul Varciu

Theses/Dissertations from 2022 2022

Effective Field Theories: A Philosophical Appraisal , Dimitrios Athanasiou

Essays on Privilege and its Implications for Relational Autonomy and Vaccine Hesitancy , Nicole Fice

A Critical Examination of Informed Consent Approaches in Pragmatic Cluster-Randomized Trials , Cory E. Goldstein

Craft and Virtue in Plato's Early Dialogues , Cecilia Z. Li

On Powerful Qualities , Dean J. Morales

Dissolving Nature/Nurture: Development as Coupled Interaction , Derek E. Oswick

Imagination as Thought in Aristotle's De Anima , Matthew Small

Theses/Dissertations from 2021 2021

Thomas Reid on Language and Mind , Alastair L.V. Crosby

Back to the Beginning: An Empiricist Defense of Scientific Stories About the Past , Craig William Fox

Autonomy, Paternalism, and the Moral Foundations of the Fiduciary Relationship , Austin Horn

Vindicating Evans: A Defence Of Evans' Theory Of Singular Thought , Dylan A. Hurry

Theories: Reconsidering Ramsey in the Philosophy of Science , John D. Lehmann

The Moral and Political Status of Microaggressions , Heather Stewart

Theses/Dissertations from 2020 2020

Aristotle's Account of Time: A Moderate Realism , Pierre-Luc Boudreault

On Polysemy: A Philosophical, Psycholinguistic, and Computational Study , Jiangtian Li

Apology and Reconciliation in Settler States , Nicholas B. Murphy

Theses/Dissertations from 2019 2019

On Separating the Wheat from the Chaff: Surplus Structure and Artifacts in Scientific Theories , Marie Gueguen

Theory construction in high-energy particle physics , Adam Koberinski

Understanding Interdisciplinary Corroboration: Lessons from a Review Paper in the Mind-Brain Sciences , Jaclyn Lanthier

Derogatory Words and Speech Acts: An Illocutionary Force Indicator Theory of Slurs , Chang Liu

Rethinking Individuality in Quantum Mechanics , Nathan Moore

Methodological Challenges for Empirical Approaches to Ethics , Christopher Shirreff

In Search of Psychiatric Kinds: Natural Kinds and Natural Classification in Psychiatry , Nicholas Slothouber

A Groundwork for A Logic of Objects , David Winters

Modes of Argumentation in Aristotle's Natural Science , Adam W. Woodcox

Theses/Dissertations from 2018 2018

A Duty to Adopt? On the Ethics and Politics of Adoption , Veromi Arsiradam

A Practical and Practice-Sensitive Account of Science as Problem-Solving , Frédéric-Ismaël Banville

Empirical Evidence and the Multiple Realization of Mental Kinds , Danny Booth

Kant and Tetens on Transcendental Philosophy , Richard D. Creek

Computing, Modelling, and Scientific Practice: Foundational Analyses and Limitations , Filippos A. Papagiannopoulos

A Pluralism Worth Having: Feyerabend's Well-Ordered Science , Jamie Shaw

Theses/Dissertations from 2017 2017

A Complete Special Goods Theory of Filial Obligations , Cameron Fenton

The Goal of Habituation in Aristotle: A Neo-Mechanical Account , Dioné Harley

Foreknowledge, Free Will, and the Divine Power Distinction in Thomas Bradwardine's De futuris contingentibus , Sarah Hogarth Rossiter

A New Framework for Enactivism: Understanding the enactive body through structural flexibility and Merleau-Ponty’s ontology of flesh , John Jenkinson

The Foundations of Revealed Religion 100 Years before David Hume: The Contribution of Anthony Collins , Nicholas Bryant Nash

Virtue Ethics for Relational Beings , Mathieu Roy

Fiduciary Duties and Commercial Surrogacy , Emma A. Ryman

Evidence in Neuroimaging: Towards a Philosophy of Data Analysis , Jessey Wright

Theses/Dissertations from 2016 2016

On the Role of Mathematics in Scientific Representation , Saad Anis

Species Pluralism: Conceptual, Ontological, and Practical Dimensions , Justin Bzovy

Tesitmony as Significance Negotiation , Jennifer F. Epp

The Moral Status and Welfare of Patients Diagnosed as Vegetative With Covert Awareness , Mackenzie S. Graham

Similarity, Adequacy, and Purpose: Understanding the Success of Scientific Models , Melissa Jacquart

Varieties of Objectivity: What's Worth Keeping? , Lori Kantymir

Evaluating the Quantum Postulate in the Context of Pursuit , Molly M. Kao

A Pure Representationalist Account of Belief and Desire , Stephen Pearce

The Constellations of Empiricism, New Science, and Mind in Hobbes, Locke, and Hume , Lisa Pelot

Assessing Decision-Making Capacity After Severe Brain Injury , Andrew Peterson

Theses/Dissertations from 2015 2015

Probabilistic Reasoning in Cosmology , Yann Benétreau-Dupin

Civil Interests, The Social Contract, and The Conditions of Political Legitimacy , Michael S. Borgida

Gamete Provision and Moral Responsibility , Reuven A. Brandt

Rethinking Empathy: Value and Context in Motivation and Adaptation , O'Neal Buchanan

Representationalism About Sensory Phenomenology , Matthew Ivanowich

Contesting Gender Concepts, Language and Norms: Three Critical Articles on Ethical and Political Aspects of Gender Non-conformity , Stephanie Julia Kapusta

A Biopsychological Foundation for Linguistics , Jonathan J. Life

On Nonequilibrium Statistical Mechanics , Joshua M. Luczak

The Debate about Time: Examining the Evidence from our Ordinary Experience of Time , Melissa MacAulay

On Philosophical Intuitions , Nicholas D. McGinnis

Weaving the Statesman: the Unity of Plato's Politicus , Ryan Middleton

Trusting to a Fault: Criminal Negligence and Faith Healing Deaths , Ken Nickel

The Modern Secularization of Just War Theory and its Lessons for Contemporary Thought , Aviva Shiller

Aggregating Evidence in Climate Science: Consilience, Robustness and the Wisdom of Multiple Models , Martin A. Vezér

Moral Sense Theory and the Development of Kant's Ethics , Michael H. Walschots

Philipp Frank: Philosophy of Science, Pragmatism, and Social Engagement , Amy N. Wuest

Phenomenal Intentionality and the Problem of Cognitive Contact , Christopher A. Young

Theses/Dissertations from 2014 2014

Language, Mind, and Cognitive Science: Remarks on Theories of the Language-Cognition Relationships in Human Minds , Guillaume Beaulac

Love and Ethics in the Works of J. M. E. McTaggart , Trevor J. Bieber

A Feminist Defense of Moderate Moral Intuitionism , Bill JC Cameron

Hypothetical Necessity and the Laws of Nature: John Locke on God's Legislative Power , Elliot Rossiter

William James' Theory of Emotion , James Southworth

Theses/Dissertations from 2013 2013

A Defence of Anti-Psychologism About Reasons , Alex Beldan

Aristotle on the Good of Friendship: Why the Beneficiary is Not What Matters , Kristina L. Biniek

An Ethical Justification for Research with Children , Ariella Binik

Method and Metaphor in Aristotle's Science of Nature , Sean Michael Pead Coughlin

On the Physical Explanation for Quantum Computational Speedup , Michael Cuffaro

The Methodological Roles of Tolerance and Conventionalism in the Philosophy of Mathematics: Reconsidering Carnap's Logic of Science , Emerson P. Doyle

Well-Being, Authority, and Worth , Michel Hebert

Structures in Real Theory Application: A Study in Feasible Epistemology , Robert H. C. Moir

Husserl's Transcendental Idealism and the Problem of Solipsism , Rodney Parker

Fertility Preservation Technologies for Women: A Feminist Ethical Analysis , Angel Petropanagos

Some disputed aspects of inertia, with particular reference to the equivalence principle , Ryan S. Samaroo

The Resilience of a Refined Higher-Order Thought Theory of Consciousness , Lee-Anna T. Sangster

Justice, Rights, and Capabilities , Jeffrey E. Spring

Theses/Dissertations from 2012 2012

Does Empirical Moral Psychology Rest on a Mistake? Understanding Theories About the Nature of Moral Judgment as Moral Propositions , Patrick Clipsham

The Reasonable Effectiveness of Mathematics in the Natural Sciences , Nicolas Fillion

Hannah Arendt and Feminist Agency , Katherine N. Fulfer

From Mirror to Mirage: The Idea of Logical Space in Kant, Wittgenstein, and van Fraassen , Lucien R. Lamoureux

Creating and Raising Humans: Essays on the Morality of Procreation and Parenting , Jason T. Marsh

Anti-Foundational Categorical Structuralism , Darren McDonald

Explanation in Science , James A. Overton

Ordinary Empirical Judgments and our Scientific Knowledge: An Extension of Reformed Empiricism to the Philosophy of Science , Nicholas M. Ray

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DPhil in Philosophy

The Doctor of Philosophy (DPhil) in Philosophy is a three- to four-year research programme in which a candidate undertakes a doctoral level research project under the guidance of a supervisor. The doctoral work culminates in a 75,000-word thesis that is defended in the form of a viva voce examination ( oral defence). Satisfactory progress through the DPhil is checked in the form of a mini- viva voce examination taking place at the end of the first and second year of study.

The aim of the Faculty’s DPhil in Philosophy is to prepare you for an academic career in philosophy.

For information on how to make an application please see our   Admissions Procedure and Entry Requirements page .

The Philosophy Graduate Studies Committee recommends progression from Oxford's BPhil in Philosophy to the DPhil programme in view of the opportunity it offers to students to study a wide range of philosophical topics as well as to focus on a narrower field of research interest. Students proceeding to the DPhil programme via the BPhil will normally write a DPhil thesis which is an expansion of their BPhil thesis, although this is not a formal requirement. Indeed, sometimes, the BPhil thesis topic is not suitable for expansion into a DPhil thesis, or a student may wish to write their DPhil thesis on a different topic.

Each year, some students are admitted to the DPhil in Philosophy from programmes other than the BPhil in Philosophy. These students enter the DPhil initially as Probationary Research Students (“PRS”) from appropriate programmes at Oxford or elsewhere. Typically, these students will have already completed substantial graduate work in philosophy, usually equivalent to that required for the BPhil. Students may also progress from a specialist MSt programme, for example from the MSt in Philosophy of Physics  or the MSt in Ancient Philosophy .

In the third term after enrolment onto the DPhil, you are required to complete a transfer of status from PRS to full DPhil status. Two appointed examiners will interview you both on your two-page thesis outline, which explains in outline the intended line of argument or contribution to the subject, and on a piece of written work of approximately 5,000 words in the area and philosophical style of the proposed thesis which is typically, though not necessarily, a draft chapter of the thesis. Students will also normally be expected to submit an additional essay of up to 5,000 words as part of their application to Transfer status, on a philosophical subject that differs from their doctoral research.

Students who progressed from the MSt in Philosophy of Physics course are required to write a 20,000-word thesis during their year as a PRS, as their MSt does not have a thesis element. Students who progress from the BPhil will enter the DPhil without being required to pass a year as a PRS and as a result will only have another six terms (instead of the usual nine terms) of fee liability for their DPhil.

At the end of the second year, you will be required to apply for confirmation of DPhil status. This entails an interview by one or two appointed examiners on your two-page thesis outline, which goes into some detail and comprises a reasoned statement of the nature of the proposed thesis together with a provisional table of contents, and a piece of written work of approximately 5,000 words.

You should have regular one-on-one tuition sessions with your supervisor(s). These will normally happen twice per term but in some terms, especially at the start of the degree and during the final stages of the thesis, the number of sessions may be increased. You are not required to attend any taught graduate classes as part of your DPhil degree, but you are encouraged to participate in lectures, classes, seminars and other educational opportunities offered throughout the university as relevant to your topic of study.

The course has no fieldwork, industrial placement or year abroad element, but you may decide to attend conferences, workshops or research training elsewhere.

Admission to the DPhil in Philosophy

Admission procedure an entry requirements.

For information on admissions to the DPhil in Philosophy please check the  Admissions Procedure and Entry Requirements page .

FAQs about Admission to the DPhil in Philosophy

Please find answers to frequently asked questions about admissions to the DPhil in Philosophy  here .

• Teaching Opportunities

The Faculty believes that it is important both professionally and personally for graduate research students to have opportunities to teach. For graduates seeking an academic career, it is often crucial to have teaching experience when applying for jobs. For many graduate students, teaching is also an important supplement to their income.

The Faculty operates a number of schemes to help our research students secure relevant teaching experience:

• Graduate Teaching Assistant Scheme
• Graduate Lecturing Scheme
• Graduate Teaching Register

For more information on these schemes, please visit the Teaching Opportunities page . 

• DPhil Seminar

The DPhil Seminar at Oxford University provides a forum for graduate students to present and discuss thesis chapters, and workshop papers that are to be submitted for publication.  

Speaker Series:  DPhil students present a part of their dissertation to a faculty member and fellow students. The format is approximately 45 minutes for presentation, 15 minutes for faculty commentary, and 30 minutes for Q&A

Publishing Workshop:  DPhil students receive targeted feedback on papers they intend to submit for publication relatively soon. Each term participants are placed in groups of 3-4, according to topic. During each of the 3-4 workshops (per topic group) the paper of one group member is discussed. Participants will be expected to attend the workshops of their fellow group members and to have read each of the other papers in advance of the relevant sessions. The format will be approximately 10 minutes for author introduction, 30 minutes for faculty commentary, and 50 minutes for discussion. Other faculty members and students are very welcome, but are encouraged to read the paper in advance.

The Faculty expects that DPhil students will present their work in the DPhil seminar at some point during their studies: most likely in their second or third year. The seminar provides an excellent opportunity for presentation experience, as well as feedback from peers and at least one faculty member other than their thesis supervisor(s). All graduate students and faculty are encouraged to attend, and all students are welcome to present but advantage is given to those who have not yet presented a paper.

For more information, please contact the Graduate Training Student Representative .

• Graduate Placement Scheme

The Faculty operates a Graduate Placement Scheme which aims to support graduate research students on the job market from the final year of their DPhil until they secure a tenure track / permanent position. To find out more, please visit the Graduate Placement Scheme page . 

• DPhil Placement Record

The Faculty has an outstanding placement record, including a number of past students who have obtained positions within Oxford itself, such as an associate professorship and a junior research fellowship. Please visit the DPhil Placement Record page for an overview of the Faculty’s placements in recent years. 

Entry Requirements

For a detailed description of the entry requirements for the DPhil in Philosophy, please visit the DPhil in Philosophy page on the central university’s Graduate Admissions webpages.

We hold a Graduate Open Day in March each year, for applicants who receive an offer of a place. If your application is successful, you will receive further information about this in due course.

For the latest information on fees charged by the University, and living costs, please visit the Fees and Funding page .

Please visit our Graduate Funding page to identify various sources of funding for the Philosophy Faculty’s graduate programmes.

Please read through our applicant  Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)  regarding Admission to our courses.

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Philosophy PhD (On-Campus or by Distance Learning)

Annual tuition fee 2024 entry: UK: £4,786 full-time, £2,393 part-time International: £21,840 full-time; £10,920 part-time (distance learning only) More detail .

• Visit an Open Day
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• Employability

By pursuing research in Philosophy at Birmingham, you will joining a vibrant and dynamic research community thanks to the Department’s diverse research interests and approaches.

Our expert supervision spans a wide range of areas, including: Philosophy of Mind and Cognitive Science; Philosophy of Language; Philosophy of Logic; Philosophy of Mathematics; Moral Philosophy (theoretical and practical); Metaphysics and Epistemology; and Philosophy of Religion.

Virtual Chat: Postgraduate opportunities in Philosophy - 28 April 2020 11:00-12:00

Take part in our online chat where Dr Nick Jones will be answering your questions about postgraduate study.

Find out more and register

AHRC funding for PhD students

The University of Birmingham is part of the Midlands4Cities Doctoral Training Partnership (M4C), offering Arts and Humanities Research Council PhD studentships for campus-based programmes. These include a number of Collaborative Doctoral Award opportunities. Each studentship includes research fees, a substantial maintenance grant and additional research training support. Applications are open until 12:00 (noon), 13 January 2021.

Find out more

Scholarships for 2024 entry

The University of Birmingham is proud to offer a range of scholarships for our postgraduate programmes. With a scholarship pot worth over £2 million, we are committed to alleviating financial barriers to support you in taking your next steps.

Each scholarship has its own specific deadlines and eligibility criteria. Please familiarise yourself with the information on individual scholarship webpages prior to submitting an application.

Explore our scholarships

You can study in traditional PhD format, or through our PhD by Papers option. Rather than writing a single book-like thesis examining a single topic, a PhD by Papers gives you the choice of writing a thesis comprising of several separate (though thematically unified) papers, in the style of philosophy journal articles.

Birmingham is one of the first philosophy departments in the UK to offer a PhD by Papers option and, although this style of PhD thesis is very popular at top US departments and offers many advantages for students, it is rare in the UK. The advantages include:

• Ideas don’t always come in book-shaped packages. Our PhD by Papers format recognises that, allowing you greater scope to follow your interests
• If you would like to become an academic philosopher, you will need to publish in philosophical journals, preferably before finishing your PhD. Our PhD by Papers means your work towards publishable papers is always work towards the PhD thesis, improving your academic job prospects along the way

The PhD by Papers format is an option for all Birmingham Philosophy PhD students and is not a separate course of study. Simply apply for the Philosophy PhD as normal.

You can study our Philosophy PhD full-time or part-time, on campus or by distance learning. The College of Arts and Law is experienced in delivering high-quality distance learning to students all over the world. Find out more on our  distance learning website .

At Birmingham, Postgraduate Taught and Postgraduate Research students also have the opportunity to learn graduate academic languages free of charge, to support your studies.

• Graduate School Language Skills

Academically, you are given the trust and freedom to discover your own voice, while my supervisors have been very supportive. The postgraduate community at our department is friendly and constructive, with the postgraduate seminars being a wonderful place to receive feedback on your work. Kash

Why study this course?

• World-leading research : The  Department of Philosophy  was ranked 1st in the UK in the Research Excellence Framework exercise 2021 based on Grade Point Average (Times Higher Education).
• Employability skills : Birmingham’s Philosophy postgraduates develop a range of skills that are highly desirable in the job market, including: articulacy; precise analytical thought; clarity; rigour in formulating complex problems; and the ability to analyse and construct sound arguments.
• Staff expertise : The Department is home to an expanding, energetic and friendly community of philosophers. Our staff produce world-leading research in all core areas of contemporary philosophy and a number of speciality areas.
• Postgraduate community : Our postgraduate students play a very active role in the life of the Department and the atmosphere among students and staff is lively, friendly and supportive. They are important contributors to our on-going research activities, including our research seminars and events, such as our weekly speaker series and various workshops and conferences throughout the year.

The postgraduate experience

The College of Arts and Law offers excellent support to its postgraduates, from libraries and research spaces, to careers support and funding opportunities. Learn more about your postgraduate experience .

We charge an annual tuition fee. Fees for 2024 entry are as follows:

• UK: £4,786 full-time; £2,393 part-time *
• International: £21,840 full-time; £10,920 part-time (distance learning only)

The same fees apply to both campus-based and distance learning study. The distance learning programme also includes one fully-funded visit to campus in the first year of study.

The above fees quoted are for one year only; for those studying over two or more years, tuition fees will also be payable in subsequent years of your programme.

* For UK postgraduate research students the University fee level is set at Research Council rates and as such is subject to change. The final fee will be announced by Research Councils UK in spring 2024.

Eligibility for UK or international fees can be verified with Admissions. Learn more about fees for international students .

Paying your fees

Tuition fees can either be paid in full or by instalments. Learn more about postgraduate tuition fees and funding .

How To Apply

Application deadlines.

Postgraduate research can start at any time during the year, but it is important to allow time for us to review your application and communicate a decision. If you wish to start in September 2024, we would recommend that you aim to submit your application and supporting documents by 1 June 2024.

If the programme has a Distance learning option then students will usually attend a residential visit in September or January, and those students wishing to attend the September residential are also encouraged to apply by 1 June 2024. The visit will take place at the end of September/beginning of October and you will receive further details once you have accepted your offer.

Six steps to apply for our Postgraduate Research courses

Do you have an idea for an interesting research project? You can follow our six easy steps to apply to study for our postgraduate research courses . These include guidance on identifying funding opportunities and writing your research proposal .

Please also see our additional guidance for  applicants to the PhD Distance Learning study mode .

Please note: While our PhD programmes are normally studied in three years full-time or six years part-time, and Masters-level research programmes one year full-time or two years part-time, many programmes have a longer length listed in course or funding applications. This is because the course length is defined as the maximum period of registration, which includes a period of supervised study plus a thesis awaited period. The maximum period of registration for a full-time PhD is four years (three years supervision plus one year thesis awaited). For a full-time Masters-level research programme, it is two years (one year supervision plus one year thesis awaited). For part-time programmes, the periods are double the full-time equivalent.

• How to apply

To apply for a postgraduate research programme, you will need to submit your application and supporting documents online. We have put together some helpful information on the research programme application process and supporting documents on our how to apply page . Please read this information carefully before completing your application.

Our Standard Requirements

If you are applying for a PhD then you will usually need to hold a good Masters qualification in Philosophy or in a relevant subject. Any academic and professional qualifications or relevant professional experience you may have are normally taken into account, and in some cases, form an integral part of the entrance requirements.

If you are applying for distance learning research programmes, you will also be required to demonstrate that you have the time, commitment, facilities and experience to study by distance learning.

If your qualifications are non-standard or different from the entry requirements stated here, please contact the admissions tutor.

International Requirements

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a Bachelors degree and a Masters degree, with a GPA of 14/20 from a recognised institution to be considered. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Holders of the Licenciado or an equivalent professional title from a recognised Argentinian university, with a promedio of at least 7.5, may be considered for entry to a postgraduate degree programme. Applicants for PhD degrees will normally have a Maestria or equivalent

Applicants who hold a Masters degree will be considered for admission to PhD study.

Holders of a good four-year Diplomstudium/Magister or a Masters degree from a recognised university with a minimum overall grade of 2.5 will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Students with a good 5-year Specialist Diploma or 4-year Bachelor degree from a recognised higher education institution in Azerbaijan, with a minimum GPA of 4/5 or 80% will be considered for entry to postgraduate taught programmes at the University of Birmingham.

For postgraduate research programmes applicants should have a good 5-year Specialist Diploma (completed after 1991), with a minimum grade point average of 4/5 or 80%, from a recognised higher education institution or a Masters or “Magistr Diplomu” or “Kandidat Nauk” from a recognised higher education institution in Azerbaijan.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a Bachelors degree and a Masters degree, with a GPA of 3.0/4.0 or 75% from a recognised institution to be considered. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a Bachelors degree and will usually be required to have completed a Masters degree, with a CGPA of 3.0-3.3/4.0 or higher for 2:1 equivalency from a recognised institution to be considered for entry. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Students who hold a Masters degree from the University of Botswana with a minimum GPA of 3.0/4.0 or 3.5/5.0 (70%/B/'very good') will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees.

Please note 4-year bachelor degrees from the University of Botswana are considered equivalent to a Diploma of Higher Education. 5-year bachelor degrees from the University of Botswana are considered equivalent to a British Bachelor (Ordinary) degree.

Students who have completed a Masters degree from a recognised institution will be considered for PhD study.

A Licenciatura or Bacharelado degree from a recognised Brazilian university:

• A grade of 7.5/10 for entry to programmes with a 2:1 requirement
• A grade of 6.5/10for entry to programmes with a 2:2 requirement

Holders of a good Bachelors degree with honours (4 to 6 years) from a recognised university with a upper second class grade or higher will be considered for entry to taught postgraduate programmes.  Holders of a good Masters degree from a recognised university will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Holders of a good post-2001 Masters degree from a recognised university will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Students with a minimum average of 14 out of 20 (or 70%) on a 4-year Licence, Bachelor degree or Diplôme d'Etudes Superieures de Commerce (DESC) or Diplôme d'Ingénieur or a Maîtrise will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees.

Holders of a bachelor degree with honours from a recognised Canadian university may be considered for entry to a postgraduate degree programme. A GPA of 3.0/4, 7.0/9 or 75% is usually equivalent to a UK 2.1.

Holders of the Licenciado or equivalent Professional Title from a recognised Chilean university will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees. Applicants for PhD study will preferably hold a Magister degree or equivalent.

Students with a bachelor’s degree (4 years minimum) may be considered for entry to a postgraduate degree programme. However please note that we will only consider students who meet the entry guidance below.  Please note: for the subject areas below we use the Shanghai Ranking 2022 (full table)  ,  Shanghai Ranking 2023 (full table) , and Shanghai Ranking of Chinese Art Universities 2023 .

需要具备学士学位（4年制）的申请人可申请研究生课程。请根据所申请的课程查看相应的入学要求。 请注意，中国院校名单参考 软科中国大学排名2022（总榜） ，  软科中国大学排名2023（总榜） ，以及 软科中国艺术类高校名单2023 。  

Business School    - MSc programmes (excluding MBA)  

商学院硕士课程（MBA除外）入学要求

School of Computer Science – all MSc programmes 计算机学院硕士课程入学要求

College of Social Sciences – courses listed below 社会科学 学院部分硕士课程入学要求 MA Education  (including all pathways) MSc TESOL Education MSc Public Management MA Global Public Policy MA Social Policy MA Sociology Department of Political Science and International Studies  全部硕士课程 International Development Department  全部硕士课程

  All other programmes (including MBA)   所有其他 硕士课程（包括 MBA）入学要求

Please note:

• Borderline cases: We may consider students with lower average score (within 5%) on a case-by-case basis if you have a relevant degree and very excellent grades in relevant subjects and/or relevant work experience. 如申请人均分低于相应录取要求（5%以内），但具有出色学术背景，优异的专业成绩，以及（或）相关的工作经验，部分课程将有可能单独酌情考虑。
• Please contact the China Recruitment Team for any questions on the above entry requirements. 如果您对录取要求有疑问，请联系伯明翰大学中国办公室   [email protected]

Holders of the Licenciado/Professional Title from a recognised Colombian university will be considered for our Postgraduate Diploma and Masters degrees. Applicants for PhD degrees will normally have a Maestria or equivalent.

Holders of a good bachelor degree with honours (4 to 6 years) from a recognised university with a upper second class grade or higher will be considered for entry to taught postgraduate programmes.  Holders of a good Masters degree from a recognised university will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Holders of a good Bacclaureus (Bachelors) from a recognised Croatian Higher Education institution with a minimum overall grade of 4.0 out of 5.0, vrlo dobar ‘very good’, or a Masters degree, will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Holders of a Bachelors degree(from the University of the West Indies or the University of Technology) may be considered for entry to a postgraduate degree programme. A Class II Upper Division degree is usually equivalent to a UK 2.1. For further details on particular institutions please refer to the list below.  Applicants for PhD level study will preferably hold a Masters degree or Mphil from the University of the West Indies.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a good Bachelors degree from a recognised institution with a minimum overall grade of 6.5 out of 10, or a GPA of 3 out of 4, and will usually be required to have completed a good Masters degree to be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Holders of a good Bakalár from a recognised Czech Higher Education institution with a minimum overall grade of 1.5, B, velmi dobre ‘very good’ (post-2004) or 2, velmi dobre ‘good’ (pre-2004), or a good post-2002 Magistr (Masters), will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a good Bachelors degree from a recognised institution with a minimum overall grade of 7-10 out of 12 (or 8 out of 13) or higher for 2:1 equivalence and will usually be required to have completed a good Masters/ Magisterkonfereus/Magister Artium degree to be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Holders of the Licenciado or an equivalent professional title from a recognised Ecuadorian university may be considered for entry to a postgraduate degree programme. Grades of 70% or higher can be considered as UK 2.1 equivalent.  Applicants for PhD level study will preferably hold a Magister/Masterado or equivalent qualification, but holders of the Licenciado with excellent grades can be considered.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a Bachelors degree and a Masters degree, with a GPA of 3.0/4.0 or 75% from a recognised institution. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Holders of a good Bakalaurusekraad from a recognised university with a minimum overall grade of 4/5 or B, or a good one- or two-year Magistrikraad from a recognised university, will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Students who hold a Masters degree with very good grades (grade B, 3.5/4 GPA or 85%) will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees. 

Holders of a good Kandidaatti / Kandidat (old system), a professional title such as Ekonomi, Diplomi-insinööri, Arkkitehti, Lisensiaatti (in Medicine, Dentistry and Vetinary Medicine), or a Maisteri / Magister (new system), Lisensiaatti / Licenciat, Oikeustieteen Kandidaatti / Juris Kandidat (new system) or Proviisori / Provisor from a recognised Finnish Higher Education institution, with a minimum overall grade of 2/3 or 4/5, will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a should hold a Bachelors degree and will usually be required to have completed a Masters/Maîtrise with a minimum overall grade of 13 out of 20, or a Magistère / Diplôme d'Etudes Approfondies / Diplôme d'Etudes Supérieures Specialisées / Mastère Specialis, from a recognised French university or Grande École to be considered for entry. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Holders of a Magister Artium, a Diplom or an Erstes Staatsexamen from a recognised university with a minimum overall grade of 2.5, or a good two-year Lizentiat / Aufbaustudium / Zweites Staatsexamen or a Masters degree from a recognised university, will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Students who hold a Bachelor degree from a recognised institution will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees. Most taught Masters programmes require a minimum of an upper second class degree (2.1) with a minimum GPA of at least 3.0/4.0 or 3.5/5.0 Students who have completed a Masters degree from a recognised institution will be considered for PhD study.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a good four-year Ptychio (Bachelor degree) with a minimum overall grade of 6.5 out of 10, from a recognised Greek university (AEI), and will usually be required to have completed a good Metaptychiako Diploma Eidikefsis (Masters degree) from a recognised institution to be considered for entry. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

4-year Licenciado is deemed equivalent to a UK bachelors degree. A score of 75 or higher from Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala (USAC) can be considered comparable to a UK 2.1, 60 is comparable to a UK 2.2.  Private universities have a higher pass mark, so 80 or higher should be considered comparable to a UK 2.1, 70 is comparable to a UK 2.2

The Hong Kong Bachelor degree is considered comparable to British Bachelor degree standard. Students with bachelor degrees awarded by universities in Hong Kong may be considered for entry to one of our postgraduate degree programmes.

Students with Masters degrees may be considered for PhD study.

Holders of a good Alapfokozat / Alapképzés or Egyetemi Oklevel from a recognised university with a minimum overall grade of 3.5, or a good Mesterfokozat (Masters degree) or Egyetemi Doktor (university doctorate), will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a Bachelors degree and will usually be required to have completed a Masters degree, with a 60% or higher for 2:1 equivalency from a recognised institution to be considered for entry. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Holders of the 4 year Sarjana (S1) from a recognised Indonesian institution will be considered for postgraduate study. Entry requirements vary with a minimum requirement of a GPA of 2.8.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a Bachelors degree and a Masters degree, with a score of 14/20 or 70% from a recognised institution to be considered. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a Bachelors degree and will usually be required to have completed a Masters degree from a recognised institution, with 100 out of 110 or higher for 2:1 equivalency from a recognised institution to be considered for entry. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Students who hold the Maitrise, Diplome d'Etude Approfondies, Diplome d'Etude Superieures or Diplome d'Etude Superieures Specialisees will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees (14-15/20 or Bien from a well ranked institution is considered comparable to a UK 2.1, while a score of 12-13/20 or Assez Bien is considered comparable to a UK 2.2).

Students with a Bachelor degree from a recognised university in Japan will be considered for entry to a postgraduate Masters degree provided they achieve a sufficiently high overall score in their first (Bachelor) degree. A GPA of 3.0/4.0 or a B average from a good Japanese university is usually considered equivalent to a UK 2:1.

Students with a Masters degree from a recognised university in Japan will be considered for PhD study. A high overall grade will be necessary to be considered.

Students who have completed their Specialist Diploma Мамаң дипломы/Диплом специалиста) or "Magistr" (Магистр дипломы/Диплом магистра) degree (completed after 1991) from a recognised higher education institution, with a minimum GPA of 2.67/4.00 for courses requiring a UK lower second and 3.00/4.00 for courses requiring a UK upper second class degree, will be considered for entry to postgraduate Masters degrees and, occasionally, directly for PhD degrees.  Holders of a Bachelor "Bakalavr" degree (Бакалавр дипломы/Диплом бакалавра) from a recognised higher education institution, with a minimum GPA of  2.67/4.00 for courses requiring a UK lower second and 3.00/4.00 for courses requiring a UK upper second class degree, may also be considered for entry to taught postgraduate programmes.

Students who hold a Bachelor degree from a recognised institution will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees. Most taught Masters programmes require a minimum of an upper second class degree (2.1) with a minimum GPA of at least 3.0/4.0 or 3.5/50

Holders of a good Postgraduate Diploma (professional programme) from a recognised university or institution of Higher Education, with a minimum overall grade of 7.5 out of 10, or a post-2000 Magistrs, will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a Bachelors degree and a Masters degree, with a score of 16/20 or 80% from a recognised institution to be considered. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Holders of a Bachelors degree from a recognised university in Libya will be considered for postgraduate study. Holders of a Bachelors degree will normally be expected to have achieved score of 70% for 2:1 equivalency or 65% for 2:2 equivalency. Alternatively students will require a minimum of 3.0/4.0 or BB to be considered.

Holders of a good pre-2001 Magistras from a recognised university with a minimum overall grade of 8 out of 10, or a good post-2001 Magistras, will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes

Holders of a good Bachelors degree from a recognised Luxembourgish Higher Education institution with a minimum overall grade of 16 out of 20, or a Diplôme d'Études Supérieures Spécialisées (comparable to a UK PGDip) or Masters degree from a recognised Luxembourgish Higher Education institution will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Students who hold a Masters degree will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees (70-74% or A or Marginal Distinction from a well ranked institution is considered comparable to a UK 2.1, while a score of 60-69% or B or Bare Distinction/Credit is considered comparable to a UK 2.2).

Holders of a Bachelors degree from a recognised Malaysian institution (usually achieved with the equivalent of a second class upper or a grade point average minimum of 3.0) will be considered for postgraduate study at Diploma or Masters level.

Holders of a good Bachelors degree from the University of Malta with a minimum grade of 2:1 (Hons), and/or a Masters degree, will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Students who hold a Bachelor degree (Honours) from a recognised institution (including the University of Mauritius) will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees.  Most taught Masters programmes require a minimum of an upper second class degree (2:1).

Students who hold the Licenciado/Professional Titulo from a recognised Mexican university with a promedio of at least 8 will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees.

Students who have completed a Maestria from a recognised institution will be considered for PhD study.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a Bachelors degree, licence or Maîtrise and a Masters degree, with a score of 14/20 or 70% from a recognised institution to be considered. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Students with a good four year honours degree from a recognised university will be considered for postgraduate study at the University of Birmingham. PhD applications will be considered on an individual basis.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a Bachelors degree and will usually be required to have completed a Masters degree, with 60-74% or higher for 2:1 equivalency from a recognised institution to be considered for entry. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Holders of a good Doctoraal from a recognised Dutch university with a minimum overall grade of 7 out of 10, and/or a good Masters degree, will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Students who hold a Bachelor degree (minimum 4 years and/or level 400) from a recognised institution will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees.  Most taught Masters programmes require a minimum of an upper second class degree (2.1) with a minimum GPA of at least 3.0/4.0 or 3.5/5.0

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a good Bachelors degree from a recognised institution with a minimum GPA of B/Very Good or 1.6-2.5 for a 2.1 equivalency, and will usually be required to have completed a good Masters, Mastergrad, Magister. Artium, Sivilingeniør, Candidatus realium or Candidatus philologiae degree to be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a Bachelors degree and will usually be required to have completed a Masters degree, with a CGPA of 3.0/4 or higher for 2:1 equivalency from a recognised institution to be considered for entry. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Holders of a Bachelors degree from a recognised university in the Palestinian Territories will be considered for postgraduate study. Holders of Bachelors degree will normally be expected to have achieved a GPA of 3/4 or 80% for 2:1 equivalency or a GPA of 2.5/4 or 70% for 2:2 equivalency.    

Holders of the Título de Licenciado /Título de (4-6 years) or an equivalent professional title from a recognised Paraguayan university may be considered for entry to a postgraduate degree programme. Grades of 4/5 or higher can be considered as UK 2.1 equivalent.  The Título Intermedio is a 2-3 year degree and is equivalent to a HNC, it is not suitable for postgraduate entry but holders of this award could be considered for second year undergraduate entry or pre-Masters.  Applicants for PhD level study will preferably hold a Título de Maestría / Magister or equivalent qualification, but holders of the Título/Grado de Licenciado/a with excellent grades can be considered.

Holders of the Bachiller, Licenciado, or Título Profesional with at least 13/20 may be considered as UK 2.1 equivalent.  Applicants for PhD level study will preferably hold a Título de Maestría or equivalent qualification.

Holders of a good pre-2001 Magister from a recognised Polish university with a minimum overall grade of 4 out of 5, dobry ‘good’, and/or a good Swiadectwo Ukonczenia Studiów Podyplomowych (Certificate of Postgraduate Study) or post-2001 Magister from a recognised Polish university with a minimum overall grade of 4.5/4+ out of 5, dobry plus 'better than good', will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Holders of a good Licenciado from a recognised university, or a Diploma de Estudos Superiores Especializados (DESE) from a recognised Polytechnic Institution, with a minimum overall grade of 16 out of 20, and/or a good Mestrado / Mestre (Masters) from a recognised university, will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a good Bachelors degree from a recognised Romanian Higher Education institution with a minimum overall grade of 8 out of 10, and will usually be required to have completed a Masters degree/Diploma de Master/Diploma de Studii Academice Postuniversitare (Postgraduate Diploma - Academic Studies) or Diploma de Studii Postuniversitare de Specializare (Postgraduate Diploma - Specialised Studies) to be considered for entry. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Holders of a good Диплом Специалиста (Specialist Diploma) or Диплом Магистра (Magistr) degree from recognised universities in Russia (minimum GPA of 4.0) will be considered for entry to taught postgraduate programmes/PhD study.

Students who hold a 4-year Bachelor degree with at least 16/20 or 70% will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees.   

Students who hold a Maitrise, Diplome d'Etude Approfondies,Diplome d'Etude Superieures or Diplome d'Etude Superieures Specialisees will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees. A score of 14-15/20 or Bien from a well ranked institution is considered comparable to a UK 2.1, while a score of 12-13/20 or Assez Bien is considered comparable to a UK 2.2

Students who hold a Bachelor (Honours) degree from a recognised institution with a minimum GPA of 3.0/4.0 or 3.5/5.0 (or a score of 60-69% or B+) from a well ranked institution will be considered for most our Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees with a 2:1 requirement.

Students holding a good Bachelors Honours degree will be considered for postgraduate study at Diploma or Masters level.

Holders of a good three-year Bakalár or pre-2002 Magister from a recognised Slovakian Higher Education institution with a minimum overall grade of 1.5, B, Vel’mi dobrý ‘very good’, and/or a good Inžinier or a post-2002 Magister from a recognised Slovakian Higher Education institution will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Holders of a good Diploma o pridobljeni univerzitetni izobrazbi (Bachelors degree), Diplomant (Professionally oriented first degree), Univerzitetni diplomant (Academically oriented first degree) or Visoko Obrazovanja (until 1999) from a recognised Slovenian Higher Education institution with a minimum overall grade of 8.0 out of 10, and/or a good Diploma specializacija (Postgraduate Diploma) or Magister (Masters) will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Students who hold a Bachelor Honours degree (also known as Baccalaureus Honores / Baccalaureus Cum Honoribus) from a recognised institution will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees. Most Masters programmes will require a second class upper (70%) or a distinction (75%).

Holders of a Masters degree will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Holders of a Bachelor degree from a recognised South Korean institution (usually with the equivalent of a second class upper or a grade point average 3.0/4.0 or 3.2/4.5) will be considered for Masters programmes.

Holders of a good Masters degree from a recognised institution will be considered for PhD study on an individual basis.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a Bachelors degree and will usually be required to have completed a Masters degree, with 7 out of 10 or higher for 2:1 equivalency from a recognised institution to be considered for entry. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a Bachelors degree and will usually be required to have completed a Masters degree, with 60-74% or a CGPA 3.30/4.0 or higher for 2:1 equivalency from a recognised institution to be considered for entry. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Holders of a good Kandidatexamen (Bachelors degree) or Yrkesexamen (Professional Bachelors degree) from a recognised Swedish Higher Education institution with the majority of subjects with a grade of VG (Val godkänd), and/or a good Magisterexamen (Masters degree), International Masters degree or Licentiatexamen (comparable to a UK Mphil), will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Holders of a good "PostGraduate Certificate" or "PostGraduate Diploma" or a Masters degree from a recognised Swiss higher education institution (with a minimum GPA of 5/6 or 8/10 or 2/5 (gut-bien-bene/good) for a 2.1 equivalence) may be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a Bachelors degree and a Masters degree, with a GPA of 3.0/4.0, 3.5/5 or 75% from a recognised institution to be considered. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

Holders of a good Bachelor degree (from 75% to 85% depending upon the university in Taiwan) from a recognised institution will be considered for postgraduate Masters study. Holders of a good Masters degree from a recognised institution will be considered for PhD study.

Students who hold a Bachelor degree from a recognised institution will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees.  Most taught Masters programmes require a minimum of an upper second class degree (2.1) Students who have completed a Masters degree from a recognised institution will be considered for PhD study.

Holders of a good Masters degree from a recognised institution will be considered for entry to our postgraduate research programmes.

Holders of a good Masters degree or Mphil from a recognised university will be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes.

Students with a Bachelors degree from the following universities may be considered for entry to postgraduate programmes:

• Ateneo de Manila University - Quezon City
• De La Salle University - Manila
• University of Santo Tomas
• University of the Philippines - Diliman

Students from all other institutions with a Bachelors and a Masters degree or relevant work experience may be considered for postgraduate programmes.

Grading Schemes

1-5 where 1 is the highest 2.1 = 1.75 2.2 = 2.25 

Out of 4.0 where 4 is the highest 2.1 = 3.0 2.2 = 2.5

Letter grades and percentages 2.1 = B / 3.00 / 83% 2.2 = C+ / 2.5 / 77%

Holders of a postdoctoral qualification from a recognised institution will be considered for PhD study.  Students may be considered for PhD study if they have a Masters from one of the above listed universities.

Holders of a Lisans Diplomasi with a minimum grade point average (GPA) of 3.0/4.0 from a recognised university will be considered for postgraduate study at Diploma or Masters level.

Holders of a Yuksek Diplomasi from a recognised university will be considered for PhD study.

Students who hold a Bachelor degree from a recognised institution will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees. Most Masters programmes will require a second class upper (2.1) or GPA of 3.5/5.0

Applicants for postgraduate research programmes should hold a good Bachelors degree / Диплом бакалавра (Dyplom Bakalavra), Диплом спеціаліста (Specialist Diploma) or a Dyplom Magistra from a recognised Ukrainian higher education institution with a minimum GPA of 4.0/5.0, 3.5/4, 8/12 or 80% or higher for 2:1 equivalence and will usually be required to have completed a good Masters degree to be considered for entry to postgraduate research programmes. Applicants with lower grades than this may be considered on an individual basis.

The University will consider students who hold an Honours degree from a recognised institution in the USA with a GPA of:

• 2.8 GPA (on a 4.0 scale) for entry to programmes with a 2:2 requirement 
• 3.2 GPA (on a 4.0 scale) for entry to programmes with a 2:1 requirement 

Please note that some subjects which are studied at postgraduate level in the USA, eg. Medicine and Law, are traditionally studied at undergraduate level in the UK.

Holders of the Magistr Diplomi (Master's degree) or Diplomi (Specialist Diploma), awarded by prestigious universities, who have attained high grades in their studies will be considered for postgraduate study.  Holders of the Fanlari Nomzodi (Candidate of Science), where appropriate, will be considered for PhD study.

Holders of the Licenciatura/Título or an equivalent professional title from a recognised Venezuelan university may be considered for entry to a postgraduate degree programme. Scales of 1-5, 1-10 and 1-20 are used, an overall score of 70% or equivalent can be considered equivalent to a UK 2.1.  Applicants for PhD level study will preferably hold a Maestria or equivalent qualification

Holders of a Bachelors degree from a recognised Vietnamese institution (usually achieved with the equivalent of a second class upper or a grade point average minimum GPA of 7.0 and above) will be considered for postgraduate study at Diploma or Masters level.  Holders of a Masters degree (thac si) will be considered for entry to PhD programmes.

Students who hold a Masters degree with a minimum GPA of 3.5/5.0 or a mark of 2.0/2.5 (A) will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees.   

Students who hold a good Bachelor Honours degree will be considered for Postgraduate Diplomas and Masters degrees. 

The Department of Philosophy combines research excellence in all core areas of philosophy, with distinction in number of specialty and interdisciplinary areas, including epistemology and philosophy of mind, ethics and philosophy of religion, metaphysics, philosophy of language, and philosophy of mathematics. The Department hosts the John Hick Centre for Philosophy of Religion .

Find a supervisor and see our research in:

• Global ethics
• Philosophy of mind, psychology and psychiatry
• Philosophical logic, language and metaphysics

PhD research focus: a selection of our current PhD students talk about their research.

The University of Birmingham is the top choice for the UK's major employers searching for graduate recruits, according to The Graduate Market 2024 report .

Your degree will provide excellent preparation for your future career, but this can also be enhanced by a range of employability support services offered by the University and the College of Arts and Law.

The University's Careers Network  provides expert guidance and activities especially for postgraduates, which will help you achieve your career goals. The College of Arts and Law also has a dedicated  careers and employability team  who offer tailored advice and a programme of College-specific careers events.

You will be encouraged to make the most of your postgraduate experience and will have the opportunity to:

• Receive one-to-one careers advice, including guidance on your job applications, writing your CV and improving your interview technique, whether you are looking for a career inside or outside of academia
• Meet employers face-to-face at on-campus recruitment fairs and employer presentations
• Attend an annual programme of careers fairs, skills workshops and conferences, including bespoke events for postgraduates in the College of Arts and Law
• Take part in a range of activities to demonstrate your knowledge and skills to potential employers and enhance your CV

What’s more, you will be able to access our full range of careers support for up to 2 years after graduation.

Postgraduate employability: Philosophy

Birmingham's Philosophy postgraduates develop a range of skills that are highly desirable in the job market including articulacy, precise analytical thought, and the ability to analyse and construct sound arguments.

Due to the transferable nature of these skills, Philosophy postgraduates traditionally enter a wide range of employment areas, from teaching and lecturing to social work. Employers that graduates have gone on to work for include BBC, Friends of the Earth, Birmingham Children's Hospital, Highways England, Ministry of Justice and University of Birmingham.

• Online chat events
• Ask our students

PhD Program Requirements

The following is a general overview of Department of Philosophy PhD program requirements. If you read through this webpage and still have questions, feel free to read the complete, definitive set of requirements .

PhD Program Handbook 2024-25

Throughout the entirety of their time in the program, all students will have a faculty advisor who is both responsible for giving them guidance and advice and regularly reporting to the department on their progress through the program. In the week before the official start of their first year, students will attend a mandatory orientation about the formal requirements and informal expectations governing the graduate program. Entering PhD students are assigned a faculty advisor with whom they will meet to discuss their coursework options and subsequently check in with at least once a quarter for their first two years in the program to make sure they are on track and conforming reasonably to program expectations and requirements. Students may opt to change advisors with the consent of the new faculty advisor. During their third year in the program, students will enroll in the Topical Workshop where, under the supervision of the current Director of Graduate Studies, they will be advised as to how best to prepare for their Topical Examination and will begin to meet with the various faculty members who are most likely to serve on their dissertation committee. Once a student has passed their Topical Examination and has an approved dissertation project, the chair of their dissertation committee becomes their primary advisor.

Course Requirements

All first-year PhD students enroll in the two-quarter-long, faculty-led First-Year Seminar. Its purpose is threefold: (1) to lay the groundwork for a philosophical lingua franca among the members of the first-year class, (2) to foster intellectual solidarity among the members of the cohort by stimulating the regular exchange of philosophical ideas among them, and (3) to have students undertake a series of short written assignments that introduce them to philosophical writing at a graduate level.

During their first two years in the program, PhD students are required to complete a variety of graduate-level courses. Such coursework is meant to provide students with the general breadth of knowledge that will serve as the foundation upon which they will carry out the more specialized task of writing a doctoral dissertation.

Starting with students who enrolled in the PhD program in 2022-23, students must enroll in courses for one of two different kinds of credit:

• (Q)uality Credit: To receive a Q-credit for a course, a student must complete all the requirements for the course and be awarded a quality grade (B- or higher).
• (P)ass Credit: The requirements for receiving a P-credit for a course are established by the instructor. At a minimum, a student must register in the class and attend regularly, but they need not be required to submit a paper for the course or do all of the coursework that would be required to assign to that student a quality grade.

This separation of course credits into Q-credits and P-credits is meant to provide students with the flexibility to construct for themselves a course curriculum that allows them to both broaden their horizons by exploring a diverse array of topics that may be of only peripheral interest to them, while, at the same time, affording them adequate time to devote focused attention to those specific courses that most directly support their main lines of research.  

PhD students are required to complete 8 courses for Q-credit, all of which must come from the Department of Philosophy's course offerings. In addition, students must complete 8 courses for P-credit, up to two of which can be awarded for classes offered in other departments (this can include courses in which the student has received either a grade of P or a quality grade of B- or higher). In a typical quarter, a student will enroll in three classes and, at some point during the quarter (the timing is flexible), will choose either one or two of those classes to complete for Q-credit. 

In addition, the courses in which a student enrolls must satisfy certain area distribution requirements. In particular, students are required to take at least one course for Q-credit in each of the following four areas: (I) Contemporary Practical Philosophy; (II) Contemporary Theoretical Philosophy; (III) History of Philosophy: Ancient or Medieval Philosophy; and (IV) History of Philosophy: Modern Philosophy (up to and including the first half of the Twentieth Century). Students must also satisfy a logic requirement, usually by taking a graduate course in logic.

Paper Revision and Publication Workshop

The aim of the Paper Revision and Publication (PRP) Workshop is to provide our graduate students with support and assistance to prepare papers to submit for publication in academic philosophy journals. Preparing papers to submit to journals for review and revising papers in response to the feedback received from journal editors and referees is an essential part of professional academic life, and students applying for academic positions with no publications to their name are at a disadvantage in today’s highly competitive job market. While students are strongly encouraged to continue to seek personalized advice about publishing from their dissertation committee members, the Department of Philosophy has determined that the need exists to  provide its graduate students with more standardized programming, in the form of an annually recurring workshop, that is specifically aimed at supporting their initial efforts to publish in academic journals. The PRP Workshop was designed with the following three aims in mind: (1) to provide students with a basic understanding of the various steps involved in publishing in academic journals and to create a forum in which students can solicit concrete advice from faculty members about the publishing process; (2) to direct and actively encourage students to submit at least one paper to a journal for review on a timeline that would allow accepted submissions to be listed as publications on a student’s CV by the time they go on the academic job market; and (3) to create and foster a departmental culture in which the continued revision of work with the ultimate aim of publication in academic journals is viewed as an essential aspect of the professional training of our graduate students and in which both faculty and students work together to establish more ambitious norms for publishing while in graduate school. 

Topical Workshop

In their third year, students will take a Topical Workshop, which meets regularly in both the Autumn and Winter Quarters, and which is taught by the current Directory of Graduate Studies. In this workshop, students develop, present, and discuss materials that they plan to use in their Topical Examination, such as dissertation project overviews and preliminary chapter drafts.  The main purpose of the Topical Workshop is to help students establish expectations for what will be required for them to advance to candidacy, to advise students on issues such as the overall direction of their research and the composition of the dissertation committee, and to initiate regular conversations between students and the faculty members who are most likely to serve as their dissertation committee chair.  While preparation for the Topical Examination may continue during the Spring Quarter and, if necessary, over the summer, at the conclusion of the Topical Workshop, students should have a clear sense of the subsequent steps that must be taken in order for them to pass their Topical Examination and advance to candidacy in a timely manner.

Foreign Language Study

There is no official foreign language requirement that all PhD students must meet. Nevertheless, many students will want to acquire competence in one or more languages other than English, depending on their area of specialization. Moreover, if it is deemed necessary, a student's dissertation committee may impose upon a student a formal requirement to demonstrate linguistic competence in a foreign language. For example, a student intending to write a thesis on Ancient Greek Philosophy or Hellenistic or Roman Philosophy will likely be required to pass the University's foreign language exam in Greek or Latin, respectively. Therefore, all students should consult with their faculty advisors (or the Director of Graduate Studies) as to which linguistic competencies may be required for their planned course of study. Students are encouraged to discuss language exam procedures and protocols with their advisors.

Topical Examination

During their third year, in connection with the Topical Workshop, students will establish, with their prospective dissertation committee chair, concrete plans for the Topical Examination. Those plans will include: (1) a determination of the faculty members who will serve on the dissertation committee, (2) the expected character of the materials to be submitted by the student on which the Topical Examination will be based, and (3) the expected date of the Topical Examination. Though the details will vary (depending on the subject matter, the state of the research, etc.) and are largely left up to the discretion of the committee, the materials must include a substantial new piece (around 25 double-spaced pages) of written work by the student. This could be a draft of a chapter, an exposition of a central argument, or a detailed abstract (or outline) of the whole dissertation.

The Topical Examination is an oral examination administered by the members of a student's dissertation committee with the aim of evaluating the viability of the proposed dissertation project and the student's ability to execute that project within a reasonable amount of time and at a sufficiently high standard of quality to merit awarding them a PhD. Students will be admitted to PhD candidacy only after they have officially passed their Topical Examination. The Department's normal expectation is that students will have advanced to candidacy by the end of the third week of Winter Quarter of their fourth year.

Required Teaching

The Department of Philosophy views the development of teaching competence as an integral part of its overall PhD program. Different types of teaching opportunities gradually prepare students to teach their own classes. The department also helps train its doctoral students to become excellent teachers of philosophy through individual faculty mentorship and the year-round, discipline-specific pedagogical events offered through (1) the mandatory and optional elements of its non-credit Pedagogy Program and (2) additional events from the Chicago Center for Teaching and Learning on campus . Here is the department’s Pedagogical Training Plan .

As part of their pedagogical training, PhD students are required to teach in the University’s undergraduate program. Normally, during their time in the program, PhD students will serve six times as an instructor—usually five times as a course assistant to a faculty instructor and once as an instructor of a stand-alone “tutorial” course. They usually complete one course assistantship in their third year and two in their fourth year. Students then lead a tutorial in the fifth year. In their sixth year, they teach twice as course assistants in departmental courses. (For further details, see the department’s Pedagogical Training Plan .)

Types of Courses Taught

The first teaching opportunities for doctoral students come in the form of course assistantships. Course assistants work with a faculty instructor, generally for College courses. Specific duties vary depending on the course but usually include holding office hours, leading discussion sections, grading papers and exams, and training in pedagogical methods. The instructor responsible for the course in which a doctoral student serves as an assistant monitors the student’s teaching progress in that course and mentors that student on the art of facilitating productive philosophical discourse and encouraging student participation in the context of their discussion sections. Students will also receive further pedagogical instruction through Chicago Center for Teaching and Learning programs and departmental workshops.

Once a PhD student has gained experience as a teaching assistant, that student is permitted to lead a tutorial. These tutorials allow undergraduate philosophy majors to work intensively on a single topic or text and to improve their oral discussion skills in an intensive discussion-format setting. Each year, graduate students teach stand-alone tutorials on a topic of their choice, typically related to their own research. This affords students an excellent opportunity to hone their ability to teach material drawn from their dissertation. In these cases, the design of the syllabus of the course is developed in consultation with a member of the faculty, who monitors the student's teaching progress over the duration of the stand-alone course and offers counsel and instruction relevant to that student’s work as a solo instructor. Prior to teaching their tutorial, students take the Chicago Center for Teaching and Learning’s syllabus design course.

Building a Teaching Dossier

Over the course of a doctoral student's career, that student together with the department will gather various materials containing the syllabi of the courses that that student has taught, written reports by faculty teaching mentors on that student’s work in those courses, and, last but not least, undergraduate evaluations of those courses. When a PhD student prepares to go on the academic job market, one of that student’s faculty recommendation letters will document and survey the highlights of her teaching career at the University of Chicago.

Pedagogy Program

Dissertation and Defense

Dissertation committees.

Dissertation committees work with PhD students to conceptualize, draft, revise, and publish their dissertation work. Each committee will have at least three members: the chair, a second reader, and a third reader. Two of these members, including the chair, must be departmental faculty members. External committee members (either outside the department or outside the university) are permitted, and may either serve on the committee in addition to the three departmental committee members, or alternatively can serve in place of a departmental faculty member as the second or third reader. For joint-degree students, the requirements of the composition of their committee will be determined by both departments in which the student is enrolled and may differ from the requirements just outlined.

Dissertation committee chairs and other committee members meet regularly with students, on an individual basis, to discuss ideas or drafts of sections or chapters. In addition, the dissertation committee as a whole meets in person at least once yearly (and often more) with the student to discuss the overall argumentative structure of the thesis, chart the intellectual trajectory of the work, and set guidelines for its completion. Writing a dissertation is an arduous process, and departmental faculty provide rigorous feedback to dissertation-phase students in order to keep them on track to graduate with their PhD in a timely fashion.

Forms of Dissertations

The PhD dissertation is the last and most important piece of writing that a doctoral student completes. Historically it has typically taken the form of a sustained argument developed over a number of chapters, running roughly between 150 and 250 pages in length. A variant form which is increasingly popular in philosophy departments in the English-speaking world is the “3- or 4-paper dissertation,” consisting of several interrelated papers developing aspects of, or perspectives on, a single theme.

The overall length and form of a dissertation should be a matter of discussion between the student and their committee. Since the dissertation is a main source for the first publications that a student will produce (either before or after receiving the degree), it is advisable for the dissertation’s chapters to take the form of pieces of work that are suitable to be turned into journal articles, both conceptually and in length (bearing in mind that many journals in the field set length limits of between 8,000 and 12,000 words, with the higher limits more typical in journals in the history of philosophy). Because the dissertation is also the primary document that will establish a student’s expertise in their area of specialization, it is important that, even if a student chooses to write a 3- or 4-paper dissertation, it should be sufficiently unified to substantiate such a claim to expertise.

Dissertation Defense

Students consult with dissertation committee members months in advance about when to schedule their defense. The defense is a public event: along with committee members, other faculty and students, family members, and the general public are welcome to attend. The exam starts with students giving a short, formal presentation about their dissertation: its major claims, intellectual aims, and intervention in the field. Then committee members, faculty, and students ask questions, and a discussion ensues. At the end of the defense, committee members give the student advice about their performance at the defense, improving the project, and publication.

After the defense, students make any necessary revisions and reformat their dissertation before submitting it to the university’s dissertation office. The final granting of the PhD degree is conditional upon the completion of these revisions and the submission of the final revised version of the dissertation to the university.

Classics and Philosophy Combined Ph.D. Program

The Classics and Philosophy Program is a combined Ph.D. program, offered by the departments of Philosophy and of Classics at Yale, for students wishing to pursue graduate study in ancient Greek and Roman philosophy. Suitably qualified students may apply for entry to the program either through the Philosophy Department for the Philosophy Track, details of which are given below, or through the Classics Department for the Classics Track.

Applicants for the Philosophy track of the combined program must satisfy the general requirements for admission to the Philosophy graduate program, in addition to the requirements of the Philosophy track of the combined program. Applicants for the Classics track of the combined program must satisfy the general requirements for admission to the Classics graduate program, in addition to the requirements of the Classics track of the combined program. Applicants to the combined program are strongly encouraged to submit a writing sample on a topic in ancient philosophy. Applicants interested in the combined program should indicate this at the time of application; admission to the program cannot normally be considered after an offer of admission is made.

The program is overseen by an interdepartmental committee consisting of professors Tim Clarke, Verity Harte, and Brad Inwood, as well as the Director of Graduate Studies for Classics and the Director of Graduate Studies for Philosophy.

Requirements of the Philosophy Track of the Classics and Philosophy Program

Entry language requirements.

It is recommended that applicants to the program possess a basic knowledge of Greek, up to the level of being able comfortably to read Plato’s Socratic dialogues and/or comparable abilities in Latin. While this level of proficiency is recommended, the minimum requirement for entry to the Philosophy Track is intermediate proficiency in at least one of Greek and Latin (where such proficiency standards could be met by attendance at an  intensive  summer school, such as the CUNY course, in which the course covers the ground typically covered by both a beginners and an intermediate course, in the summer prior to entry). Students who satisfy only the minimal level requirement in Greek and Latin must, in addition, have demonstrable proficiency in one of the Modern Languages: French, German or Italian. Such students should make clear in their applications their current level of language attainment and their plans to meet the minimum language requirement. On completion of the program, graduates will have proficiency in Greek and Latin and a reading knowledge of two of the following languages; French, German, or Italian. These will be established and assisted by diagnostic tests as follows:

Greek and Latin Proficiency Tests in Greek and/or Latin

Diagnostic sight translations in Greek and Latin will be given to assess the student’s progress in the Classical languages and to assist with placement into classes. These exams are offered at the beginning of the first and third semesters of registration. Diagnostics must be taken in at least one of Greek and Latin at the beginning of the first semester and repeated in the third. Diagnostics in the second language must be taken no later than the third semester. Depending on the student’s progress, additional diagnostic testing may be required in consultation with the program committee.

Modern Languages

• Departmental language exam in German, French, or Italian by the beginning of the second year (early September). Native speakers are excused. Students have up to two attempts to pass. 
• Departmental language exam in a second language of German, French, or Italian by the beginning of the third year (early September). Native speakers are excused. Students have up to two attempts to pass.
• Students with sufficient language proficiency may take the tests in two languages in the first year.

First-year seminar in Philosophy

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• At least 4 should be in ancient philosophy, including at least two involving original language work.
• Of 5 in Philosophy, one should be in history of philosophy other than ancient philosophy, at least one should be in Metaphysics, Epistemology, Philosophy of Mind and/or Philosophy of Language, and at least one should be in ethics and value theory. Students must satisfy the Logic requirement as per the general Philosophy PhD program.
• The First Year Seminar, Philosophy 705, must be taken by all students in their first year.  This course counts towards the 5 courses to be taken in Philosophy but does not count toward any of the distribution groups.
• In recognition of previous graduate-level work done at Yale or elsewhere, the Program Committee in consultation with the two Directors of Graduate Studies may recommend waiving a maximum of three courses of the requirement (including logic), not more than two of which may be counted against Philosophy graduate courses and not more than one of which may be counted against Classics graduate courses at Yale. Graduate students must take at least one class in two of the three categories listed in the Yale Philosophy department, not counting classes in ancient philosophy. Credit for course work done elsewhere does not reduce the tuition or residency requirement of the Graduate School. Whether a waiver is granted is ultimately be decided by the Graduate School.

Qualifying Exams and Papers

• Translation examinations in Greek and Latin, based on the  Philosophy Track Reading List , by the beginning of the 6th term in residence.
• An oral examination in Greek and Latin based on the Philosophy Track Reading List, by the end of the 6th term in residence.
• Two qualifying papers, one of which must be in ancient philosophy and one of which must be on a philosophical topic other than ancient philosophy, by the end of the 5th term in residence.

Dissertation Prospectus

A Dissertation Prospectus must be complete by the end of the 7th term in residence.

Philosophy Department work-in-progress seminar

The Philosophy Department has a work-in-progress seminar once or twice a year where students present their work-in-progress (qualifying papers, chapters of the thesis, or other publications) and discuss other students’ work.  We strongly encourage those who are advanced to candidacy to take this seminar.

Dissertation

Philosophy, PHD

On this page:, at a glance: program details.

• Location: Tempe campus
• Second Language Requirement: No

Program Description

Degree Awarded: PHD Philosophy

General areas of research include ethics, political philosophy, metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of law, philosophy of science, philosophy of language, philosophy of religion and the history of philosophy. The program features a focus on practical and applied philosophy and an interdisciplinary coursework component related to the student's research topic.

Practical philosophy includes the fields of ethics, philosophy of law, social and political philosophy, feminist ethics and political philosophy.

Applied philosophy includes the application of theories developed within any of the subdisciplines of philosophy to everyday problems or phenomena, such as the application of the philosophy of language in relation to hate speech, or the philosophy of mind in relation to computing and artificial intelligence. Applied philosophy also includes the application of research produced by methods used in other disciplines in order for the student to understand and address philosophical questions, like the application of data-gathering instruments used in psychology to answer questions in experimental philosophy.

Students may design dissertation projects in any of the major subfields of philosophy. For their interdisciplinary coursework supporting the dissertation project, students might, for example, pursue a certificate in social transformation, gender studies, responsible innovation in sciences, or engineering and society.

Members of the faculty are involved in interdisciplinary work in a variety of fields and enjoy close ties with the Lincoln Center for Applied Ethics, the College of Law and a number of other graduate programs at the university. The ASU philosophy faculty group sponsors an active colloquium series and regular philosophical conferences on diverse topics. The Lincoln Center for Applied Ethics also sponsors a wide range of activities, including large-scale conferences, distinguished visitors and support for graduate study.

Degree Requirements

Curriculum plan options.

• 84 credit hours, a written comprehensive exam, an oral comprehensive exam, a prospectus and a dissertation

Required Core Areas (15 credit hours) applied philosophy (3) epistemology (3) formal methods (3) metaphysics (3) value theory (3)

Electives (39 credit hours)

Research (18 credit hours) PHI 792 Research (12)

Culminating Experience (12 credit hours) PHI 799 Dissertation (12)

Additional Curriculum Information Students should see the academic unit for the list of courses approved for each required core area.

In completing the electives requirements, at least nine credit hours and no more than 18 credit hours must be from other disciplines supporting the student's proposed dissertation area; 30 credit hours from a previously awarded master's degree may apply toward this requirement with approval by the student's supervisory committee and the Graduate College.

To ensure breadth in the traditional areas of philosophy, students must pass with a grade of "B" or better (3.00 on a 4.00 scale).

Admission Requirements

Applicants must fulfill the requirements of both the Graduate College and The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Applicants are eligible to apply to the program if they have earned a bachelor's or master's degree in any field from a regionally accredited institution.

Applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = "A") in the last 60 hours of their first bachelor's degree program, or a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = "A") in an applicable master's degree program.

All applicants must submit:

• graduate admission application and application fee
• official transcripts
• statement of purpose
• curriculum vitae
• writing sample
• three letters of recommendation
• proof of English proficiency

Additional Application Information An applicant whose native language is not English must provide proof of English proficiency , a copy of an article or research paper in their native or principal research language, as well as the English writing sample required of all students regardless of their current residency. The philosophy program requires a TOEFL iBT score of at least 100, or a score of 7.0 on the IELTS.

The statement of purpose should explain the applicant's scholarly background and training, career goals, the primary field the applicant wishes to pursue and the proposed research specialization (no more than 600 words in length).

The writing sample must be a piece of philosophical writing, preferably a seminar paper or published article of no more than 20 pages.

Next Steps to attend ASU

Learn about our programs, apply to a program, visit our campus, application deadlines, learning outcomes.

• Achieve competence with philosophical literature and writing
• Achieve professional-level skills in mastering literature and philosophical writing
• Able to identify and articulate a philosophical problem or question in one of the core areas in philosophy --- that is, metaphysics, epistemology and value theory

Career Opportunities

Both the MA and doctoral programs in philosophy help students develop and hone skills that are highly marketable and easily transferable.

Philosophy teaches its students to think critically, creatively and imaginatively. Though routine jobs are increasingly being lost to advances in automation and artificial intelligence, the skills taught by philosophy are irreplaceable by technology, highly sought-after by employers and transferrable from one occupation to another. Graduates have the ability to read closely and with a critical eye; to analyze complex problems and identify all the possible solutions, including some creative solutions; to assess the merits of each possible solution; and to articulate and argue for or against various possible solutions in clear, precise and unambiguous language.

As philosophy focuses on honing certain skills rather than acquiring a particular body of knowledge, philosophy prepares its students for a wide variety of careers rather than for just one particular occupation. Indeed, philosophy prepares its students for any career requiring problem-solving; clear, critical and creative thinking; and excellent reading, writing and communication skills.

The program is designed to prepare students for careers as philosophers, as teachers of philosophy and in areas in which they may benefit from advanced training in philosophy, such as law, civil service and publishing.

Career examples include:

• businessperson
• computer programmer
• public policy analyst

Global Experience

With over 250 programs in more than 65 countries (ranging from one week to one year), study abroad is possible for all ASU students wishing to gain global skills and knowledge in preparation for a 21st-century career. Students earn ASU credit for completed courses, while staying on track for graduation, and may apply financial aid and scholarships toward program costs. https://mystudyabroad.asu.edu

Program Contact Information

If you have questions related to admission, please click here to request information and an admission specialist will reach out to you directly. For questions regarding faculty or courses, please use the contact information below.

• [email protected]
• 480/965-5778

Examples of doctoral proposals

• Example doctoral proposal 5
• Example doctoral proposal 4
• Example doctoral proposal 3
• Example doctoral proposal 2
• Example doctoral proposal 1

Doctor of Philosophy Theses and Dissertations(PHD)

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This collection contains bibliographic information abstracts and full text of Doctor of Philosophy(PHD)theses and dissertations held in Research and Special Collections Section in Kenyatta University Library

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Philosophy and Bioethics, Ph.D.

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Saint Louis University students interested in both bioethics and philosophy who wish to write a dissertation on bioethics from a philosophical perspective should consider the joint Ph.D. in philosophy and bioethics, offered by the Gnaegi Center for Health Care Ethics and the Department of Philosophy . Unlike a dual degree, this program offers one degree: a Ph.D. in philosophy and bioethics.

Curriculum Overview

The degree consists of 66 credits: 24 credits in health care ethics, 30 credits in philosophy and 12 dissertation research hours. Pre-comprehensive exam coursework can usually be completed in three years (9 credit hours each fall and spring). Non-coursework requirements include three research tools requirements in library database skills, medical terminology, statistics and study design and written and oral comprehensive exams.

Fieldwork and Research Opportunities

All joint Ph.D. students take a three-semester, 150-hour clinical practicum to gain experience working in a clinical setting. In addition to these fieldwork opportunities, most Ph.D. students graduate with two or more publications.

Graduates of this program are highly qualified candidates for academic jobs in philosophy departments or bioethics centers, as well as administrative jobs in ethics in health care institutions. 

Admission Requirements

• Transcripts
• Three letters of recommendation
• Writing sample 
• Professional goals statement

Additional charges may apply. Other resources are listed below:

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Scholarships, Assistantships and Financial Aid

For priority consideration for a graduate assistantship, apply by the program admission deadlines listed. Fellowships and assistantships provide a stipend and may include health insurance and a tuition scholarship for the duration of the award. 

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• Graduates will be able to demonstrate in-depth knowledge of foundational philosophical theories and methodologies, historical and contemporary, that inform scholarly analysis of issues in bioethics.
• Graduates will be able to demonstrate a proficiency in formulating original normative philosophical arguments. 
• Graduates will be able to demonstrate a proficiency in combining philosophical theories, concepts or methodologies with those of other disciplines in order to address practical ethical issues that arise in health care contexts.
• Graduates will be able to demonstrate the ability to conceptualize, develop and bring to successful completion an original, sustained and coherent independent research project that contributes to both the fields of philosophy and bioethics.

Non-course  Requirements

Proficiency in a foreign language, if required for research

Continuation Standards

Students must maintain a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.50 in all graduate/professional courses.

Roadmaps are recommended semester-by-semester plans of study for programs and assume full-time enrollment unless otherwise noted.  

Courses and milestones designated as critical (marked with !) must be completed in the semester listed to ensure a timely graduation. Transfer credit may change the roadmap.

This roadmap should not be used in the place of regular academic advising appointments. All students are encouraged to meet with their advisor/mentor each semester. Requirements, course availability and sequencing are subject to change.

Take the Consuming Empirical Literature exam the first day of class. 

Take the Medical Terminology  exam the first day of class.

An introduction to graduate-level database and library search skills, taught by library faculty.

Written exam and oral exam.

For additional information about our program, please contact:

Harold Braswell, Ph.D.  Graduate program coordinator, health care ethics [email protected]  

Kent Staley, Ph.D. Graduate program coordinator for philosophy [email protected]

Academic Catalog

Doctor of philosophy.

The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in a public health discipline represents outstanding scholarly achievement and signifies a capacity for independent study. 1

Degree Requirements

• For students with a master’s degree, satisfactory completion of a prescribed course of study of at least one (1) academic year and a minimum of at least 48 semester credit hours. A maximum of six (6) semester credit hours of dissertation count toward the minimum 48 credit hours. If the student chooses to elect a practicum, no more than three (3) credit hours of practicum and three (3) credit hours of dissertation count toward the minimum of 48 credit hours. Therefore, at least 42 credit hours of didactic courses other than practicum or dissertation must be successfully completed. 1
• Satisfactory completion of PH 101 Foundations in Public Health (online, not-for-credit course);
• Satisfactory completion of two minor areas of study or one minor area of study and one breadth area;
• Satisfactory completion of one epidemiology course, if one is not already covered in the major, minor, or breadth areas;
• Satisfactory performance on a preliminary examination as described by the degree program;
• Satisfactory defense of the dissertation proposal and completion of an original research dissertation.

For students with a bachelor’s degree admitted as a direct-admit, satisfactory completion of a prescribed course of study of at least one (1) academic year and a minimum of at least 72 semester credit hours is required.

Prescribed Course of Study

Major requirements are listed within the departmental sections of this catalog. Degree requirements may be altered in successive catalogs. Students are bound by the requirements of the catalog in force at the time of their admission or readmission.

Minor and Breadth

Students in the PhD program are required to complete either two minors or one minor and one breadth area of study. Students should consult with their advisor when choosing a minor and/or breadth to align with their academic goals. For more information about the minor and breadth requirement for PhD students, see the  Academic Polices  section.

Preliminary Exam

The preliminary examination will be taken after the courses prescribed by the degree program have been successfully completed. If a student is unable to successfully complete (i.e., demonstrate competence in) the preliminary examination after two attempts, the student will be dismissed from the PhD program. For students with a bachelor’s degree, the opportunity to complete a MS degree program is not automatic, and acceptance into the MS program is decided by departmental faculty. For more information, see the  Academic Policies  section.

The practicum, or applied practice experience, is an application of learning to a “real world” setting. All practicums consist of an organized internship at an extramural agency or organization engaged in work related to public health. Alternatively, a practicum may be done intramurally if the project interacts with practice agencies. Although not a requirement, PhD students are encouraged to include a practicum in their degree plan.

Dissertation

Students are required to complete an original research dissertation that makes a substantial contribution to knowledge in public health. This requirement will be fulfilled when an oral defense of the dissertation research proposal and the final dissertation have been successfully completed, the document has been approved and signed by all members of the dissertation committee, and a copy has been filed in the Dean’s Office.

Available Programs:

The School of Public Health offers the following Doctor of Philosophy programs:

• PhD in Behavioral Sciences and Health Promotion
• PhD in Biostatistics
• PhD in Biostatistics: Direct Admission
• PhD in Environmental Health: Environmental Disease Prevention Track
• PhD in Environmental Health: Total Worker Health Track
• PhD in Epidemiology
• PhD in Epidemiology: Direct Admission
• PhD in Management and Policy Studies: Health Economics and Health Services Research Track
• PhD in Management and Policy Studies: Healthcare Management and Health Policy Track

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Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies

Graduate Program: Master of Arts in Philosophy

Admission requirements.

The M.A. in Philosophy enables students to discover whether they should pursue the Ph.D. and prepares them for admission to doctoral programs as well as for a wide variety of careers. As the only graduate program in philosophy at a public university in Louisiana, one of its aims is to assist students who have not had the opportunity to complete an undergraduate philosophy degree. The M.A. in philosophy should help such students to develop the necessary background as well as to determine whether to pursue doctoral level studies. The faculty, therefore, welcomes qualified and motivated students who lack extensive undergraduate work in philosophy.

Students who have completed at least 18 hours in philosophy, with courses in history of philosophy, ethics, and logic are ideally prepared for graduate work in philosophy. Incoming graduate students who lack a strong background in philosophy may be required to focus first on developing the necessary basis for further studies. This may include taking some undergraduate-level courses. The department’s Graduate Committee will decide what courses, if any, each incoming graduate student will be required to take, taking into account the student’s background and area(s) of interest.

Students who are required to take undergraduate-level courses will be informed of that when they are admitted to the program. In some cases, a student will be allowed to attend the undergraduate-level course, do additional work for it (such as more reading and writing on its subject matter), and receive graduate credit for it. This will be accomplished by having the student register for PHIL 4991: Independent Research.

Graduate Advisor

Incoming students are automatically assigned to the Graduate Committee Chairperson or to another member of the graduate faculty for advising. It is the responsibility of the advisor to approve the student’s schedule, to see that s/he follows the guidelines of the department, and to monitor the student’s progress. It should be kept in mind that the graduate faculty as a whole offers the graduate program and that each graduate student is free to discuss any academic matter of concern with any member of the graduate faculty. Serious problems should be referred to the Graduate Committee Chairperson, a member of the Graduate Committee, or the Department Chair. When a graduate student chooses a major professor (i.e., the thesis advisor) from the graduate faculty, the major professor will assume the functions of the graduate advisor. 

Degree Requirements

The M.A., which is normally completed in two academic years, must be completed within a maximum of three years. Exceptions to this rule will require approval by the Graduate Committee. The work of each student will be reviewed at the end of every semester in order to determine his/her progress and the advisability of continuing graduate studies.

Course Requirements

There are two avenues to the M.A. in philosophy: thesis and non-thesis. Students who enter the M.A. program with adequate or ideal preparation should bear in mind that writing an M.A. thesis at the end of three semesters of course work can be just the right exercise of independent thought and philosophical initiative to complement a period in which their philosophical thinking has been nurtured by instructors.  At the same time, a variety of factors may combine to indicate that the non-thesis route to the M.A. would be the better course.

The philosophy faculty does not require a minor in a related field; but students who intend the M.A. degree in philosophy to be terminal and to move to another field (for example, computer science, law, business) or students who plan to move into some specialized area of philosophy (such as medieval or ancient philosophy, philosophy of science) are strongly encouraged to consider the advantage of a minor in the relevant field outside philosophy.

Thesis Option

The thesis option requires 30 semester hours of graduate work, 24 of which must be in course work and 6 of which must be in thesis work. At least 15 of these 30 hours must be at the 7000 level or above: typically three 7000-level seminars (9 hours) plus thesis research (6 hours). In each semester of enrollment in the program, students must take that 7000-level course which the Graduate Committee designates the "M.A. Seminar." Exceptions to this practice can be made only for sound academic reasons and must be approved by the Graduate Committee. An external minor for thesis-option students may be constructed by completing as many as 6 of the required hours in an area outside philosophy but relevant to the student’s philosophical work. The external minor must be approved by the Graduate Committee.

 The typical course of study for thesis students would involve taking nine hours in each of their first three semesters and completing their remaining thesis hours in the fourth semester.  In each of the first two semesters, the student would enroll in the designated 7000-level graduate seminar in philosophy and in two other classes at the 4000-level or above.  In the third semester, the students would enroll in the designated graduate seminar, in one other class at the 4000-level or above, and in three hours of 8000-level thesis research.  In the fourth semester, the students would enroll in the necessary hours to complete their thesis research. 

Near the end of the first year of study, students intending to write a thesis must submit a proposal (of no less than 1000 words) to the Graduate Committee Chairperson, which may include recommendations for members of the thesis committee.  The entire graduate faculty will meet to evaluate the proposal with respect to its viability (including the likelihood of its timely completion) and to assign an appropriate committee, if accepted.  Before the end of the second semester, the designated committee will meet with the student to discuss the proposal and to approve the plan for enrollment in 8000-level Thesis Research for the next semester.  (Forms for enrollment are available in the Department Office.)

At the beginning of the third semester, the thesis committee will meet with the student to review a detailed plan for Thesis Research and to set a date to conduct an oral discussion of a written sample from the thesis.  Before the end of the third semester, the full committee will meet with the student, who will provide a substantial written sample from the thesis, and an oral defense will be conducted at that time.  

The completed thesis will be delivered to the committee sometime near the middle of the fourth semester and, if deemed acceptable, will be followed by an oral exam and submitted to the Graduate School in accord with the appropriate deadlines.

Non-Thesis Option

The non-thesis option requires 36 hours of course work. To complete the degree in two years, the non-thesis student must take four 7000-level philosophy seminars plus two additional 7000-level courses. In each of the four semesters of enrollment in the program, students must take that 7000-level course which the Graduate Committee designates the “M.A. Seminar.” Exceptions to this practice can be made only for sound academic reasons and must be approved by the Graduate Committee. Non-Thesis students may take as many as 12 hours outside the department to constitute an external graduate minor. The external minor must be approved by the Graduate Committee.

The non-thesis student typically enrolls in nine hours for all four semesters.  Each semester the non-thesis student would enroll in the designated 7000-level seminar in philosophy and two other classes at the 4000-level or above.  Note that non-thesis students must complete at least half of their hours at the 7000-level or above, in which case, six hours of course work must be taken at the 7000-level over and above the designated graduate seminars.  These may be taken in the form of Independent Studies or other 7000-level classes, including in other departments.

For non-thesis students, an oral examination will be conducted in their final semester based on work that they have accomplished in the program. At the beginning of the fourth semester, the student will submit to their advisor three substantial papers that have been written for three different professors in three different classes while in the program. These papers should give evidence of  both the depth and the breadth of the student’s understanding of core areas in philosophy. A three-person committee, chosen by the graduate faculty in philosophy, will conduct the final oral exam in accord with the appropriate deadlines of the Graduate School.

Concentration in Feminist Philosophy

Whether pursuing the thesis or non-thesis option, the student may be certified with a concentration in Feminist Philosophy by taking 12 hours of their coursework in WGS classes.

Dual Degree

Students in Ph.D. programs in other departments are encouraged to pursue an M.A. in philosophy.  Under the dual degree program, hours accumulated for the Ph.D. in another field may be counted toward the M.A. in philosophy.  Students interested in this option should meet with the Graduate Committee Chairperson, who will tailor a program to suit the individual needs of each case. Complete the form for adding a dual-degree.

Graduate Minor

Students in Ph.D. programs in other departments may also pursue a graduate minor in philosophy.  To receive a graduate minor, students must take three PHIL courses at the 4000 or 7000 level, with one of those courses at the 7000 level.

Accelerated Master’s Degree Program

An accelerated master’s program is available for undergraduate students who have completed at least 60 semester hours of credit with a grade point average of at least 3.50 for all work taken at LSU.  Students may take a maximum of half of the required hours for the M.A. in philosophy while enrolled as undergraduates. These hours may be applied toward the master’s degree, provided a GPA of 3.00 in graduate coursework is maintained and provided none of these hours apply toward the baccalaureate degree.

Language Requirements

Normally a reading knowledge of at least one foreign language (French, German, Latin, Greek) is required of candidates for the M.A. in philosophy. Thesis topics which require research in a foreign language will not be approved without demonstrated fluency in that language. In accordance with the policy of the Graduate School, the philosophy faculty will occasionally accept competence with respect to some “special research tool,” such as a computer language, statistics, or a logical system. Such special research tools must be demonstrably relevant to the pursuit of some project or possible projects in philosophy. Students who anticipate fulfilling the requirement in this way should consult with the Graduate Committee early in the planning of their graduate program.

The foreign language requirement may be satisfied by (1) completion of a graduate reading course in the language with a grade of ‘B’ or better, or (2) passing an examination administered by the faculty (translating a philosophical text in the language), or (3) passing a national language test.

The grade requirements of the philosophy M.A. are those of the Graduate School. Students should familiarize themselves with the grade requirements and regulations of the Graduate School as given in the Graduate School section of the LSU General Catalog.

Assistantships

Graduate students who are granted assistantships will be notified in writing as soon as possible after decisions on admissions and financial awards are made. Appointments are ordinarily made on a yearly basis and are renewable, although a student should not expect to hold an assistantship for more than four semesters. Assistantships will be granted and renewed on the basis of performance in course work and in carrying out the duties of an assistant. Graduate assistants in philosophy do not have sole instructional responsibility for classes. Their role is to assist the professor or professors to which they are assigned. Typically, the graduate assistant will hold regular office hours for student consultations and have the primary responsibility for grading examinations and essays. S/he may also be asked by the professor to undertake other responsibilities with respect to the class, such as conduct review sessions or give an occasional lecture. Professors are expected to supervise the work of graduate assistants, especially their grading, and to consider the assistant’s work as part of graduate training in philosophy. Full-time assistants are expected to work (on average) no more than twenty hours per week in fulfilling the responsibilities of the assistantship, and are required to submit a monthly timesheet confirming this. Should the assigned workload require more than an average of twenty hours per week, the assistant should inform the supervising faculty member. Or the assistant may inform the Graduate Committee Chairperson or any member of the Graduate Committee. 

Each faculty member assisted by a graduate assistant must complete an evaluation of his/her performance, using the approved evaluation form, for each graduate assistant in each semester of assistance. The faculty member must hold a meeting with the graduate assistant in which s/he presents the evaluation and discusses it with the assistant. The assistant must sign the evaluation as an indication that the evaluation was made and the meeting conducted. Should the assistant wish to take formal exception to the supervising faculty member’s evaluation, s/he may prepare a written statement addressed to the Chairperson for Graduate Studies or to the Department Chair.

Graduate assistants should plan to be available for a meeting before the semester begins, at which class assignments are made. 

Applications

Applications must be made to the Graduate School, to which transcripts must be sent (not to the department). Letters of recommendation as well as a writing sample must be submitted electronically along with the application. Those students applying for a graduate assistantship should see that their application is completed no later than March 1.

For more information, please contact the Director of Graduate Studies for Philosophy .

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About This Track

In a world of rapid innovation in the biological sciences, the emergence of new diseases, and changing environmental pressures, health security risks to the global community are a rising concern. This program will train future researchers studying major biological and health security risks who could contribute unique voices to the academic community and ultimately inform global policies that will shape future preparation and responses to health security and global catastrophic biological risks.  Graduate students in this program will learn skills that relate to prevention, preparedness, and response to potential health security threats. Topic areas are wide ranging, with a common thread of reducing health security threats or their impacts and increasing resiliency of communities to global catastrophic biological risks.

Competencies

Identify major health security threats; characterize the human, social, economic and political risks they pose to societies; and demonstrate the importance of public health to national security

Apply risk assessment principles to program planning, implementation and goals, particularly in the context of emergency response and health security problems

Examine the origin and evolution of major US and international organizations and initiatives to prevent, detect, and respond to health security threats; and assess those areas of health security where preparedness is strongest and where additional progress is needed

Evaluate the effectiveness of strategies to enhance health security and prevent or mitigate health security threats

Synthesize and communicate important health security information in a way that enables political leaders and policymakers to take appropriate action

Track Faculty

Gigi gronvall, phd ; global catastrophic biological risks, biotechnology and health  security, tara kirk sell, phd ; global catastrophic biological risks, emerging infectious diseases, risk communication and decision making, monica schoch-spana, phd ; health security, public health preparedness, public engagement, crystal watson, drph ; global catastrophic biological risks, risk assessment, crisis decision making.

Browse an overview of this program's requirements in the JHU  Academic Catalogue  - See Track Requirements for Health Security and explore all course offerings in the Bloomberg School  Course Directory .

Tuition and Funding

Per the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with the JHU PhD Union, the minimum guaranteed 2025-2026 academic year stipend is $50,000 for all PhD students with a 4% increase the following year. Tuition, fees, and medical benefits are provided, including health insurance premiums for PhD student’s children and spouses of international students, depending on visa type. The minimum stipend and tuition coverage is guaranteed for at least the first four years of a BSPH PhD program; specific amounts and the number of years supported, as well as work expectations related to that stipend will vary across departments and funding source. Please refer to the  CBA to review specific benefits, compensation, and other terms.

Need-Based Relocation Grants Students who  are admitted to PhD programs at JHU   starting in Fall 2023 or beyond can apply to receive a need-based grant to offset the costs of relocating to be able to attend JHU.   These grants provide funding to a portion of incoming students who, without this money, may otherwise not be able to afford to relocate to JHU for their PhD program. This is not a merit-based grant. Applications will be evaluated solely based on financial need.  View more information about the need-based relocation grants for PhD students .

Questions about the program? We're happy to help.

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Investigation of passive storage of thermal energy at different temperatures

Thesis type.

• Thesis (PhD)

Thesis note

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