majors

Tag

Ethics Certificates from Philosophy Departments

Several philosophy departments are offering “ethics certificates” and other ethics programs, according to an article at Inside Higher Ed. (more…)

Comparatively Lower Grades in Philosophy Courses: Facts, Explanation, Effects, Fixes?

Informal conversations with students and professors suggest that it is harder to get a higher grade in philosophy courses than in courses offered by many other departments. (more…)

Has the Sharp Decline in Philosophy Majors Hit Bottom? (guest post by Eric Schwitzgebel)

The following is a guest post by Eric Schwitzgebel (University of California, Riverside), on trends in the numbers of philosophy majors, following up on previous posts on the subject), with some interesting speculation at the end about possible causes. A version of it originally appeared at his blog, The Splintered Mind.

(more…)

Teaching Gen Ed Students the Value of Philosophy (guest post by Andrew P. Mills)

Earlier this year, Andrew P. Mills , professor of philosophy and director of the Integrative Studies Program at Otterbein University, and president of the American Association of Philosophy Teachers, conducted a survey about teaching non-philosophy majors and getting them to see the value of philosophy. (more…)

Philosophy Targeted at Lebanon Valley College

Administrators at Lebanon Valley College, a liberal arts college in central Pennsylvania, are currently considering an “academic restructuring” plan that will eliminate its philosophy major. (more…)

Job Prospects for Philosophy Majors: Perception and Reality

The number of philosophy majors in the U.S. is down 35% since its recent peak in 2007, and today, philosophy majors make up only around 0.137% of the student population. (more…)

Making a Case for Pre-College Philosophy

“We assume that certain kinds of questions are only for advanced students, and I think that the irony is that, in many cases, not encouraging all students to ask those questions is why some are not advanced.” (more…)

APA, Others, Issue Statement Opposing Program Cuts at UW Stevens Point

The American Philosophical Association (APA) and 22 other academic organizations issued a statement today opposing the plans of administrators at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (UWSP) to cease offering degrees in the humanities and social sciences. (more…)

Philosophy Relies on Those Double Majors (guest post by Eric Schwitzgebel)

How many undergraduates who major in philosophy also major in another subject? In the following guest post * , Eric Schwitzgebel (Riverside) looks at the numbers and what they mean. (more…)

The Racial Diversity of Philosophy Majors (guest post by Eric Schwitzgebel)

The following is a guest post * by Eric Schwitzgebel, professor of philosophy at University of California, Riverside. It first appeared at his blog, The Splintered Mind.

(more…)

Sharp Declines in Philosophy, History, & Language Majors Since 2010 (guest post by Eric Schwitzgebel)

The following is a guest post * by Eric Schwitzgebel, professor of philosophy at University of California, Riverside. It first appeared at his blog, The Splintered Mind. (more…)

Encouraging Your Promising Students To Take Another Philosophy Course

This is a good idea:

Every semester, about this time, I identify students in my intro classes who are doing reasonably well, seem interested in philosophy (based on class participation, conversations in office hours, or written work), and are not graduating in the near future. I email all of them individually (although of course the letters are somewhat repetitiv..

Converting One-Time Philosophy Students Into Repeat Enrollees

A philosophy professor writes:

Our department is thinking about ways we can convert students who take one class for accidental reasons (it fulfills a requirement or it fits a time slot) into students who take a few more classes. We’ve talked about a few strategies here, and I’ve looked around online a tiny bit for resources, but I thought this might be the sort o..

Philosophy Among Majors Threatened at LIU Brooklyn

Philosophy, math, economics, visual arts, and sociology-anthropology are among the subjects at Long Island University’s Brooklyn campus that will not be allowed any new majors, at least for the time being, according to Inside Higher Ed. (more…)

Is Your Department on the Chopping Block?

Inside Higher Ed today discusses a report by the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) on faculty cuts at the College of St. Rose (previously). A number of faculty were let go, leading the AAUP to declare that at the College, tenure is “virtually meaningless.” Among the programs affected is philosophy:

This is not the first time a philosophy ma..

Philosophy in 10 Years

Here are five predictions about the state of philosophy in ten years:

1. Philosophy’s popularity as a major will increase. This will be owed in part to the swing of the cultural pendulum, to economic growth making people more comfortable with a major lacking a clearly-defined career path, to efforts by the profession to emphasize the practical value of philosophy..

Philosophy Majors Are Less Likely To Marry Each Other (updated)

Only 5% of “philosophy or religious studies” majors end up marrying other “philosophy or religious studies” majors, according to an analysis of census data by Dan Kopf at Priceonomics this past summer. This makes it one of the least common majors shared by married couples. Since, in the Census data, philosophy is lumped in with religious studies, we don’t know what ..

What Explains Female Under-Representation Among Philosophy Majors?

Evidence from a new study seeking to explain why women are under-represented among philosophy majors suggests that they are not discouraged by introductory philosophy courses, but rather come to college already with certain attitudes that discourage them from studying philosophy. The findings are presented in “Why Is There Female Under-Representation among Philosoph..

Philosophy at University of Alaska, Fairbanks Is “Terminated”

There will be no more philosophy program at the University of Alaska, according to an article in the UAF Sun Star.

In an e-mail sent to philosophy students, Eduardo Wilner, department chair of philosophy and humanities said the program “is terminated.” Wilner says there will be a “teach-out period, meaning that all majors will be given time to finish in a ‘timely..