2025-2026 Academic Catalog

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Philosophy, BA

General Requirements

To earn a degree, students must satisfy all requirements in each of the three areas below, in addition to their individual major requirements.

Program Requirements

  1. Students must complete a minimum of 36 PHIL credit hours.

  2. Students must complete a minimum of 16 upper-division (3000-level and above) PHIL credit hours.

  3. Students must earn a minimum grade of C- (1.7) in all courses that apply to the major and must achieve a minimum cumulative major GPA of 2.0. Courses taken using P+/P/F or S/U grading cannot apply to major requirements.

  4. Students must complete a minimum of 18 PHIL credit hours with CU Denver faculty.

Program Restrictions, Allowances and Recommendations

  1. Courses taken at other institutions must either be transferred as direct equivalent to a CU Denver course or be approved by an advisor in the Philosophy Department for application towards the major.

  2. For those students who both major in philosophy and minor in ethics, philosophy or philosophy of science, up to two courses can satisfy the requirements for both.

  3. For those students who qualify for and fulfill the requirements of graduation with Honors, a minimum of 42 PHIL credit hours is required.

  4. Though certain courses may satisfy different requirements, no single course may count for more than one requirement towards the Philosophy Major.

  5. Courses not specifically listed here but offered by the University may count toward the degree upon the approval of the Department Undergraduate Advisor.

  6. Students should work with their Department Undergraduate Advisor to determine a course plan that follows one of the listed pathways: 

    • Ethics and Values

    • Philosophical Traditions

    • Mind and Consciousness 

    • Science, Technology, and Knowledge

    • Social Justice, Politics, and Diversity

PHIL 2441Logic, Language and Scientific Reasoning3
PHIL 3002Ancient Greek Philosophy3
PHIL 3010Medieval Philosophy3
PHIL 3022Knowledge, Perception, and the Search for Objectivity: Modern Philosophy3
PHIL 3032Twentieth Century Analytic Philosophy3
PHIL 3050Propaganda: Truth, Lies, and Freedom3
PHIL 3150History of Ethics3
PHIL 3200Justice, Freedom, and Power: Social and Political Philosophy3
PHIL 3250Business, Society, and Moral Responsibility3
PHIL 3280War and Morality3
PHIL 3333Happiness and the Good Life3
PHIL 3350Metaphysics3
PHIL 3360Epistemology3
PHIL 3430How to think green: Environmental Ethics3
PHIL 3440Introduction to Symbolic Logic3
PHIL 3441Philosophical Reasoning Skills3
PHIL 3500Ideology and Culture: Racism and Sexism3
PHIL 3550Philosophy of Death and Dying3
PHIL 3550Philosophy of Death and Dying3
PHIL 3760Kant: Freedom, Reality, and the Mind3
PHIL 3833Existentialism3
PHIL 400019th and 20th Century Continental Philosophy3
PHIL 4040Skepticism3
PHIL 4101Pragmatism: Classical American Philosophy3
PHIL 4150Twentieth Century Ethics3
PHIL 4220Art, Beauty, and Aesthetic Criticism: Philosophy of Art3
PHIL 4230Postmodernism3
PHIL 4242Medicine, Health Care, and Justice: Bioethics3
PHIL 4260Why Obey the Law? Introduction to Philosophy of Law3
PHIL 4300Mind, Body, and Consciousness: Philosophy of Mind3
PHIL 4350Philosophy of Science3
PHIL 4450Punishment and Social Justice3
PHIL 4500Feminist Philosophy3
PHIL 4600Questioning Religious Belief and Practice: Introduction to Philosophy of Religion3
PHIL 4735Rationalism3
PHIL 4740Empiricism3
PHIL 4770Hegel3
PHIL 4780Heidegger3
PHIL 4790Nietzsche3
PHIL 4795Marx and Marxism3
PHIL 4800Plato3
PHIL 4810Aristotle3
PHIL 4820Hume3
PHIL 4900John Dewey3
PHIL 4920Philosophy of Media and Technology3

Student Learning in the B.A. in Philosophy focuses on the following:

  • Recognize and comprehend the salient elements of philosophy's significant historical figures, periods, and areas.
  • Understand how philosophical frameworks and theories expand the meanings and implications of existing cultural areas (e.g. those found in science technology, the arts, politics, medicine, and social justice.                                                                                  

More specifically, the above includes training (most typically in writing) about how to:

  • Interpret texts by careful reading and synthesis of meanings.
  • Identify and criticize philosophical arguments.
  • Develop original arguments supported by texts and logical reasoning.
  • Outline major philosophical frameworks.

For questions and answers, please reach out to Mark Tanzer (mark.tanzer@ucdenver.edu) for further details.

To learn more about the Student Learning Outcomes for this program, please visit our website.

To review the Degree Map for this program, please visit our website.