“Philosophy is to be studied, not for the sake of any definite answers to its questions since no definite answers can, as a rule, be known to be true, but rather for the sake of the questions themselves.”
– Bertrand Russell

Practical Application
Personal Fulfillment
Transferable Practical Skills
Flexibility
Convenience of Double-Majoring
Career Preparation
Degree Options

Practical Application 
    With emphasis on applying philosophy to everyday life, our program will prepare you to use ideas and theories from the history of philosophy to address real world issues in such realms as education, business, law, public policy, and society in general. Our courses in applied ethics are particularly relevant for anyone interested in the role played by ethical values in a variety of professional settings. Because philosophical concepts, principles, and methods of inquiry are applicable in any field, what you will learn in philosophy can be applied in virtually all facets of life.

Personal Fulfillment
    Philosophy is an attractive area of study that affords a high degree of personal fulfillment. Although philosophy does not promise conclusive answers to all questions; studying philosophy can provide you with the intellectual resources with which to think clearly about them—resources that you can retain and continue to use throughout your life. Beyond contributing to your work or livelihood, studying philosophy can have intrinsic personal value. Expansion of consciousness, self-discovery, self-renewal, and a more clear direction in life are outcomes you can expect to experience. In short, philosophy is education for a lifetime.

Transferable Practical Skills
    Our program provides excellent training for skills widely sought after by employers, including skills of comprehension, communication, and reasoning. You will learn to interpret, analyze, and evaluate information and evidence, summarize and present information clearly and accurately, adjudicate between various positions, ask pertinent questions, think through difficult problems logically and creatively, identify assumptions and reasoning errors, draw out implications and summarize conclusions, and, not least, to reason and argue a topic through and to develop and present new arguments.

Flexibility
    Beyond a small group of core courses, you have the flexibility of choosing your remaining courses from a variety of options, including some courses in religious studies, sociology, or political science. This means you can choose the courses that best meet your personal needs and interests. Or instead of adhering strictly to the catalog requirements, for a degree in philosophy you also have the option to create an individualized plan of study in consultation with your faculty adviser. For even further flexibility, we schedule our courses at different time periods throughout the day, and you can take some courses in the evening, on the weekend, or online.

Convenience of Double-Majoring
    Because of the flexibility noted above, you can easily fit a philosophy major into a four-year plan. Students often find philosophy to be a useful second major to complement their primary area of study. You can combine a major in philosophy with a major in another discipline to add substance and breadth to your baccalaureate degree, giving you a competitive edge in the marketplace or when pursuing an advanced degree.

• At Findlay a popular option is combining philosophy with a major in law and liberal arts. Click here to learn more about the value of a double major in applied philosophy and law and liberal arts.
• Other synergetic pairings with philosophy include psychology, religious studies, and, interestingly, business.
• One national study found that students majoring in philosophy scored 10 percent better than political science majors—a popular choice of students preparing for law school—on the LSAT. And philosophy majors outperformed business majors on the GMAT (the test taken by those wanting to enroll in an MBA program) by a margin of about 15 percent and outperformed every other undergraduate major except mathematics.

Career Preparation
    The most obvious career path for someone majoring in philosophy is to continue with graduate work in philosophy, with a view to teaching in a college or university. However, many philosophy graduates opt for a non-academic profession. Philosophy is excellent preparation for vocations requiring a liberal arts education, including law, government, communication, management, the ministry, teaching, or even business administration.
    Click here to learn more about career opportunities for individuals with a degree in philosophy.

Degree Options
    Click here to learn about degree options in philosophy.