budget cuts
TagPetition to Save the Humanities at the University of Hertfordshire
Administrators at the University of Hertfordshire are eliminating not just philosophy (as reported last week) from the school, but also undergraduate programs in English Language and Linguistics, English Literature, Creative Writing, and History. (more…)
Hertfordshire to Eliminate Philosophy from Its Curriculum
In a couple of years, students at the University of Hertfordshire will be unable to take a philosophy course there. (more…)
Georgetown Philosophy Suspends PhD Admissions for Fall 2026
The Department of Philosophy at Georgetown University will not be accepting any PhD students for the 2026-2027 academic year. (more…)
Portland State Ordered To Reinstate Laid-Off Philosophy Faculty & Others
“Administrators who claim that their university is under financial distress must not be given carte blanche,” wrote members of the Department of Philosophy at Portland State earlier this past January, when three of its faculty members were told they’d be out of their jobs at the end of the 2024-25 academic year. (more…)
Philosophy in College Beyond the Philosophy Major
It’s not just budget cuts that are leading some colleges and universities to get rid of their philosophy major programs. Sometimes its legislation.
Exploring the Future of Philosophy: An Independent Philosophy Institute? (guest post)
What is the institutional future of philosophy? (more…)
Harvard Cuts PhD Admissions
Harvard University is drastically cutting the number of PhD students it is admitting over the next two years. (more…)
Monmouth College Eliminating Its Philosophy Major
The President of Monmouth College, a private liberal arts college in Illinois, has recently announced that students at the school will no longer be able to major in philosophy, nor in a number of other subjects, starting in Fall 2026. (more…)
Philosophy at Some Indiana Public Universities Threatened
The Indiana state legislature has passed a budget bill that will have the effect of closing programs at several public universities in the state, including some philosophy programs, unless the universities request permission to continue them and those requests are granted by the Indiana Commission for Higher Education.
University of Utah Cans History and Philosophy of Science Major Amidst Political and Administrative Chaos
One way public universities in Utah can earn back part of the $60 million in funding that the state legislature took from their budgets is by “showing that will be reallocated for high-demand and high-wage majors as the state pushes for higher education to be more job-focused,” according to the Salt Lake Tribune. (more…)
USC Tells Philosophy Department It Cannot Honor All of Its Offers of Admission This Year
The Department of Philosophy at the University of Southern California (USC), like many departments, sends out offers of admission to its PhD program to more students than it actually expects to admit. The idea is that some accepted students will end up choosing to enroll at other universities, leaving the entering class close to the target number. (more…)
Philosophers in Administrative Positions
(Moving this to the top again; first published on April 18th, 2024). A few months ago during a discussion here about the demand for philosophers, the importance of philosophers in high-level administrative roles came up. (more…)
Kingston Plans to Close Its Centre for Research in Modern European Philosophy
The administration of Kingston University has announced plans to close its Centre for Research in Modern European Philosophy (CRMEP). (more…)
Cuts to Philosophy Are Part of Massive Layoffs at St. Norbert College
“The problem is, the administration keeps coming back for more, and more, and more, and it never stops.” (more…)
Moratorium on Philosophy & Other Programs at the University of Puerto Rico
The president of the University of Puerto Rico (UPR), Luis Ferrao Delgado, has temporarily shuttered undergraduate major programs in 64 fields, including philosophy, across its multiple campuses.
Philosophy Major and Department at Risk in Sonoma State Budget Bloodbath (updated)
The philosophy major at Sonoma State University is among several degree programs slated for elimination at Sonoma State University, and the philosophy department is one of six that will be closed, according to a plan proposed by the university’s aptly named interim president, Emily F. Cutrer. (more…)
Philosophy Departments Under Threat: Information, Pro-Active Strategies, Defense
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Many philosophy departments and programs have been targeted for cuts or elimination over the past several years, and many currently are undergoing reviews by administrators looking to make budget cuts or other changes that may end up negatively affecting philosophy departments. (more…)
Boston University Suspends PhD Admissions in Philosophy & Other Fields (updated)
Boston University (BU) has suspended admissions to PhD programs in a dozen departments in its College of Arts and Sciences, including philosophy, according to its website and an article at Inside Higher Education. (more…)
Despite Reports, UConn Philosophy “Not at Risk”
Last week, the Chronicle of Higher Education reported on worries that “dozens of majors could face elimination as part of a review of low-enrollment programs—a process that began amid a significant budget deficit.” (more…)
Wisconsin Campus Closure Approved; Philosophers & Others To Lose Jobs
The University of Wisconsin Board of Regents voted last week to approve the closure of the Waukesha campus of the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. Thirty-two professors will be laid off, including three tenured philosophers. (more…)
Latest Surprise Firing at Australian Catholic University
In the latest of a series of actions that appear to be an attempt prove itself an employer of last resort, Australian Catholic University (ACU) has fired philosopher Stephen Finlay, the former director of its Dianoia Institute, which it abruptly shut down last year, despite the fact that it announced at the time that Finlay would have a position in its Institute for..
UNC Asheville Philosophy Under Threat (multiple updates)
UNC Asheville Chancellor Kimberly van Noort has proposed eliminating the Department of Philosophy and the philosophy major program at the school. (more…)
A Christian University’s Unchristian Treatment of a Tenured Philosophy Professor
A tenured associate professor of philosophy who had received ratings of “excellent” in her annual reviews each year for the past decade, whose classes are always full or overloaded, who teaches extra courses, and who gets great student reviews in those courses, has been fired. (more…)
Does Cutting Philosophy Help A University’s Budget?
“More than a year after its faculty cuts, enrollment at Emporia State has fallen 12.5 percent even though enrollment at other public institutions in the state rose 2 percent.” (more…)
SUNY Fredonia Administration Approves Proposal to Cut Philosophy
Last December, Stephen Kolison, president of the State University of New York at Fredonia, proposed cutting 13 programs at the school, including philosophy. Last week, the proposal was approved. (more…)
Kent Administration Approves Proposal to Cut Philosophy
Last summer, and again this past February, the administration of the University of Kent proposed cutting its philosophy program (see here). It has now decided to implement that proposal. (more…)
“Purely vocational approach is embarrassingly out of touch”
Columbia College Chicago is facing a budget constraints and reportedly there are talks about addressing them by cutting programs in the liberal arts and sciences, and focusing more on career-based programs. (more…)
Philosophy in Wisconsin: St. Norbert College & UW-Milwaukee-Waukesha
The two tenure-track assistant professors in the department of philosophy at St. Norbert College in Wisconsin were among 12 faculty at the school informed last week that they’d be losing their jobs at the end of this term. And just yesterday the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee announced it would be closing its Waukesha campus. (more…)