Philosophy (First Year and Transfer)

• Information for Transfer Students
• Philosophy courses most often transferred

Philosophy
Academic Bulletin

When advising a student interested in Philosophy, please note:

Entering and other students can’t go wrong with any 100 level course.  
*Offered Fall 2021

• PHIL 130 (Science and Values) emphasizes the topic areas its title suggests.
  • It also serves a role in the Art, Science, and Innovation major.
• *PHIL 140 (Ethics and Community) emphasized the topic areas its title suggests.
  • It also serves a role in the Business major, Community & Justice Studies Major, Education Studies Minor, Energy & Society minor, Global Heath Studies major.
• *PHIL 165 (The Examined Life: Philosophy Through the Ages) focuses on classic and contemporary texts.

200-level courses should be accessible without prior preparation to entering first year students with stronger than average writing and reading skills. PHIL 210 is open to first-year students only on individual consideration (please contact Department Chair Eric Palmer for consideration)

The Major in Philosophy requires completion of at least 42 semester credit hours as outlined below:

• Two introductory courses from among Philosophy 130, 140 and 165. It is recommended, but not required, that these courses be taken before courses above the 100 level.
• Philosophy 220
• One of Philosophy 230 or 240
• One of Philosophy 260, 270, 350 
• Philosophy 310
• Philosophy 580
• Philosophy 600 and 610
• Two elective courses in philosophy or cognate courses from another discipline. By consulting with faculty, students may use electives to create an emphasis in a specific area of philosophy.

The Minor in Philosophy requires completion of at least 24 semester credit hours as outlined below:

• Two courses from among Philosophy 130, 140, 165 and 220.
• Philosophy 310
• Philosophy 580
• Two electives to bring the total to 24 credits.

Philosophy majors/minors are required to have a GPA of at least 2.0 in the Major/Minor at graduation. All department courses taken at Allegheny on a letter-grade basis are included in that calculation, with the exception of repeated courses for which only the most recent grade counts. No more than one Philosophy course that is taken Credit/No Credit will count toward the minor.

Information for Transfer Students

Pathways to the Philosophy Major

A Philosophy major might be achieved on a 2 year schedule by a student who transfers in two (3-credit) introductory philosophy courses from earlier college experience and pursues the following schedule (for explanation of non-numbered course requirements noted in the table, see further below):

(The schedule above is hypothetical: history of philosophy courses and science and philosophy courses are offered each year, but their pattern of offering varies between spring and fall.)

More detail on the Philosophy major: The path to a Philosophy major might best be traced back from its endpoint (graduation!). It requires completion of 42 credits.

In your Fourth (Senior) Year:
You must complete your senior project, a two semester sequence of your own independent work, carried out under the supervision of a faculty member. PHIL 610 is the course that completes your senior project.

PHIL 610 is preceded by a tutorial half-course (2 credits – PHIL 600) that is preparatory work to develop the project. PHIL 600 should be taken in the semester before PHIL 610. So, PHIL 600 may be taken as early as your Junior year spring semester, or in the fall semester of your Senior Year.

In your Third (Junior) or Fourth Year:

Along with PHIL 600, you should expect to take our highest-level course offerings: the junior seminar (PHIL 580, regularly offered in fall) and an applied seminar (PHIL 310 (regularly offered in spring)). These two may be taken either year, it is not crucial that PHIL 580 be taken in the Junior year.

In your Second (Sophomore) or Third Year (or, if not completed earlier, in your Senior Year):

You should expect to take epistemology (PHIL 220) at least one history of philosophy course (PHIL 260, 270, 275) and one sciences and philosophy course (PHIL 230, PHIL 240).

And, for those who begin their college education at Allegheny, or transfer in after the first year:

In your First or Second Year:

You should expect to take two of our introductory-level courses (PHIL 130, PHIL 140, PHIL 165). You may also take 200-level courses.

A Philosophy minor is easily completed in two years. A student should expect to take our highest-level course offerings: the junior seminar (PHIL 580, regularly offered in fall) and an applied seminar (PHIL 310 (regularly offered in spring)). These may be taken either Junior or Senior year. The minor also requires 24 credits total, of which two courses should be from among PHIL 130, 140, 165 and 220. That two course requirement might be satisfied through transfer courses: for details, see the “Philosophy courses most often transferred” below.

Students transferring to Allegheny College who are considering a Major or Minor in Philosophy should feel free to ask questions of the Department Chair (Eric Palmer, epalmer@allegheny.edu) to informally discuss courses that may transfer to satisfy specific requirements listed above.

Philosophy courses most often transferred 

Issues to consider for transfer credits:

1. A 3-credit transfer course with a similar description and course content will be accepted to fulfill a 4-credit requirement in Philosophy. However, a student must still meet the minimum number of credit hours required for the major (or minor), which might necessitate taking or transferring elective courses in Philosophy.

2. Philosophy requires two introductory 100-level courses towards the Major, and up to two such courses may be counted towards the Minor. Students who transfer in a Philosophy course to Allegheny College are most likely to receive credit that will serve to fulfill the requirement for one of those introductory courses. This is necessarily so if the course transfers in as PHIL 130, 140, or 165. It is very likely to be the case even when courses transfer as a generic number, PHIL*1TE or PHIL*2TE. It is safe to say that any introductory course in a standard area of philosophy such as logic, metaphysics, epistemology, or critical thinking will qualify. Explicit determination may be decided upon consultation with the Department Chair.

3. History Courses: PHIL 260 Ancient Greek Philosophy, PHIL 270 Early Modern Philosophy, and PHIL 265 Black American Thinkers are likely to be transfer equivalents for courses with similar titles and historical spans (PHIL 165: courses covering at least two figures in ancient Greece and Rome together may qualify; PHIL 270: European philosophy during the period of 1580 to 1790, and covering at least three figures, may qualify). Other courses (e.g., Medieval Philosophy, History of African Philosophy) may qualify as satisfying the history course requirement for the major. A course focused upon history of philosophy that is discontinuous, jumping through time periods, is unlikely to qualify, and is likely to transfer either as PHIL 165 or PHIL 1*TE equivalency. 

4. Epistemology course: PHIL 220 Epistemology is likely to be a transfer-equivalent for any college-level course with the title “Epistemology”, “Theory of Knowledge,” “Knowledge,” or “Problems of Knowledge.” A course with the title “Knowledge and [second subject area]” is unlikely to qualify as PHIL 220 and is likely to transfer as PHIL 1*TE equivalency.

5. PHIL 285 Business and Management Ethics is likely to be a transfer equivalent for another college-level course with the title “Business Ethics” or “Management Ethics” or a similar title, where the course has an upper-level (above introductory level) number within the numbering system that is used by the institution at which the course is taught. Introductory level courses are likely to transfer as Phil 1*TE equivalency.

6. PHIL 385 Medical Ethics is likely to be a transfer equivalent for a college-level course with the title “Medical Ethics” or “Biomedical Ethics” or a similar title, where the course has an upper-level (above introductory level) number within the numbering system that is used by the institution at which the course is taught. Introductory level medical ethics courses are likely to transfer as Phil 1*TE equivalency.

7. Cognate courses: Up to two courses that count towards a Major in Philosophy may be “cognate courses”. A cognate course (from an area outside of the study of philosophy) will qualify as providing credits towards the Major if your advisor at Allegheny College finds that the course you propose contributes to your philosophical work. This arises most frequently when a course contributes towards informing work that will be developed in the Senior Project. So, for example, a Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies course may be a suitable cognate for a student whose work focuses upon social and political philosophy. Your academic advisor at Allegheny determines qualification for cognate courses following your arrival, Usually well into your study at Allegheny, so this will not affect decisions regarding qualifying transfer courses. But having a background in relevant courses may reduce the number of courses in Philosophy that will be required to complete the major. 

Students transferring to Allegheny College who wish to consult on courses should feel free to ask questions of the Department Chair (Eric Palmer, epalmer@allegheny.edu) to informally discuss courses that may transfer.