Prospective Students
Doing philosophy is rewarding in many ways.
Read below to learn more. And don’t just take our word for it: Check out our alumni page to see what previous WFU philosophy majors are doing today.
What is Philosophy?
The word “philosophy” means “love of wisdom.” In practice, it includes a diverse set of traditions that are united in the endeavor to use reason to arrive at fundamental truths.
Some topics that philosophers have debated include:
- Human nature
- Free will
- The existence of God
- Social justice
- The meaning of life
Some of the main subfields of philosophy are:
- Logic – the principles of sound reasoning
- Ethics – right and wrong, good and bad
- Metaphysics – the nature of reality
- Epistemology – the nature and scope of knowledge
Students who take philosophy courses can learn about the history of philosophy—uncovering the deep story connecting the world’s greatest thinkers, texts, and movements across time—while also gaining powerful new abilities to apply philosophical methods to real-world problems in a variety of domains.
- Philosophy of mind
- Philosophy of religion
- Philosophy of science
- Political philosophy
- Medical ethics and bioethics
- Business ethics
- Philosophy of art
- Philosophy of language
Why Philosophy?
A great reason to study philosophy is that doing philosophy is deeply fun.
- Have you ever had an epiphany that electrified you and changed the way you see yourself and the world?
- Have you ever wanted to stay up late talking about big ideas with thoughtful people?
- Have you ever wondered what might happen if you took the time to think through your beliefs about what is real and what matters?
If so, you might love our courses!
Studying philosophy can also be an excellent way to prepare for the future. In your philosophy courses, you will have the time and space to reflect deeply about your own values and challenge your most basic assumptions, while also gaining many transferable skills.
Philosophy classrooms are an ideal training ground to develop expertise in critical thinking, emotional intelligence, creative problem solving, and clear and compelling verbal and written communication.
Building character and learning how to navigate life in the context of great uncertainty—this is what a liberal arts education is all about!
What Can I Do with Philosophy?
Philosophy majors make more money than you might think.
- Philosophy majors have the highest salary potential of any non-STEM major.
- They make more on average than chemistry, marketing, business administration, biology, history, and many other majors (World Economic Forum).
- There is high demand for philosophy majors in the tech industry (Forbes) and many other business sectors (Huffington Post).
- Experts say that a philosophy degree offers a great “return on investment” (Forbes, The Atlantic, The Guardian, Wall Street Journal) and may soon be worth more than a computer science degree (CNBC).
Considering graduate school?
- Philosophy majors earn top scores on the GRE, LSAT, MCAT, and even outperform business majors on the GMAT (as reported here, here, here, here, here, and here).
- Philosophy has long been known as the ideal preparation for law school, but there is also growing demand for philosophy majors at Harvard medical school and others (Washington Post, New York Times).
- Philosophy majors are thriving in all sectors.
Hear about the lasting benefits of studying philosophy from Nick Hanauer, entrepreneur and social-change advocate, Robert Rubin, former US Secretary of the Treasury, and from Carly Fiorina (chief executive of Hewlett-Packard), Sheila Bair (chair of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.), and NBC journalist Katy Tur (Washington Post).