The Philosophy department introduces students to the basic principles and techniques of logical thinking and argumentation, to the history of philosophical thought, to the basic problems of philosophy (What is real? What can be known? What is really worthwhile?), and to a set of methods by which contemporary moral, social, and political problems may be clearly understood and perhaps resolved.

Philosophy courses provide an excellent introduction to your college studies since they raise the fundamental questions and problems that each academic discipline and our society as a whole attempt to answer. They identify and re-evaluate the beliefs, perspectives, values and ideals of each age, and in doing so, gives us a deeper understanding of ourselves and the times in which we live.

In addition, the study of philosophy has the added benefit of fostering the development of skills and abilities essential to your career and personal development, such as:

• the ability to think clearly and critically
• to analyze concepts and assess arguments
• to solve problems
• to formulate, develop and express a coherent and rationally defensible point of view
• to understand different perspectives behind disagreements
• to understand the relationship between values and competing claims to truth