Philosophy Major

You will probably have to take philosophy in college. Scary? Interesting? Not sure? Please read on. First, though, did you know that the guy who invented the word “philosophy” used it while on trial for his life—and lost? True. So much for scary—but interesting? To find out, let’s start with what goes on in a philosophy course.

Ever wonder about the “really big” questions, the ones it seems nobody can answer? For instance: “Has the universe always existed or not?” “Either way, how could that be?” “Why do we exist?” “What about destiny, fate?” “Is there a God?” “Are we more than our bodies?” “Is cloning a human OK?” “Could Neo’s Matrix be possible?” “Is Buffy the Vampire Slayer a good person?” “Is my world real?” “What is truth?” “What makes something right, or fair?” “Is it all relative?” “Should we be asking these questions?” and “Who cares anyway?” We ask questions like these in philosophy classes. Ever try to figure any of these out just using your mind? That’s also what we do in philosophy classes. Ever wish you could be more logical or learn more about what philosophers have to say? We work on that too. Scary or interesting?

In philosophy classes at Dominican University we try to understand the “really big questions,” critically, logically, with an open mind. We fully respect religious convictions and the rich diversity of cultures. However, in philosophy we try to rely on what counts as the reasonable rather than as something we just grew up with or something others have told us. We focus on what our students find relevant. We connect them to the vast body of philosophical ideas on the topic. We help them develop the logical and critical-thinking skills to form reasonable and well-informed opinions on their own. Our basic goal is for Dominican students to develop an informed opinion about the relevance of philosophy and to consider it in their efforts to make sense of their lives as persons, professionals and as members of their communities. Interested?

CAREERS

Suppose you say “yes.” And you think—but college is a major investment. Good point. You and your family probably hope for some practical job pay-off when you graduate. Wouldn’t going into philosophy get in the way? In college you can study philosophy and still major in a career-related field. For instance, you might consider a minor in philosophy. It takes only six selected courses to do that. Or you might just pick up an interesting philosophy course or two when you can schedule it in. (We even have a service-learning option attached to some of our courses. We are the only college in the Chicago area that has this.) Or you might even double major, pairing a career-oriented major with a philosophy major. It is challenging but students do it with great success. Some typical combinations include philosophy and political science or criminology (for pre-law), philosophy and psychology, philosophy and art, philosophy and science, philosophy and theology, and philosophy and business administration, to name a few.

Of course, students do major in philosophy. And they do find jobs after graduation. Our graduates have successful careers in law, banking, management, public administration, education, social service, religious ministry and the military. In a recent survey, we asked our graduates why they majored in philosophy. True, they typically don’t pick philosophy to land a job. They tell us they pick the study of philosophy because they want the intellectual challenge and because it helps them to search for meaning and truth, and to think about things differently. They also like the logical and critical-thinking skills that come with it.

A philosophy degree is also excellent preparation for graduate school. Dominican University philosophy graduates have studied at schools such as Bryn Mawr, Catholic University, Cornell, DePaul, The John Marshall Law School, Kent School of Law, Loyola, Marquette, Stanford, Southern Illinois, University of Chicago, University of Oklahoma, University of San Diego, University of Toronto, University of Wisconsin, and Xavier’s University. Their advanced degrees include the PhD, PhEd, JD, MA, MALS, MBA, MDiv, MEd and MS.