Mar 28, 2024  
2015-2016 Catalog 
    
2015-2016 Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Philosophy Minor


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The minor in Philosophy provides students with an understanding of the principles, methods, and areas of application of contemporary philosophy. Philosophers study conceptual questions within and between the humanities, arts and sciences: What is freedom? What is justice? What is the relation between mind and brain? Philosophy at UC Merced combines a traditional curriculum with an emphasis on these interdisciplinary linkages. Because of this, students should be able to use their training in philosophy to complement their other coursework and to identify connections between their various areas of study.

Lower Division Minor Requirements [4 units]


 Complete one of the following courses:

Upper Division Minor Requirements [16 units]


  • Four upper-division courses chosen from a list on the SSHA Advising website ssha-advising.ucmerced.edu. Pre-approved courses not on the list may be substituted. Pre-approval should be sought from Philosophy faculty.

Program Learning Outcomes


Upon graduation, we expect students minoring in philosophy to master all of the following:

  1. Logic: Identify and assess the logic of arguments.
  2. Topics: Identify and explain the central questions within major topics of philosophical research.
  3. Ideas: Describe the contributions of major thinkers in the philosophical canon.
  4. Application: Apply philosophical knowledge (from logic, topics, or ideas) to a subject in another discipline, and/or apply knowledge from another discipline to a subject in philosophy.

The following guidelines pertain to all SSHA minors:


  • To complete any SSHA minor, students must complete a minimum of five courses, at least four of which must be upper division.
  • All courses must be taken for a letter grade.
  • All minor course requirements must be completed with a C- or better.
  • A minimum overall grade point average of 2.0 (C) in upper division courses is required. The only exception is a minor in Arts, for which the minimum GPA in upper division courses is 2.7 (B-).
  • At least three of the five required courses must be taken at UC Merced.
  • Only one course may be used simultaneously to satisfy requirements for two minors.
  • Only one course may be used to satisfy both a minor and a major requirement.
  • Students must consult the UC Merced General Catalog for prerequisites to required courses.

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