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Department of Philosophy   Northern Illinois University

Requirements for the Major in Philosophy (B.A.)

The requirements for the B.A. in philosophy comprise a three-course core, a distribution requirement involving three areas of study, and 15 hours of philosophy electives. Within the 33 semester hours required for the major, students enjoy a high degree of flexibility in course selection. While all majors must take the three core courses, students may choose from among several courses in each of three areas to complete the distribution requirement. This structure ensures that majors gain familiarity with the different fields within the discipline while allowing them to tailor their programs of study to their individual interests. Moreover, the department’s several special topics courses (PHIL390, PHIL420, PHIL430, and PHIL490) provide students with opportunities to explore more specialized subjects that may be presently in vogue or the focus of a faculty member’s current research.

Requirements in Department (33)
PHIL205, Symbolic Logic (3), or PHIL405, Intermediate Logic (3)
PHIL321, Ancient Philosophy (3)
PHIL322, Modern Philosophy (3)
Electives in Philosophy (15), at least six (6) hours of which must be at the 300 or 400 level
One course from each of the following three fields (9):

Ethics and Value Theory
PHIL331, Classical Ethical Theories (3)
PHIL430T, Topics in Ethics (3)
PHIL431, Contemporary Ethical Theory (3)
PHIL442, Theories of Value (3)

Metaphysics or Epistemology
PHIL311, Problems of Knowledge (3)
PHIL312, Theories and Problems of Reality (3)
PHIL410, Topics in Metaphysics or Epistemology (3)
PHIL411, Epistemology (3)
PHIL412, Metaphysics (3)

Major Figures in Philosophy
PHIL420A, Topics in the History of Philosophy: Major Philosophers (3)
PHIL421, Plato (3)
PHIL422, Aristotle (3)
PHIL426, Kant (3)

Requirements Outside Department (0-12)
Fulfillment of B.A. foreign language requirement (0-12). (See "Foreign Language Requirement for the B.A. Degree" in undergraduate catalog.)

Degree with Honors
Admission to the departmental honors program requires the approval of the department chair, and will be available only to juniors or seniors who have a GPA of at least 3.25 in all work and of 3.40 or above in philosophy courses.

Accepted candidates must complete the normal requirements for the philosophy major and an honors thesis under PHIL 491H for 2-4 semester hours. The senior honors thesis must be approved, and the grade for PHIL 491H must be assigned by the supervising instructor. The "H" or "Honors" designation then must be approved by a committee consisting of the supervising instructor, the undergraduate faculty adviser, and the chair of the department.

Requirements for the Minor in Philosophy
Students may wish to select philosophy as a minor area of concentration in connection with the study of almost any other subject-matter offered within the university. A total of 18 credit hours in philosophy are required for the minor, and they must be earned as follows:

Electives from 300- or 400-level courses (9)
Electives from any philosophy courses (9)
Six or more semester hours in the minor must be taken at NIU

For Additional Information:
Telephone (815) 753-0331
Email the Undergraduate Advisor