Careers

Like many liberal arts, philosophy does not aim at studying the subject matter of any particular occupational field. Nevertheless, studying philosophy provides a uniquely rigorous intellectual training that equips its graduates with critical thinking and verbal skills that give them an advantage in virtually any career they choose to pursue. Many students combine philosophy with a course of study related to the occupation of their choice because studying philosophy will help boost their standardized test scores and enhance their desirability to employers and postgraduate institutions in comparison to their peers who lack the rigorous intellectual training of a philosophy degree.

Philosophy students acquire skills that employers want such as: Core Competencies

Critical Thinking[1]
Logical Analysis[1]
Creative Problem Solving
Writing
Communication Skills
Ethical Awareness[1]
  • Philosophy graduates go on to build successful careers as attorneys, paralegals, professors, software engineers, public relations specialists, local government officials, high school teachers, lease administrators, emergency medical technicians, and cultural affairs officers.
  • Studying philosophy leads to significant, measurable improvements in critical thinking ability compared to other disciplines. 1
  • In a study evaluating over 600,000 undergraduate records, philosophy majors scored higher than all other majors on standardized tests of verbal and logical reasoning. 1
  • By their senior year, philosophy undergraduate students demonstrate significantly higher levels of key intellectual habits. They tend to be more curious, open to new ideas, and careful in their thinking. 1
  • Philosophy majors consistently top the charts across standardized graduate admissions testing metrics, providing strong evidence that studying philosophy directly enhances higher-level thinking skills. 1

Ready to declare Philosophy as your major or minor?

Once you declare, you and your advisor can track your remaining course requirements directly in PAWS.

Declaring as a major will also assign you a dedicated faculty advisor in the Philosophy department.

Resources

  1. [1] PRINZING M, VAZQUEZ M. Studying Philosophy Does Make People Better Thinkers. Journal of the American Philosophical Association. Published online 2025:1-19. doi:10.1017/apa.2025.10007
Top