Why Study Philosophy

A degree in philosophy enhances your education by teaching you to reason critically, form clear concepts and questions, and solve complex real-world problems. Our program emphasizes nurturing clarity of thought and the development of practical thinking skills that can be applied to a wide range of career paths that include further graduate studies, law school and careers in public health, higher education and more.

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Benefits of a Philosophy Degree

Undergraduate philosophy majors are among the most employable graduates, according to a 2011 Georgetown University study. At the time of the study’s publication, 92 percent of graduates who received philosophy degrees were employed. A 2013 article on Salon.com agrees: philosophy emphasizes clarity of thought and produces some of the most employable graduates.

Our students have found that the skills they learn in philosophy transfer exceptionally well into their areas of interest in almost all other disciplines. Majors from accounting, art history, biology, computer science, international studies and even physics have benefitted from taking philosophy courses that supplied them with a source of intellectual interest and curiosity not even touched by their first major.

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Discover more about what you will learn with our faculty

Connect with Us

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Philosophy Club

The Department of Philosophy sponsors a student-run organization we call the “Socrates Café” or “Phil Club."  Phil Club is open to all who want to engage in advanced philosophical discussion beyond the classroom, but typically members of our Phil Club are undergraduate and graduate students including, but not limited to, philosophy majors, minors, and students from other departments throughout DU. 

During the academic year, Phil Club will meet once per week to discuss and debate philosophical topics ranging from moral philosophy to logic and counterfactuals. We tend to bring in DU and external faculty to give a quick talk about a specific issue, and then take comments, arguments, questions and suggestions from the students. Our faculty have been known to say that if a professor can get through a night with the Phil Club, they can get by the most difficult panel of their peers! 

If you are interested in joining the Phil Club, please contact either Club President Luke Bartelt (luke.bartelt@du.edu) or the Phil Club mailbox (philosophy.club@du.edu) for more information regarding meeting times, days and location. 

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Our Alumni

Our many alumni have gone on to study in nationally-recognized law schools and graduate programs across the country, and to pursue careers in public and private companies and organizations.

  • Law School
    • Brandon Arnold: Law school at DU, fall 2018. Arnold had offers from several other top law schools, but chose DU.
    • McKeezi Barazza: Law school at UW-Seattle, beginning fall 2016. Barazza was also accepted to CU Boulder and DU law schools.
    • Stacey Darr: Law school at Arizona State University, Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law, fall 2017. Darr received a merit scholarship for full tuition and fees.
    • Emily Martinez-Bettinger: Law school at the University of California-San Diego.
    • Jonathan Daskam: Law school at DU.
    • Michael Mauro: Law School at DU.
    • Tara Tinnin: Law School at DU.
    • Kristen Roszel: Law School at DU.
  • Graduate Programs
    • Brandon Fernandez-Comer: Master's degree in public health at UCLA, fall 2018. Fernandez-Comer remains employed as a (salaried/benefited) grant writer in North Hollywood, CA.
    • Tal-hi Bitton: PhD in philosophy at University of Oregon, fall 2018. Received MA in philosophy at George Washington University, fall 2016 to spring 2018.
    • Jasmine Carter: PhD candidate at CU Boulder in philosophy.
    • Patrick Walsh: Doctoral student at Carnegie-Mellon in philosophy, specializing in logic, computation and methodology, PhD expected in 2019. Received MA at CM in philosophy, specializing in logic, computation and methodology, summer 2015.
    • Tiffany Montano: Master's degree at MSUD in public policy and social work, fall 2015.
    • Vincent Mennella: Master's degree in humanities at the University of Chicago.
    • Philip Pauli: Master's degree in philosophy and social policy at The George Washington University.
    • Tucker Plumlee: Master's degree at Iliff (DU) in social change.
  • Public and Private
    • Sophie Marsh: Year-long legal internship doing government contract work, fall 2018.
    • Daniel Easton: Received EdD from UC-Denver, spring 2018. Currently working at CU Boulder as associate director of student conduct in the Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution.
    • Gabe Rusk: Received MA at Oxford University in religious studies in 2016. Rusk currently works as director of debate at Fairmont Preparatory Academy in Anaheim, CA.
    • Jack Mao: Received MA in Japanese from CU Boulder, 2016; received MA in linguistics and literature from CU Boulder, 2016. Mao currently works in Denver at the Bridge Education Group teaching Japanese and Chinese and being the administrative assistant for the IELTS international English testing system.
    • Tina Rulli: PhD at Yale, 2011. Currently assistant professor at University of California-Davis.
    • Bryan Hall: PhD in philosophy at CU Boulder, 2005; Fulbright scholar 2003-2004; professor of philosophy at Indiana University Southeast since 2006.
    • Christian Rockwood: associate director of annual and special funds at the UC Davis School of Law; MA in political science, University of Washington, 2005; MBA from DU's Daniels College of Business, 2008.