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Philosophy in College?

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Philosophy in College?

BrainInAVat
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Posted 04/20/09 - 12:14 PM: Subject: Philosophy in College?	#1
I am seriously considering studying (and possibly majoring in) philosophy in college, and I am genuinely interested in it now ( I have quite the collection of books). People have told me that you really can't do much with a major in philosophy, but I disagree... I think you could not be better equiped going into the world today with such studies under your belt. For those of you who have done the latter, what is your opinion? Should I pursue, or is it a waste of time?

NothingtoSay
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Posted 04/20/09 - 12:38 PM:	#2
Have you considered minoring in philosophy?

xzJoel
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Posted 04/20/09 - 01:10 PM:	#3
As is always the answer with such questions, what do you want to do with your life? Is college someplace for you to learn and grow as a human being or is it a trade school for you? Do you want to be engineer and require an engineering degree to get the job you want? Etc. If you find that you enjoy philosophy, you are unlikely to find a situation later in your life where you have people willing to discuss it. The more you read and talk, the more you will probably enjoy philosophy. There is absolutely no reason why you can't dual major. (Maybe your school doesn't let you.) Why not get your degree in philosophy and physics? Maybe philosophy and math? How about philosophy and language? You can even do philosophy and economics. Like NothingtoSay said, why not minor in it if you are afraid that you can't dual major? Conventional wisdom goes (or so I've heard) that degrees in a particular liberal are of no more value than any other of the arts. Employers want to see that you earned your degree and performed well enough that they believe you have some capacity to do the job that they want you to do. If you are interested in one of those sorts of jobs, why let someone pressure you to get a degree in something you don't like? It is your life and you must live it. No one can decide for you what you want to do. One thing you will learn in philosophy is that the question "was/is it worth it" is one of the hardest questions of all.
Make a joyous noise onto the lord... Not a good one, just a joyous one.

Wolfman
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Posted 04/20/09 - 01:38 PM:	#4
You should have certainly taken a couple philosophy classes already before deciding on the major. Community college is a good place to start. Depending on where you live, you may be able to take summer philosophy classes at a local university. Before I applied for U.C. Berkeley as a transfer student, I made sure to take an ancient philosophy and modern philosophy course on-campus during the summer. This is also a good way to gauge whether your reading comprehension and writing ability, as they pertain to philosophy, are up to par. Do what you enjoy doing. This sounds rather cliche, I know, but a BA in philosophy is very valuable, and you can use it as a means by which to enter a number of various master's programs. So even if you find that you're sick of philosophy after getting your BA, you still have many other options.
"That which is done out of love is always beyond good and evil" - Nietzsche "Every art and every inquiry, and similarly every action and pursuit, is thought to aim at some good; and for this reason the good has rightly been declared to be that at which all things aim." - Aristotle "It is better to do one's own duty, however defective it may be, than to follow the duty of another, however well one may perform it. He who does his duty as his own nature reveals it, never sins." - Lao Tzu "Experience without theory is blind, but theory without experience is mere intellectual play." - Kant

NothingtoSay
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Posted 04/20/09 - 01:38 PM:	#5
I am leaning towards a minor in philosophy myself. Mostly because I'll take a philosophy class every semester for the next three semesters and the philosophy department's minor lets me choose any five courses I want. Who knows, maybe I'll double major... but I honestly think that's very unlikely for me. You should ask your college's philosophy department about what they offer.

NothingtoSay
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Posted 04/20/09 - 01:43 PM:	#6
Wolfman wrote: You should have certainly taken a couple philosophy classes already before deciding on the major. Community college is a good place to start. Depending on where you live, you may be able to take summer philosophy classes at a local university. Before I applied for U.C. Berkeley as a transfer student, I made sure to take an ancient philosophy and modern philosophy course on-campus during the summer. This is also a good way to gauge whether your reading comprehension and writing ability, as they pertain to philosophy, are up to par. Do what you enjoy doing. This sounds rather cliche, I know, but a BA in philosophy is very valuable, and you can use it as a means by which to enter a number of various master's programs. So even if you find that you're sick of philosophy after getting your BA, you still have many other options. Good advice. I didn't even like philosophy before I took a required core curriculum course called Philosophical Thinking.

Michael T
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Posted 04/20/09 - 02:14 PM:	#7
I majored in Literature with Philosophy minor. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of my Degree and the philosophy in particular left me wanting more. I have continued the study in my own time ever since. However, I left a career in engineering to go to university later in life to satisfy my own development as a person. I don’t think it’s the route to go down without careful consideration of exactly what sort of career path you wish to follow after your study. Research into the most applicable degree to that particular career path may prove more advantageous, especially if it’s a science / medical / engineering path you wish to follow. That said, if you spend your time in the library instead of partying with the others and come away with a ‘First’ then most other employers would sit up and take notice. Good luck.

BrainInAVat
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Posted 04/20/09 - 03:58 PM:	#8
I would like to thank you guys for all the great advice. To answer some questions, governement and its institutions interest me as well. As far what I would like to do with my life, I'm not sure... I am thinking about becoming an advocate of some kind for kids in foster care, who have endured similar situations as I have.

PontificatingChauncy
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Posted 04/20/09 - 04:12 PM:	#9
As a sign for "you can't do anything with a Philosophy degree" the grad school at my campus will accept ANY degree in its admissions. Even a Philo BA (if he has the grades) can qualify to become a doctor. It's a measure of your capacity to learn, as far as they're concerned.
The Tao that can be named is not the true Tao. That thing is a chauncy

NothingtoSay
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Posted 04/20/09 - 04:22 PM:	#10
PontificatingChauncy wrote: As a sign for "you can't do anything with a Philosophy degree" the grad school at my campus will accept ANY degree in its admissions. Even a Philo BA (if he has the grades) can qualify to become a doctor. It's a measure of your capacity to learn, as far as they're concerned. Yeah, you can study Law after you're done with your Philo BA, I've heard. And yeah, I had and still have some trouble figuring out what I want to do with my life too. I suggest not sticking to one particular brand of courses your first semester, i.e take courses ranging from the social sciences and arts to the 'hard' sciences. You never know what you'll like. I didn't know Philosophy was so interesting until I took a required philosophy class and look at me now, I'm hoping to minor and possibly double major in Philosophy.

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