Frequently Asked Questions

Below is a list of frequently asked questions by our undergraduate students about our programs. If you have a different question or would like further clarity about any of the below, please contact our Director of Undergraduate Studies, Shieva Kleinschmidt.

  • If you are a first-year Philosophy student:

    Undergraduate Advisor for First-Year USC students
    Alex Eloriaga
    ajwroble@usc.edu

    If you are a non-first-year student in one of our majors, or are interested in how one of our programs would fit into your plans:

    Undergraduate Advisor for Non-First-Year USC students
    Otis Clarke
    oclarke@usc.edu 

  • You should talk first with your academic advisor. They are the expert on what the requirements are (it can differ across catalog years), and what the rules are. The general process is: if your question is about philosophical content (e.g., “what does a particular course cover?”, “what are the differences between lower-level and upper-level philosophy courses?”, “can this course I took elsewhere count toward my major at USC?”), the Director of Undergraduate Studies is the person to ask. If your question is about logistics in scheduling, start by asking your academic advisor.

  • Start by looking at the course description on our department’s website.  Then, for more info, look at USC’s Schedule of Classes to see who is teaching it (this differs semester to semester).  Then email the professor and ask what they will cover.  Each course is taught slightly differently by each professor, so they’re the best person to ask.

  • If it’s a course you want to take, but it isn’t necessary for your major:

    Email the professor, and ask if they would allow you to over-enroll. (Note that they aren’t obligated to over-enroll their courses.) You can call our department at 213-740-4084 to ask for more information about the course, and if you can’t get a hold of the professor, you can also ask for info on when the professor’s office hours are. If you can’t get a hold of the professor before the term starts, at the beginning of the term, attend the course and ask the professor if you can enroll then (sometimes students drop). Note that for some of our larger GE courses, extra seats are added periodically so it is helpful to check.

    If it’s a course you need to take for your distribution requirements / to graduate:

    Do all of the above steps. But if you’re unable to get a hold of the professor, you’ve tried emailing multiple times, and (if it’s during the academic year) you’ve tried attending their office hours, or if the professor has said they will not over-enroll their course, email both your academic advisor and the Director of Undergraduate Studies. Note that in general, courses can fill fast so it’s important to take major requirements like Gateway courses and other distribution requirements early if you can. But even when everyone is trying their best it can be hard to get everything to work out, so we’re here to help you if you’re having difficulties with it!

  • First, download the form here and read through the restrictions. Especially note that lower-division courses never count for upper-division credit. Note also that only two courses from a major, and only one for a minor, may be taken outside our department. Fill out the form and, if possible, meet with your academic advisor to discuss what you’re requesting and how that fits with your major/minor requirements. Then send the Director of Undergraduate Studies all of the information (including course syllabi) in a single email.

  • Follow the steps described for the question above.  But also know that to meet our logic requirement for the Philosophy major, PPE major, and PLPE minor, you must know both propositional and predicate logic; the logic course you took elsewhere needs to have covered the syntax and semantics of quantifiers and you should be comfortable doing proofs in predicate logic.  (It’s likely you’ll also have been introduced to modal operators and Free Logic.)  To have an externally-taken course satisfy this logic requirement, the materials you send the Director of Undergraduate Studies (such as the syllabi, but also sample assignments or exams if possible) must show that you’ve done this more advanced logic work.  For the PPL major you do not need to have covered predicate logic in your logic course.

  • It sometimes is! You should contact the instructor teaching the course you’re interested in waiving a prerequisite for.  Also, talk to your academic advisor about the restrictions on which future courses you can take for credit once a prerequisite is waived. For example, if you get a pre-requisite waived, you can’t later take that pre-requisite for credit for the major.

  • Absolutely!  We have a variety of events described on our departmental Events page.  Among them are the department’s regular colloquia, where professors from other universities come to give presentations and then answer questions.  Undergrads are very welcome to attend those, and you can find our colloquium schedule here.  No advance registration required.

  • You are always very welcome to talk to the Director of Undergraduate Studies or to come to departmental events! But in terms of which class to take next, the recommendation would be one of our 300-level Gateway Courses:

    These courses will give you a deeper look into Philosophy, and they also focus on how to write Philosophy papers, giving you a better idea of what you’ll be expected to do if you major or minor in Philosophy. Finally, the Gateway Course is a requirement for all majors in the Philosophy department, as well as for the Philosophy minor.

  • You can find a list of our majors, minors, and other programs (as well as information on what’s required for each) here.

     

    Our majors are:

    • Philosophy (BA)
    • Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (BA)
    • Philosophy, Politics, and Law (BA)

     

    Our minors are:

    • Philosophy Minor
    • Philosophy of Law, Politics, and Economics Minor

     

    We offer this progressive degree:

    • Progressive Degree in Philosophy and Law (MA)

     

    And the Linguistics department offers:

    • Linguistics and Philosophy (BA)

     

    Note that for the requirements for the various majors and minors, you should contact your academic advisor for the most updated information. The requirements in the catalog change over the years.

  • Congratulations! We love it when people pursue majors with departmental honors. You can get Honors in Philosophy with any of the majors housed in our Philosophy department. The three requirements are: (i) complete the standard requirements for your major (including the major’s capstone (PHIL 475) if you’re a PPE major); (ii) have an average GPA of 3.5 or higher in all upper-level courses for your major; and (iii) complete the Honors Capstone (PHIL 495). If the Honors Capstone is impossible to take given your schedule, you can pursue a Senior Thesis Seminar (PHIL 494) as an alternative.